Crafty Neighbor's Neighborhood Gossip: Words Have Power

Saturday, February 13, 2021

Words Have Power

Howdy, crafty neighbors! This month in our newsletter, Brandi Reyna will be introducing the Crafty Neighbor Craft of the Month (CotM for short?) a new theme that will be featured across all our Crafty Neighbor media from the newsletter to Facebook, blog, and Instagram. I hope you’ll enjoy this new segment; we think it will be a great way to help us dig deeper into our various crafts and widen our skills and knowledge in some unique ways.

Our topic this month is The Power of Words: Planning and Goal Setting. Back in 2012, I wrote several blog articles about using power words as part of my 365 art journaling project. (I’ve linked those articles below.) My use of power words has evolved in the last nine years, but my belief in the power of words has stayed the same. In her novel, A Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood wrote,

“A word after a word after a word is power.”

And even Mother Theresa proclaims,

“Kind words can be short and easy to speak,
but their echoes are truly endless.”

The idea of a power word is not a new one. My son’s high school orchestra used power words in a unity circle before every concert. Each student would share his or her word and the idea was that in unity, all these powerful words come together to make a whole, cohesive orchestra.

Blogger Christine Kane uses power words in a different way. She contends that your power words give you intent. Each year, instead of making New Years resolutions, she does a lot of soul searching and comes up with her Word of the Year. The word becomes her touchstone to stay focused on what’s important and to remind her of her goals. You can read more about it in that link above, and she even offers a free worksheet to help you find the right word for you.

Since 2012, I have been choosing an annual that has helped me change and grow and learn a lot about myself in the process. In 2013, I used my word as the foundation of my 365 art journaling project mentioned above, and I continued to work in that art journal using various words over the years. For the last three years, I have been doing so through a process designed by Ali Edwards called One Little Word. One Little Word is an online workshop with monthly prompts that guide you through exploring your word. I posted flip-through videos on my YouTube channel that illustrate two of the albums I created as part of One Little Word. This year, I’m working in a journal rather than a pocket album, which is providing a different experience in the creative aspect, but is just as effective at facilitating the process of growing in my word. In fact, I’ve worked many of the prompts exactly the same as in previous years, but in a flatter bullet journal style, which has really challenged my creativity. You can see most of my 2021 project on my Instagram and Facebook feeds.

Here are a couple of examples of some of the work I’ve been doing:

My 2021 vision board.

A page in my OLW journal.

This year, I have also committed to exploring Lara Casey’s Cultivate What Matters Power Sheets goal planner. It’s yet another way to set some intentions and build on what you are doing with your power word. In fact, part of the prep work that goes into Power Sheets is a step that helps you find the right word. Power sheets can be started any time and there is even an undated, 6-month planner if you want to give it a try without a full-on commitment. Christine Kane’s worksheet is free, but both One Little Word and Power Sheets are paid products. These are all great places to start, but you can also do what I did when I first started – just find a word and find some projects that speak to you and let you express and explore that word. I’d be interested to see where it takes you.