You need a Word of the Year as a salon owner

A single word can change the way a year feels. We unpack the practice that’s guided us for years, which choosing one anchor word that filters every decision across business, health, money and family, and we show how it beats scattered resolutions and burnout cycles.

We revisit last year’s choices to prove the point:
“Simplicity” reshaped meals, work systems and mental load, creating space for better client care and calmer days. “Nurture” helped navigate identity shifts, newborn rhythms and a tween’s big feelings, softening our pace without losing momentum. Those words weren’t slogans; they were daily cues that redirected tough moments toward better outcomes.

Now we set our compass for 2026 with two distinct energies.
“Elevate” is about rising one notch in the moments that matter: steadier leadership, clearer conversations, and a more intentional home and client experience. It’s not hustle; it’s embodied growth.
“Discipline” builds the structure that freedom needs: hard stop at 3:30, deep work in focused blocks, less scrolling, stronger training, and money choices that align with family goals. We share practical guardrails you can copy, from lock-screen reminders to boundaries that hold during launches, and we map out how these words will guide retreats, travel and creative projects without tipping into chaos.

If you’re ready to choose your own word, we walk through a reflection process to surface patterns, name what you want more of, and test words that truly support you when you’re tired, tempted or triggered.
Come pick a word that fits like a glove and stretches like a goal. 

Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs a reset, and tell us:
what’s your word for 2026?

To follow our journey:
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@the_conscious_salon

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Welcome back to another episode of the Conscious Sell On podcast.

SPEAKER_01 0:11

I'm so like thrown with you wearing a hat. I'm used to wearing a hat, but I'm not really used to you wearing a hat. I wear a hat. I feel like you're into Scott Conscious.

SPEAKER_00 0:17

I know, but I think it's because I'm wearing a hat in the podcast studio and I never do, but I actually wear a hat every single day. Shout out to Lou, one of our private clients, founder of the Colour Society. If you don't follow her, go and follow her right now. She is the educator in the hairdressing industry that you need to watch out for this year.

SPEAKER_01 0:34

Amen.

SPEAKER_00 0:35

But yes, I'm wearing her hat today. I wear her hat every single day, or I wear like one of my hats every single day.

SPEAKER_01 0:40

Do you wear the one that I've got? Leave your husband. I haven't worn Leave Your Husband just yet.

SPEAKER_00 0:45

Um, but I am partial to a hat, but it probably looks a bit foreign in here. But I'm just trying to change my lookup because like let's be honest, guys, we're bulk recording and we it's the same day, but we just wear different outfits, so it looks like a different day. I've stopped changing my pants now in these recordings.

SPEAKER_01 1:00

I just changed my t-shirt and yeah, not in a change room anymore either.

SPEAKER_00 1:03

She's just taking no, I'm just taking it upon myself to just change in the studio with producer Aiden in the room, and it's we're all right.

SPEAKER_01 1:09

Whether he likes it or not, I mean that's a lawsuit waiting to happen.

unknown 1:13

Honestly.

Pivot To The Power Of Words

SPEAKER_01 1:14

I don't I still um give you know, make sure that I'm being decent. Totally. But good to see the hat. But that's not what we're here to talk about outfits or hats. No, we're here to talk about our words.

SPEAKER_00 1:26

Our words, yeah. Yeah, we are.

SPEAKER_01 1:28

We did drop an episode at the beginning, I think it was the beginning. Was it the first week? No, was it this? Yes, it was. It was the first week of January. All around, it's a lovely episode.

SPEAKER_00 1:39

If you haven't listened to that, get your naughty little butt back there and listen. Because we we love chronological order. People always tell us that they're like, I went right back to the Starty Podcast, and I'm like, please don't do that.

SPEAKER_01 1:49

Oh my god, please do. There's a really funny the first trailer one with the Phantom Phone is so funny.

SPEAKER_00 1:54

It is funny, but then there's some real um garbage in there, let's be honest. But I think disagree. I don't know. It got it, you know, it elevated a lot in the past like 12 months.

SPEAKER_01 2:04

Just sharing my word as well. Um, the episode is though, if you haven't done that, go and do it. It's a 13, 14-minute episode.

SPEAKER_00 2:13

It's quick, it's so beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 2:15

It's designed to oh no, one of my best mates has just done it.

Recap: Reflection And Intention Process

SPEAKER_00 2:18

I don't even know if I told you. I did your episode. So Tess runs us through the journaling because she's an incredible journal prompts queen. Thank you. And she took us through the she has this beautiful process where the episode one is the reflections piece. So we do a beautiful reflection of all the things. Oh yeah, weren't you gonna do it with Pete? From the previous year. I just did it by myself, actually. I just thought, no, I can't nail Pete Pete down. He's apparently got so much on.

