GIVING, the word for 2026.

Every year, people pick a word.

Focus. Growth. Alignment. Abundance. Discipline.

All good words. All very Instagram-friendly.

But this year, our word is GIVING.

The real kind.
The inconvenient kind.
The kind that doesn’t wait until you “have more.”

Why GIVING right now?

Because we’re living in a time where it’s easy to feel like you need to protect what little you have.

Money feels tight.
Time feels scarce.
Energy feels stretched so thin.

And the lie we’re sold is that “Once I’m more stable, then I’ll give back.”

That moment never magically arrives though does it?

GIVING isn’t something you graduate into.
It’s something you practice your way into.

GIVING is about intention.

Let’s get something straight real fast...

You don’t need a six-figure income.
You don’t need a nonprofit.
You don’t need a platform.

You need awareness and willingness.

GIVING can look like:

• Sharing knowledge instead of gatekeeping it

• Referring someone instead of competing with them

• Offering time, not advice

• Supporting causes quietly, consistently, imperfectly

GIVING isn’t about how much you have.
It’s about how available you are to contribute.

GIVING builds capacity.

This is the part where people get uncomfortable...

But GIVING doesn’t drain you when it’s aligned.
On the contrary, it expands you.

It changes how you see money.
It rewires scarcity.
It reconnects you to purpose when business or life starts to feel pretty damn hollow.

Some of the most grounded, fulfilled, financially stable people I know are generous. This is not because they’re rich and rolling in the dough, but because they don’t operate from fear.

GIVING reminds you that you're not powerless, you're not separate and that you are part of something bigger.

“But Jessica, I’m barely getting by…”

I respect that. Trust me.

GIVING does not mean setting yourself on fire.
It means asking better questions.

Instead of: “What can I afford to give?”

Try: “What do I already have that could help someone else?”

That might be:

• A connection

• A recommendation

• A skill you take for granted

• Encouragement when someone is one step behind you

Sometimes the most meaningful giving costs nothing but attention.

How you can start GIVING today...

Not next quarter. Not when "things calm down".

Today. Toddaaaaay.

Here are a few grounded ways to begin:

• Support one cause or business consistently, even in small amounts

• Share someone else’s work publicly without expecting reciprocity

• Volunteer your expertise, not just your money

• Buy local. Hire small. Tip well when you can.

• Teach what you know while you’re still learning more (someone still needs to know what you now know).

No announcements required. No need to go live.

Just take some action.

Why GIVING is the energy we're carrying into 2026, and you should be too.

Because impact matters more than optics.
Because success without contribution feels empty.
Because the world doesn’t change from the top down but instead, it changes laterally.

Giving isn’t a side note to our work.
It’s part of how we define success moving forward.

Not louder. Not flashier. Just more intentional.

And if enough people decide to give where they are, instead of waiting to be “ready,” absolutely everything shifts.