Haydee [00:00:30]:

Hey, hey hey! Well, hello there! Welcome to this SPECIAL episode of Voluptuous Questions. Happy New Year! Please accept my warm, squishy hug. My name is Haydee.

Haydee [00:00:47]:

And today, I’m SO excited to interview YOU. As we start our journey through 2024, It’s important that we set an intention for 2024. It’s easier than you think. And today, we will do EXACTLY that. Don’t worry, this will be much easier than accoomplishing a New Year’s resolution. So let’s get started! My question for you today is, What is your word for 2024? I know.

Haydee [00:01:25]:

I know. This question SHOULD be the easiest question I’ve asked you because it’s just 1 word that I’m looking for, pretty much, although, we’ll get into that a little later. BUT it’s one of the hardest to answer because you will REALLY have to think about what ONE word resonates with you NOW and will help guide you for the remaining months this year. By the way, even if you listen to this podcast during any other year or during any month of the year, you can still do this activity and get some benefit from it. However, if you’re listening to this podcast during January 2024, then it’ll be even MORE powerful. If you don’t want to miss any future episodes of this podcast so that you’re always in sync with me, please follow me on Spotify by clicking on the follow button under the Voluptuous Questions podcast. You can also subscribe or follow this podcast on other music platforms as well.

Haydee [00:02:29]:

You may be wondering, what is the purpose behind finding a word of the year? Essentially, we want to select a word that will be our light that guides us forward, that keeps us in the present moment and that grounds us. We want the word to motivate us, to boost our momentum, while at the same time, it makes us conscious of what we are living, how we are living, and the choices that we are making. This word will also help us get unstuck in the areas that we KNOW we need to work on. We’re choosing this word for a reason. It’s a GOOD reason. It’s to improve in a particular area OR in our overall life. It’s like you’re the hero of your own story, and you need a sidekick, which will be the word of the year to give you that extra power and boost to continue being marvelous, being extraordinary, being amazing and being wonderful at what you do. Is that clear? I hope so.

Haydee [00:03:44]:

Let me share my thought process in choosing my own word, and hopefully, that helps you understand this activity even more. When choosing your word of the year, you can come up with your own word, meaning you can use your intuition to look within yourself and identify the word that’s been on your mind for a while or that will pop up seconds or minutes after you ask yourself this question: What word would REALLY support me this year? If you ask yourself this question and no word pops up in your mind, you can Google “word of the year,” and you’ll find lots of suggested words from hundreds of sources. I will also include resources in the show notes for you. If you’re going to use the premade word list, read the words and highlight those that resonate with you. After you finish highlighting the words, ask yourself this other question. Based on the things that I want to accomplish this year, which word will help me achieve that? OR you can also ask yourself: Which word do I have the strongest connection with? Your intuition, logic, and soul will help you identify that word. And ta-da!

Haydee [00:05:08]:

You’ll have your word! Don’t overthink this process. When you see your word, it’ll click the most, and you’ll know. It’s important that you keep your word of the year front and center. Some people print out a worksheet of the word and put it somewhere where they can see it. Others scrapbook with the word. Others create or buy jewelry with the word or have a mug with that word that they use often. If you buy jewelry, I would recommend a comfortable and sturdy bracelet or a ring with that word.

Haydee [00:05:47]:

That way, you can SEE it, and you always feel comfortable wearing it. Do whatever works for you to make sure that this word is on your mind and heart all throughout the year. As you can see, finding this word is NOT like a New Year’s resolution because you’re NOT going to just give up by mid-January. That certainly is NOT the plan. Instead, you’re going to weave this word into your everyday life, including your challenges and joyous moments. This word is there to support you, Not add more things on your already way too long to-do list. This word will be like your friend for the rest of the months this year. Get comfortable with it.

Haydee [00:06:39]:

Get to know it. Learn from it by listening to it and recognizing what it has to teach you. So what is my word for 2024? It is flow, f-l- o-w, flow. This word and I have a history together. I have ALWAYS loved this word, and I use it often. As a matter of fact, one of the sentences that I’ve said most often, both out loud and as a thought, is “I just want things to flow.” Well, this year, I’m gonna allow things to flow. If you’re a firstborn, you KNOW that choosing flow DOESN’T come naturally.