SPEAKER_01 2:45

To be fair, no, he he does get flustered with when we have to write things down pen to paper. When we played the game on Christmas, and he couldn't he couldn't do it because it was too much pressure. Too much pressure. We said just do it because I I can't handle the pressure.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

We wouldn't want to rattle Pete Young. No, but it's so Tess takes us through this beautiful reflections piece of 2025, and that was really interesting. I actually had a lot come up for me, and not stuff that I necessarily want to share on the potty, but I'll share with you on the tough tits if you wanted to hear about that.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

That's over.

SPEAKER_00 3:16

But if and then with and then we do an intention setting episode, which is where you actually go through this process and then it spits out, or you'll like you'll find your word will land with you. How about that? Doesn't spit it out, but your word will land.

SPEAKER_01 3:31

Yeah, and I haven't gotten the personalization where I can give it to you, but we'll see how we go.

SPEAKER_00 3:38

But it's a really powerful thing. So we have had words of the year for five years.

SPEAKER_01 3:43

So I would say at least like we've been something that we've well, I'm trying to think. It has no actually I reckon no, no, no, it was longer than that because it was back when um we did Emma, because I remember like one of my first ones was lean in and trust, which then flipped into trust. Because I remember and I had that as my background for ages because I had so many fucked up trust issues, and like all of that was a whole host of fun for um me and my therapists to get through. But that was so it's been years that we've been doing this, like a really long time.

Why Anchor Words Matter For Creatives

SPEAKER_00 4:14

I think we've probably been doing it for more like closer to maybe 10 years. Yeah, I think we've done the rocks for five years for sure. But every year, for those of you new around here, every year we choose an anchor word that is sits with us for the whole year. And I feel like this we do this with all of our clients in our world as well. I feel like for so many people in the hair and beauty industry, we are naturally creative people. And it is it can be really hard for us to stay on track, but having an anchor word for me has helped me to make decisions throughout my year. It's helped me stay regulated and purposeful throughout the year. And the biggest thing is it stopped me fucking getting really distracted with like, oh, this is my goal, now this is my goal, now this is my goal. Or forgetting. Or forgetting.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

Like, yeah, what was that thing I said again? I can't remember. Yeah.

2025 Words In Action: Simplicity

SPEAKER_00 5:10

And so we basically choose an anchor word and we do it really intentionally, and we choose that word with you know, this is what we want to base our year around, this feeling, and we bring this word into every aspect of what we do family life, health, personal, business, spirituality-like all of the things, even financially. We bring it into basically every aspect of our lives. And I just think it's such a level up and such a game changer. And today we really want to share with you guys what our words of the year are for 2026. And I want to reflect a little bit on our words of the year for 2025 and how they played out for us.

SPEAKER_01 5:46

I think this will be really good.

SPEAKER_00 5:48

So, my word of the year for 2025 was simplicity, and I really wanted to simplify my life as a whole. I wanted to simplify my work life and the way that I was working, just even in terms of what I was doing day to day. I wanted to simplify my family life, I wanted to simplify my household, I wanted to simplify my health and my food. That was a huge one. And look at the areas that I was really overcomplicating my life. And this to me was such a huge anchor in terms of some of the things that I was able to reduce, let go of, or make easier for myself and my family in 2025. So the areas that these played out were definitely for me for my health, really simplifying the way that I ate. And every time I ate a meal, I would really try to anchor into, you know, majority of the time, looking at where can I make this meal more whole foods-based? Where can I make this meal more simple? Where can I make this meal um easier for my body to digest? Where can I simplify my health and my exercise and my routines? Where can I simplify my day-to-day? Like everything came back to simplicity. It was a really, really expansive word for me, and I really felt like I honored it. And there were so many times that I would go to do something complicated or um difficult, and I would come back to that word of simplicity and think, how can I make this easier? How can I make this more simple?

Words That Birthed Businesses

SPEAKER_01 7:21

The words for us have always really played out into how we show up. Each like it's crazy how it starts showing up. So one of the years that we did this, Nikki's word was conscious, and not coincidentally.

SPEAKER_00 7:35

It was before we started the conscious home.

SPEAKER_01 7:37

Yeah, but that was when it was birthed.

SPEAKER_00 7:38

We didn't even know that the name was gonna be conscious. Yeah. Like it's so it's so weird to me that I was just like, I just want to step into like I wanted to live my life more consciously. And we set that in December or January.

