I like New Year’s resolutions and although I’m a little late, I have set myself one. I’m challenging myself to live this year by five words: Wonder, Growth, Giving, Friendship, and Contentment.

Last fall I was privileged to partake in a G+ Mentorship program that had a profound effect on my thought process and my life. I’m now trying to write in my journal on a regular basis,  I try to choose gratitude over privilege and I want to live my life with intention. It’s been an adjustment, but one that has already seen some amazing payoffs.

When our group leader, Shari Miller asked us what our “definite yes” list was I was confused. I had never heard this term before. She wanted us to list five words we considered to be our core or essential values. Five words that when you hear them, you want to respond with an emphatic: “Yes!” I looked at a list of 418 descriptive words and quickly narrowed my choices down to 10 and from there to these final five:

  • Wonder
  • Growth
  • Friendship
  • Contentment
  • Giving

I’m interested in seeing how this list of five ‘yes’ words will effect my photography. So far I’m finding myself open to using my iPhone more which helps me keep that sense of Wonder I had with my first toy photos. Friendship was an easy ‘yes’ word for me; I’ve always put a high priority on my friendships. I organized a toy photographers meet-up on January 1st because I wanted to get my new year off to the right start. What better way than a day filled with friends, photography and toys? Growth was another easy choice. I’m committed to growing my skills as a photographer as well as a person. Continuing The Basics series and of course nurturing this blog will a huge part of that Growth process.

So far this year is off to a great start!

Using words to jump start my photography isn’t a new practice. Last year I completed a photo challenge with Kristina that led me to describe my photographic journey with the word ‘seeker’. I feel like I’ve added five new words to my arsenal that I can fall back on to inspire and motivate me throughout this year. Like any good New Year’s Resolution, I’m sure there will be course corrections needed along the way. Stay tuned because I will periodically revisit this post to see how I’m doing.

~ Shelly

What are your five “yes!” words? If you feel comfortable sharing your words, please take a moment to comment.

Did you make a photographic New Year’s Resolution that you would like to share?