2021 Word of the Year

Choose a 2021 word of the year to focus energy around what matters most to you, and to then maintain that energy all year long.

Word of the Year Generator

This is my seventh year of choosing a Word of the Year! I love doing this as a way of centering my life. What word will you choose for 2021?

Choosing a Word of the Year for 2021

What You'll Find on This Page

I’ve written before about how to choose a word of the year. My favorite place to start is with my word of the year generator, and that is how I got my word this year.

Previous Word of the Year Choices

Here are the words I chose for previous years:

My Word of the Year for 2021

It took a few spins on the word of the year generator, but I eventually landed on NOW as my word of the year for 2021.

2020 was quite the year! In our house, we added a cancer diagnosis on top of everything else. My husband Mike will be okay, but we had some pretty scary weeks figuring out what was wrong with him. He’s finished with radiation for now, and if we’re lucky that will also be his last round of radiation.

I’ve always been aware of the importance of living in the moment, but I everything that happened in 2020 emphasized the importance of mindful living.

So, when the Word of the Year generator pulled up NOW, I knew I had my word!

Why This Word After 2020?

Like many people, 2020 was often very hard for our family. My son’s friend was hit by a car and killed. My grandmother passed away and we weren’t able to attend the funeral due to the pandemic. My father had (and, thankfully, survived) a heart attack. 2020 was a year of often devastating news headlines, often that I wasn’t sure how to deal with.

Then there were the other difficult but less heart achy things. Trying to teach music online instead of in a classroom. My daughter having school trips she had earned money for and looked forward to canceled. Shelter in Place regulations keeping the entire family at home all day every day, and limiting contact with friends and loved ones.

2020 had its good moments. I enjoyed not driving my kids all over the place for activities. We made time for activities that we hadn’t made time for in years, like decorating gingerbread houses. I reconnected with a couple of old friends, and learned how to use Zoom and Marco Polo and Discord to keep in touch with the people I love.

What Does My 2021 Word Mean to Me?

I have a lot of hope for 2021, but we still have a lot of uncertainty to juggle! NOW reminds me to focus on what I have, what matters most, and the problems I can solve rather than the ones I can’t.

What is your word of the year for 2021?

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MaryAnne Kochenderfer

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MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.