Nurture, Identity And Growth

Announcing 2026: Elevate

SPEAKER_01 7:50

Yeah, I think it was I can't remember when it was, but anyway, early on, and we you that was like one of the first rocks that were done. And you wrote conscious, and that really that was when conscious Allen was birthed, which I think is like it's amazing how it can show up. Um, I shared earlier on a call as well that my word for the year was expand, and that was the year that I fell pregnant. I was really wanting that to be what was coming, but it wasn't just about being pregnant, it was like evolution, growth in its in itself. Last year my word was nurture. And I've had some time to think about this because when I actually thought about it the other day, and I had this conversation with mum actually, where I was like, Oh, I feel like I did that really well in terms of like how I showed up for like my family, for my son, like I was really um like at a different pace. I wasn't working nights anymore in the salon. I um really had a different experience, and I definitely think in terms of how I showed up at home, that was a really great version, and how I showed up um for the most part for everyone else around me, I feel like that was really like nurturing. But I said to Mum, I feel like my inner critic voice was really loud this year, so I felt like I hadn't really lived that out for myself. But now when I actually think back to it, and I've had some time to really reflect on that, I actually think that a large amount of that discomfort around like or even with the inner critic, that was more from loss of identity. My my whole world shifted and I suddenly had this newborn. I actually think I was really nurturing to myself, and even when it was challenging, I learned how to let things go better or move through things or have uncomfortable conversations. I think about even the growth that you and I have had with like our communication and our like leveling up as well. So many things that you know, and we we constantly work at this, but I think about the way that even those aspects before it would have been quite hard. It was quite nurturing and soft, even when I like didn't really want to be. So I feel like I've honoured that word really well. I think there's always growth that can still happen with that. And I I don't think it's fully uh fully um finished. I think part of it will go on, which is where my word also links in to this year, which I'm just gonna share. My word for this year, which I've already mentioned on the earlier episode anyway, is do we need a press release of this? Yeah, are you guys ready? My word for this year is elevate because I feel like last year was such a slow, different way for me to operate and like kind of like a bit of finding my feet and um you know having a newborn and navigating this with a um a tween who's you know um also going through her own hormonal changes and things that are happening as well. She's growing, she's growing up, she's not a baby anymore as well. I needed to be quite nurturing, whereas now when I think of elevate, for me it's about it's not something where I'm like, all right, I'm gonna send it this year. Like I'm I've got my kid in daycare, literally today's day one in daycare, and I'm you know, not at that point of being like, all right, well fucking go. Like that's not who I am anymore.

SPEAKER_00 11:02

I don't know if we'll ever be at that point again.

SPEAKER_01 11:05

No, I don't think so. Um, and like saying like sending it that doesn't resonate with me, or like, you know, going all in or balls to the wall. Things that I've said in the past, elevate seems like the right progression for me in terms of like I really do want to elevate myself as a human being. I really want to elevate our businesses. I'm so focused on elevating like myself, the podcast in any way that I can, embodying that word is going to really level things up for me. And it's interesting because one of our private clients also has the same word, ironically, which I suppose. Her rock is so beautiful as well. Lauren, if you're listening to it.

SPEAKER_00 11:42

Could you just make a copy of that rock for Tess? Hers it's a good thing.

SPEAKER_01 11:45

But I thought that was insane because when we we recorded that um reflections episode weeks ago before it got released, so there's no way that I would have known hers or she was. She sent it through last week, and I was like, She always has really her words are always really, really good.

SPEAKER_00 11:59

Reinvention was amazing. It was amazing, yeah.

Travel, Opportunities And Embodiment

SPEAKER_01 12:01

So elevate to me, what that looks like, it's not necessarily about, as I said, like taking everything to the moon, but it's really about how can I like and honing in on that. So when I'm feeling triggered, when I'm in reaction, when I'm feeling emotional or upset, how can I elevate myself to show up as the woman that I say that I am? How can I really elevate my home experience? How can I elevate how I show up for clients? When I think about how that plays out, how can I show up better for my team? Elevation is something that will keep coming up. I want to be better and continue to grow and evolve. Those words don't hit the same as elevate for me. Elevate is literally about that next level, and that's what I'm ready for. If I've had the year of nurture and the year of gentle, I'm not ready to, you know, ra, but I am ready to elevate. I'm ready to start.

SPEAKER_00 12:52

We've actually got a hugely a huge year in 2026 full of opportunity.

SPEAKER_01 12:58

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 12:58

There's like some wild, like our travel opportunities. We're hosting a retreat in Bali, we're going to WA. We're going to Tassie. We're going to Sydney. We're going to the Gold Coast. Like, apparently going to the moon, according to whatever you're talking about now.

SPEAKER_01 13:12

I don't think I'm going to go to the moon anytime soon after the last group of gals went up there. They weren't super well received.

SPEAKER_00 13:19

Like Katy Perry or something. Yeah, I didn't really understand that.

