Last Updated on December 27, 2024 by Alex Birkett
My friend Joe Martin is a smart guy.
I look up to him when it comes to designing a fulfilling life, and also when it comes to acoustic Kanye West covers.
One of the coolest things he does is name his year in advance. It sets the intent for your actions and is a quick heuristic for decision making.
For example, your year’s theme could be “connect,” and that could mean striving to build your professional network or to deepen the existing relationships in your life.
Last year, I chose the word “Arena,” to reflect my desire to become more visible and vocal, particularly with my business, but also in personal life, spending a significant amount of my time outside of my apartment, into my new home, the arena of New York City.
It was, of course, inspired by the Teddy Roosevelt “Man in the Arena” speech, which I know is cringey to some modern, jaded readers. But I like it. And I think cringe is probably a good thing, or at least a signal that it means something to you.
How did it go? Pretty good. Second half of the year was better than the first. The first half I don’t think I embodied the word if I’m being honest. I stopped hosting meetups as regularly, stayed in more, etc. But around June / July, that changed, and I started doing guest podcasts, speaking IRL, and hosting marketing meetups every 2 months or so.
If I look at the past few years, there’s a theme among the words I’ve chosen. In 2021 and 2022, I chose “commit.” This was what I desperately needed to be fulfilled, because I had previously been a dilettante with hobbies, work, and relationships, more interested than side projects and escapist travel than digging deep and laying roots.
Now, I love commitment.
In 2023, I chose “king,” to embody the mature masculine, a sense of magnanimity and leadership that I needed to guide our business through a rocky and chaotic year and myself through a life transition moving to NYC.
All of these words, to me, represent a sense of courage, a faithful step into the unknown, a “shoulders back and head up” unflinching approach to the world.
So, my word of 2025 is the seemingly religious, “Faith.”
What “Faith” Means to Me
I grew up catholic, lost my religion around high school (when the words of George Carlin, Sam Harris, and Richard Dawkins sunk into my brain) throughout college and into my twenties, and I’m too scatter-brained to tell you where I’ve landed now. But it’s somewhere in the realm of a believer without the dogma. I wear a cross, but it represents something broader than what I learned as a kid.
But “Faith” to me doesn’t necessarily mean religion. It means a sense of confidence, fidelity and commitment, and optimism in the face of uncertainty.
The word “faith” originates from the Latin word “fides,” which means trust, belief, or confidence. The term passed through Old French “feid” or “feith” before entering Middle English as “faith.” The Latin root reflects concepts of trustworthiness, loyalty, and reliance, particularly in relationships or agreements (e.g., the fidelity of a contract).
Obviously, in modern times, the religious connotation is the strongest. In religious contexts, “faith” often denotes a firm belief in something without requiring empirical evidence, aligning with the idea of trust in divine authority or spiritual truths. In truth, I like this definition, but mostly because it is in opposition to overly rationalist takes and jaded or cynical positions
Critics, like skeptics or rationalists, may equate faith with a lack of evidence, reducing its nuance. Conversely, advocates often see it as an active, intentional trust in uncertain domains. I choose the latter.
I mean, I light a manifestation candle every time I take a sales call.
Overall, what it really means to me is what my business partner David and I have been repeating to each other for the past 3-4 years: faith, not fear.
In many ways, I’m at a precipice, standing in front of big lifestyle changes, and that can often induce a sense of fear or paralysis. Considering entering a serious relationship or marriage, considering bringing your business to the point of large stature, from dozens to hundreds of employees. What could go wrong? Anything and everything. What could go right? Anything and everything.
When I was a little kid, we often went to this waterpark in Wisconsin Dell’s, Noah’s Ark, and the coolest ride was the “point of no return.” I desperately wanted to ride it, but I was always too short.
When I finally hit the adequate height, I remember taking the long walk up to the top of the slide, every step inducing slightly more fear and panic, my heart incrementing 1-2 BPM for every 5 feat of elevation gained. Standing, ultimately, at the top of the slide, looking straight down the barrel at a seemingly vertical drop, I was completely petrified. My brain and body screamed, “walk back down!”
I looked back, the line behind my long, winding, and tracing down the steps I had just progressed. Luckily, my sense of shame over walking back down was more powerful than my fear, so I plugged my nose, and plunged down the slide. And it was exhilarating.
As a former skateboarded, I liken it to the first time I successfully dropped in on a quarter pipe. Anyone who has done this knows you must commit fully, leaning into gravity, otherwise you’ll fall backwards and hurt yourself.
So, that’s what I mean by faith. A blend of fear and passion where ultimately you just trust yourself and the outcome and take the leap.