This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

Before reading the Washington Post this morning, I had not heard of the word “nudge” to describe words.

The writer advised readers to pick a New Year’s “nudge” word instead of making resolutions.

Here is how the article started:

“While everyone else is making New Year’s resolutions, try something different.  Pick a personal nudge word instead.

“This annual word-of-the-year exercise can help you reflect on your values, intentions, and hopes for the new year.  Think of it as the anti-resolution resolution.

“Instead of setting a specific goal, choose a word that captures the mind-set you want to adopt in 2023 — a word that will nudge you toward positive change whenever you think of it.

“To better understand the word-of-the-year exercise, it helps to know what it is not.  It should not be a broad resolution (exercise more), a specific action (lose 20 pounds) or a goal (save more money).

“Instead, choose a single word that reflects how you want to live in 2023.”

The writer then offered some tips about how to select a “nudge” word, then gave some examples.

1. Write down the things that made you happy this year.  What felt good?  What do you get excited about?  What would it take to feel this way all the time?
2. Next, think about what parts of your life could be better.  What causes you stress?  Are you thriving at work or feeling bored?  Do you wake up excited about your day?  What’s happening in your relationships?
3. Finally, check in with your body.  How is your physical health?  How is your mental well-being?  How do you feel when you look in the mirror?

Here are the examples:

• Words of reflection: awareness, awe, breathe, pause, reset, gratitude, resilience, optimism, focus
• Words of change: reset, renew, nourish, energize, growth, recharge, evolve, bloom, adventure, travel
• Words of connection: relate, reconnect, experience, balance, engage, cherish, comfort, listen

What follows would normally be the lead for this blog post, but I wanted to set up the definition of “nudge” before revealing my own words.

I thought of several contenders:

• Realism
• Optimism
• Resilience

Then, I settled on two because I could not find a way to limit myself to one – and the two could be linked in terms of the emotions they contain:

Thankful:  I want to be thankful for all the blessings I have received – and I want to express thankfulness frequently to those who have helped me.  [This reflects one thing I learned from a mentor in Oregon state government many years ago.  He said he tried every day to express his appreciation to those who had helped him.  Good intentions and commitment.]

Cherish:  I want to cherish my loved ones, for I have many.  Think of the word means:  “Hold or treat as dear; feel love for; to cherish one’s native land.”

So, for me, I will nudge myself to be thankful and to cherish in the New Year, 2023.