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[Prefer to listen? You can find a podcast version of this article here: E243: My Three Words for 2025 – Setting Intentions for the New Year]

As we enter a new year, it’s common for some of us to reflect and set goals for the coming year. This can take the form of resolutions, to-do lists, and other goal-setting activities.

While setting goals can work well for some, it’s not always effective for everyone.

The pass/fail nature of goal setting, in which a person either succeeds in achieving a goal or fails, can be ineffective for some people because it can create unnecessary pressure and lead to a negative mindset.

If a person feels that they have failed to achieve a goal, they may become discouraged and lose motivation to continue working towards it. This can be especially true if they have set unrealistic or overly ambitious goals or if they have experienced unexpected setbacks or challenges along the way.

Furthermore, the pass/fail approach can be limiting because it does not allow for the possibility of growth or learning.

Because of this, I’ve chosen to adopt an alternative approach to setting intentions for the new year.

For quite a while now (since at least 2015) I’ve implemented the “Three Words” exercise created by Chris Brogan.

Rather than setting goals, the three words exercise involves defining three words that align with your intentions, energy, and focus for that year.

Chris explains it in this way:

The My Three Words idea is simple. Choose 3 words (not 1, not 4) that will help guide your choices and actions day to day. Think of them as lighthouses. “Should I say yes to this project?” “Well, does this align with my three words?”

I’ve found that this method is much more effective for me than setting goals. It removes the pass/fail factor and instead treats personal development as a journey and promotes continuous improvement regardless of specific outcomes or milestones.

In short, it’s been a powerful way to set myself up for success in the coming year and I have noticed that this exercise has really helped me make progress in my personal and professional life.

Before I share my words for 2025, I will reflect on my words for 2024. Last year, I chose “clear, slow, and strong” as my words.

Clear: I wanted to be even more intentional about the direction of my life and my career. I feel good about how I "cleared" some distractions from my life and this year I wanted to get even more clear about my life. I have a tendency to take on too much and spread myself thin. It's a theme that I've talked about before. And this past year I am pretty happy with how I did. I focused more on what's important and got even clearer about the direction I want to go.

Slow: I needed to slow down (in a good way). I think fast, talk fast, and work fast. This often makes me really productive. But it also comes at a cost. It can lead to stress and anxiety. So I needed to slow down and be more present. I did pretty well here. I practiced talking slower and being more present in the moment and it has really helped my communication.

Strong: I did great here! As I write this, I'm currently on a 20-week streak of not missing a single workout. I feel stronger, I look stronger, and I love the habit of lifting weights three day a week.

Overall, I was really happy with how well I stayed in alignment with my three words in 2024.

So while 2024 wasn't perfect (because life is not perfect), I maintained integrity with my three words and I'm very satisfied with how the year turned out.

So what about 2025? For this coming year, I’ve chosen the following three words: elevate, present, and thrive.

Elevate: I'm on a mission to level up my skills in a lot of areas. I feel pretty solid in my ability to serve my clients but I have a hunger for acquiring deep knowledge of the nuances of financial planning. I earned some tax and bookkeeping credentials last year and there are so many ways to go deeper. My mission to earn more knowledge and credentials this year is even more intense!

Present: I need to be more present in a lot of ways. Recently my son called me out for spending too much time on my phone and he's right. I have not been as present with my family due to phone addiction and I intend to break that bad habit this year. I want to be present with my family, in my work, and in all areas of my life.

Thrive: I feel like life was "fine" last year, and I'm generally happy. But I didn't feel like I was really living life to the fullest. I'm not a fan of toxic positivity or keeping up with other people's Instagram lives, but I do want to travel a little more and go on more adventures with my family. My plan is to make that happen in 2025.

I love this exercise because it avoids the head trash that can result from the pass/fail nature of goal-setting. Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and place for setting goals. But for me, setting three words is much more effective when defining a theme for an entire year.

I love this method of approaching the new year and highly recommend learning more about it. You can get the full explanation and instructions from Chris Brogan’s three words video.

If you decide to define three words of your own, I would love to hear about it! Feel free to reach out and tell me the story behind your three words. I’m here to support you in any way that I can.