I believe growth happens in the reflection, not just the doing. Here I share honest observations from the field — real classrooms, real students, real results — guided each year by a single word that keeps me grounded and growing.
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My #OneWord Journey:
Each year, one word guides my professional and personal growth.
My #OneWord Journey:
Each year, one word guides my professional and personal growth.
🌟 2026: Strengthen
💡 2025: Impact
✍️ 2024: Author
🌱 2023: Develop
🚀 2022: Momentum
🦋 2021: Transformation
💪 2020: Challenge
Seven Words, Seven Years:
What #OneWord Taught Me About Growth
Seven Words, Seven Years:
What #OneWord Taught Me About Growth
A reflection on intentional practice, unexpected alignment, and the power of a single word.
I didn't always believe one word could change a year. Then I tried it.
In 2019, I chose Challenge — inspired by a Twitter chat where someone dared me to write my dreams, not just my attainable goals. I typed "present at conferences and write a book" and Jay Billy responded with three words: "Just Do It." I had no idea what was coming. In 2020, a global pandemic challenged all of us in ways none of us could have imagined. I presented at ten virtual conferences, sent my book draft to publishers for the first time, and got COVID. Challenge didn't just guide my year — it gave me the mental toughness to survive it. Read my Challenge reflection →
Transformation followed naturally. In 2021, I signed my first book contract, published TRANSFORM: Techy Notes to Make Learning Sticky on my birthday, presented at 38 conferences — including two keynotes — and opened TannenbaumTech LLC. I didn't just reflect on transformation. I lived it completely. Read my Transformation reflection →
Momentum was my reminder not to become complacent. In 2022, I presented at 19 conferences, published 33 blog posts, and paid off my book costs. But momentum, I learned, requires tending to the whole person — not just the professional one. Read my Momentum reflection →
Develop arrived out of necessity. Using a Generate, Sort, Connect, Elaborate thinking routine, four buckets emerged: my business, my school community, my health, and my family. I became an ISTE Certified Educator and ASCD Emerging Leader. I broke my foot — and while recovering, lost 20 pounds. By year's end, I had lost 65 pounds and run 176 miles. Sometimes our setbacks redirect us toward exactly what matters most. Read my Develop reflection →
Author came to me on the last day of 2023, exhausted and finally resting. Everything I brainstormed pointed to stories — writing them, creating them, celebrating them. I chose Author before knowing it would mean publishing in ASCD Educational Leadership, taking the ISTE 2024 stage, and beginning the journey toward my second book with ISTE+ASCD. Read my Author reflection →
Impact asked the hardest question: is this actually making a difference? I started 2025 on the last day of 2024 — after one of the hardest fitness classes of my year — reflecting on everything Author had brought. I had lost 77 pounds, watched my son graduate college and my daughter start college, celebrated my 10th wedding anniversary in California, given my first ISTE Ignite talk on the mainstage, and won both ISTE 20 to Watch and the VATLL Impact Award. Even as my family navigated job transitions and financial uncertainty, Impact said yes — loudly — to the question I had been afraid to ask. Read my Impact reflection →
Strengthen — I found this word through Gemini, after entering my 2026 goals and letting AI help me see the pattern. It resonated immediately because I'm not starting over. I'm building on what already exists — my body, my relationships, my book, my mission. This is the year I signed my second book contract with ISTE+ASCD. When you strengthen something, you make it more durable than it was before. That is exactly what this season calls for. Read my Strengthen reflection →
Have you chosen a #oneword? I'd love to hear it — find me @TannenbaumTech or drop me a note at debbie@tannenbaumtech.com.
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