Haydee [00:07:26]:

You know what other word does. What is the main reason I picked the word flow? Because the thing I want to work on the MOST this year It’s my feminine energy. As I’ve explained in other podcast episodes, the last few years have made me have MORE responsibility than most people experience during this time, and I want to return to my natural state where everything DID flow better, where I had more time and space for myself, where I was looking forward to precisely years like these to do the things I want to do. So this is the year to reclaim this. After you find your word and you make sure that the word you chose supports you in what you most desire to work on or achieve this year, ask yourself this question: What does this word mean to me? Write down a few meanings YOU give this word so that YOU know what FULLY embodying this word looks like in YOUR life. For example, What does flow mean to me? The first thing flow means to me is to surrender, to know that the universe is MUCH wiser than I am and that ALL things happen for a reason. In the words of The Beatles, I need to “Let It Be.”

Haydee [00:08:59]:

It’s definitely NOT one of my favorite songs, but I guess that line has a message that I need to embody. One song that I DO like and that I TOTALLY identify with since the moment I heard it in the movie theater, is “Let It Go” from Frozen. Isn’t it amazing that both of these songs start with “Let It”? There’s a reason for that, I’m sure. 😃 The part of “Let It Go” I MOST identify with is “It’s funny how some distance makes everything seem small, and the fears that once controlled me can’t get to me at all. It’s time to see what I can do to test the limits and break through. No right, no wrong, no rules for me. I’m FREE.

Haydee [00:09:52]:

Let it go. Let it go. I’m one with the wind and sky.” And the other part that also resonates with me is, “I’m never going back. The past is in the past. Let it go. Let it go, and I’ll rise like the break of dawn. Let it go.

Haydee [00:10:13]:

Let it go.” It’s almost like the storm mentioned in the song is made up of the external forces that I can’t fully control, so I just need to let nature run its course and let people do what they do. In the process, they’ll show me who they truly are. 🤭 In the meantime, I’m free to do what fulfills me. So in the end, all will be well. 😉 The second thing flow means to me has to do with a super simple but powerful lesson that Dr. Wayne Dyer taught me. As I’ve told you before, I had the honor and privilege of seeing Dr. Wayne Dyer live and getting his autograph.

Haydee [00:10:58]:

And during one of his speeches, he mentioned that the children’s song “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” that many of us grew up knowing is MORE profound than it seems. He basically said that it’s a metaphor for life, and he’s right. Listen to the lyrics which say, “Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the stream, merrily merrily merrily merrily, life is but a dream.” In other words, life is like a river, and when we row, we should do it gently. And the easiest way to row gently is to flow WITH the current, not against the current. And we should do it merrily, meaning happily, because after all, life is like a dream. And some of us, I won’t mention any names, sometimes take life too seriously, when in reality, we should actually just go with the flow. It would save us from having SO much stress, SO much worry, being SO uptight, focusing on SO many things we THINK are important, and missing out on the tinier things which are TRULY important.

Haydee [00:12:22]:

The third thing that flow would represent to me, if I fully adopt it, is mental freedom. I’m someone who feels VERY deeply. My Enneagram, which we will talk about in another podcast episode, proves this. I’m a highly sensitive person which comes with its blessings and challenges, But I also THINK a lot. I ANALYZE a lot. I want to find out the WHY of things. It kinda makes sense that I have a podcast about questions, right? When it comes to this podcast, I could hypothetically let YOU feel your feelings, have YOUR favorite things, and wonder about life on your own.

Haydee [00:13:16]:

And I could do the same thing on my own. But no. I actually want YOU to tell ME about your answers and explain your why, and I want to tell you about my answers. And with every episode I record, I’m thinking more than I’m feeling if I think about it, which is quite surprising now that I say this out loud. In many podcast episodes, I’m processing my thought process. It’s fun to do it for this podcast and other passion projects I have. That’s part of the reason why I do it. But can I be honest with you? When it comes to life in general, I waste SO MUCH mental energy trying to understand life, people, things that happen, things that people say, don’t say, do, don’t do, that it’s SO tiring, SUPER exhausting, And I’m tired of processing so much ALL THE TIME, So I want to let things flow so I can have MORE mental freedom to be CREATIVE, to have more FUN, to do MY THINGS, to pursue MY GOALS, to achieve MY DREAMS, To just be, to have more peace, I KNOW this is going to be challenging for me because being as empathetic, intuitive, and perceptive has in many ways actually been a safety and survival mechanism for me in this world.

Haydee [00:15:06]:

Reading people is important, but *sigh.* But I have to believe now that whenever it’s time to shut someone out of my life or step away from someone’s life, I’ll know, and I’ll do it. Focusing on the positive things that I mentioned before is a MUCH better use of my time. It will bring me IMMEDIATE advantages instead of making me waste time on things that I shouldn’t be wasting my time on. The 4th thing that flow means to me is acknowledging that life is like a roller coaster. There will be ups and downs and even plateaus throughout the course of the year, and all I have to do is to go along with life knowing that I’m supported by that roller coaster cart that I’m sitting in. As long as I trust that that cart will take me where I need to go, I’ll get to the finish line. But the point is NOT getting to the finish line. It’s about enjoying the journey.

