Simplify and Focus

Have you ever chosen a word of the year? Many artists and creatives do and for 2025 my word(s) are ‘simplify and focus.’

Artists, and many others, follow this trend for various reasons:-

• To set goals for what they want to achieve in the year ahead.

• To set intentions for the direction they want their work to take, and how they want to grow as artists and people.

• To remind themselves of what they want more of in their work and life.

It’s not a rigid rule, rather more of a flexible guide to inspire positive change.

This year I have two words so perhaps it is more like a mantra. In Buddhism a mantra is described as a word or sound to aid concentration in meditation, which feels appropriate for how I am using it.

I have been testing out my words for the month of January, just to see if they are useful and the correct choice for this year. I have to say I am feeling very positive about them!

I have a tendency to want to do everything I am interested in, I love to learn so I am constantly reading and researching new techniques and ideas for my art. Then I have my website to mange, social media posts to create, and the list goes on. Of course I would like to see my friends and family occasionally, and there is the boring but necessary household tasks which always get put to the bottom of my list.

There is so much noise in the world we have to learn to cut out what we don’t need. 

To bring any project to the point of completion it is essential to make it a priority and avoid distractions. Then, for the sake of emotional wellbeing and to prevent overwhelm, we have to accept it is impossible to do everything.

An important part of taking care of our emotional health is making time for the things we love to do and that therefore reduce our stress. For me that is creating art and getting out walking in nature.

So I have my to do list and I have prioritised what the most important things on it are. 

• I made sure to include studio time and walking or they would end up being pushed down the list.

• I have accepted that there are items on there that may never get done.

• I am trying to be realistic about the number of items I can do in one day.

• I am focusing on what I got done on any particular day rather than what I didn’t.

Then when I feel the pull towards doing another course on art, or watching an interesting video on youtube, or going down the rabbit hole of social media, or allowing myself to become anxious about all the things I have to do, I remember my mantra.

I close my eyes and I repeat the words ‘simplify and focus’ I take a few deep breaths and I refocus on the task I am doing. As part of this self care I set an alarm for walking time, it clears my mind and helps me concentrate when I return to work.

I am finding this process a very helpful method of managing my time and reducing stress. 

If you are interested in choosing a word of the year you may find it helpful to think about the past twelve months. Consider what went well, what did not go so well and then ask yourself what would I like more of in my life. That should give you some good ideas. Remember it is not set in stone, you can change it and it is just a gentle reminder to yourself of how you want your life to be.

I create art with the aim of reducing overwhelm and encouraging others to take some time for themselves. You may find viewing some of my fine art prints relaxing.