Haydee [00:16:16]:

When we don’t flow with life, when we want to go in the opposite direction of where life is taking us, While we kick and scream at the things going on around us, instead of raising our arms while riding the roller coaster, Smiling and laughing and enjoying the journey, we don’t fully live. We just go through the motions, and that’s sad 😔. And if you think about it, in a roller coaster, even the journey downhill is actually fun 🎢. In real life, the dips we go through make the high-vibration moments in our life even better. The fifth thing flow means to me is being able to read the room, read the situation and read my feelings and energy level so I can make wiser choices about how to move through life. If I’m able to read my surroundings and people around me and the signs I’m getting from them better, then I’ll be able to live more in alignment to where it would benefit me the most. There are cycles in life, in the year, in our month, especially as women. and the energy that we have or use to achieve our desires ebbs and flows.

Haydee [00:17:41]:

So learning to act when we need to act and rest when we need to rest will provide us the sustainable energy we need to live well in the present and move confidently toward our future goals. I recommend that you write down 5 things that your word of the year means to you. But as you now know, I think more than I probably should, so I’m going to share with you a sixth thing of what flow means to me. As I was thinking about this word, I noticed that flow can happen in various directions. And when it comes to the flow of energy specifically, I am aware that I need to flow with the energy of life like on a continuum with its ups and downs, of course. I also need to allow my own energy to flow from within my soul and my heart to the world, meaning, from my interior to the exterior. My energy also needs to flow within so I can give myself the things I need, meaning from the exterior world into my soul and my heart. And finally, I also need to flow my energy as prayers and for the universe to flow down to me as blessings and the answers to my prayers.

Haydee [00:19:07]:

Being aware of the fluidity of flow will allow me to better adjust and navigate through all the wonderful and not so wonderful things that happen this year. This in and of itself feels like a superpower. Don’t you think? I think so. That’s why I chose the word flow. 😂 As you could see, identifying what your word of the year means to you and how it would look like in real life is helpful so that you can start weaving it through your life starting right now. And if you want to take the concept of word of the year even further, you can take your word and make it into an acronym. For example, when I look at flow and write it vertically, meaning going down, and take every letter of the word and make it the first letter of some new words, the words that immediately come to mind are free, love, open, wonderful. The reason I chose these words is because allowing things to flow in my life will make me feel free.

Haydee [00:20:18]:

I will love myself, others, and my life even more than I do now. I will be open to new life experiences, And ultimately, flowing will make my life more wonderful. These words can be like secondary words to the sensations you will experience if you apply these new words to your life. They can also be reminders of how to apply your word of the year. For example, if I ever forget how to, quote, unquote, flow, I can tell myself, be free. Love others and yourself. Be open. Let life be wonderful.

Haydee [00:21:00]:

So when should you do this activity? The short answer is ASAP, as soon as possible. According to ancestral knowledge, planting the metaphorical seeds for what you want this year to look like and be like It’s something that is best done during the first 13 days of the year. So please set aside some time to do this activity, which is really grounding to your soul and make it a priority to apply your word of the year the most during these first 13 days while also making a commitment to apply it for the rest of the year, You are totally worth this moment of introspection and reflection. All the wonderful art, architecture, discoveries and musical masterpieces relied on inspiration, but also on planning to carry out that inspiration and present it to the world. Thinking about these things and doing this activity is NOT a waste of time. On the contrary, it’ll add value to how you live your life going forward. As you know, time is something you’ll never get back. But going forward, make sure that time is also working for you and for your benefit.

Haydee [00:22:19]:

I can’t WAIT to hear what your word of the year is now, and I can’t wait to listen to your stories at the end of the year about how this word supported you in living a more happy, conscientious, peaceful, and fulfilling life. Please share what your word of the year is by visiting Voluptuous Questions on TikTok or by visiting www.voluptuousquestions.com/contact . And if at any point throughout the year you want to share how your word is helping you. I’m open to hearing it. I can flow with that. 😂 Okay? Sounds like a plan.

Haydee [00:23:01]:

I’m also including some resources that can benefit you if you head on over to the show notes over at www.voluptuousquestions.com/podcasts. I wish that this year is one of your BEST years EVER. Personally, I think it’s going to be excellent. Maybe not a perfect year, but a perfect year for OUR evolution and emotional growth. And all throughout the year, please remember: You’re the star of this podcast and the star of your life. Keep shining brightly ALWAYS ✨⭐️✨.