Discipline As A Year Word

SPEAKER_01 13:22

Seven minutes or whatever it was. But yeah, that was great. I won't be going there. But this is the thing. It's like, and you do change as you start really like leaning in and really embodying your word. It will show up for you like people here elevate and think that I'm like wanting to like level up. And yeah, I do. But I'm I'm thinking about it more from like when I'm dysregulated, when I'm in the weeds, when I'm fucking struggling, what word is going to really help? Okay, what would the most elevated version of me do in this moment? Is it react? Is it, you know, get emotional? Is it break down and cry? Doesn't mean none of those things are gonna happen. But what's gonna help me get out of it quicker? And when I think of elevate, come on, elevate yourself, elevate yourself. Yeah, that's a hot word. That's something where I'm gonna be like, okay, yeah, no, I can do this, I've got this. Elevate is just kind of already acknowledging that this is at a good point and I just want to take it. Just a notch out.

SPEAKER_00 14:14

Yeah, I love that. What's yours? My word of the year is discipline this year. So I feel like I like simplicity was so huge for me. Even I was just thinking as you were talking about the things that I brought in to help me work-wise, like even having an EA on permanently has been such a level up for simplicity and so expansive. I think the years leading up to that like warranted a little gentle word. I think it had been um I think we'd had a few really difficult years there, mate. You know, like it's when I look back on what our 2024, no wait, 2020, yeah, 2024, 2023, 2022 was. I'm like, oh yeah, there needed to be a softer word. And I think now I'm so focused on my personal routines and personal habits.

SPEAKER_01 15:09

She's in weapon season.

Boundaries, Routines And Presence

SPEAKER_00 15:11

Weapon season, but discipline for me comes in many forms. So I feel like I've got the consistency piece down really well. Like I, you know, do my steps every day, I do my work every day. I am very consistent in terms of my practice and what I need to get done. But discipline is still an issue for me. You know, recently, especially in our launch phase, I don't spend a lot of time on social media when we're not launching, and when we're launching something, I'm like, I've got to have my phone on me. Um, whereas I wouldn't usually, you know, because we're like having conversations with people, DMing people, things like that. And in a launch season, I'll always have my phone nearby. And we sold out of becoming a conscious salon weeks ago, and um that phone has been right next to me still, because I've gotten into the habit of being on social media and you know, checking my phone and checking my emails and things like that. So there are still so many, there's still such a gap for me in terms of discipline. And even though the consistency is there, like it's a non-negotiable for me to go for my walk, to do all of my tasks, to get back to all of our clients, to make sure that our team are cared for, it's that's a non-negotiable. Consistency is not an issue, but the discipline is the discipline to be like, I'm not working outside of work hours. And for me, like my son is going to school this year, and I was having a conversation with my boyfriend Pete about this, and I said to him, I'm gonna be so fucking strict on my boundaries with work this year. After 3:30, I am not picking up my laptop after 3.30. It is a firm boundary that I have. That's amazing. I'm okay to start work early, and I'm I'm I will give 100% in those work hours, but 3.30 is my boundary, and I will not push that boundary because like my son has pretty much always had someone home with him, like he's been to daycare for the last few years for a couple of days a week, but but pretty much he's always got someone home. There's always someone available to him. Then all of a sudden now he's gonna go to school five days a week. It's a really weird thought for me to have not have him home with us or someone most days. So I've got to be really intentional with my time. And, you know, on the flip side of that, I have the privilege of having more structure than I've ever had before and having more of a routine than I've ever had before, where I can get up and have my mindful mornings and have my time between, you know, 5:30 and 7.30, and then I can get him ready for school, take him to school, lock in with clients and lock in on my mission and what I'm doing with the conscious salon and with the salon. And then as soon as I pick him up, I can switch into mum mode and be a hundred percent there. But I mean, I'm just want to be super transparent here. Discipline is hard for me.

SPEAKER_01 17:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:47

And it's not because I'm prioritizing one over the other, it's because I feel that I need to be all of the things to all of the people at all times. And discipline and firm boundaries are really hard for me. It's also plays out for me being like, yes, I'd love to have a burger from Grill today. Yes, I would love to have a bottle of Pinot Grigio in the spa with Pete. Yes, I would love to, you know, like indulge in something. And even though I've gotten a lot better with my health practices, um, and even for me, with like financially, financially, I can be like, fuck it, let's go out for dinner. Like, let me take you guys out for dinner, or let me go and purchase this elaborate gift for someone, or let me do this, like, even having more discipline financially to look at okay, what are our big goals as a family? You know, what are we actually going to achieve together? So, discipline for me is what I'm locking into with every aspect of my life, my health, my businesses, financially, my relationship, even discipline not to be like, oh, I'll just take a FaceTime call with Tess because I thought of something funny to tell her while I'm locking in and having a conversation. Yeah, while I'm locking in and having a conversation with Pete. Yeah. Like it's kind of crazy to me. If Pete and I are sitting down having a conversation, he would never pick up the phone and go and call one of his family members because he thought of something funny. He would just, he would never do that. Whereas I'm like, oh, it's so funny and I'm gonna burst if I don't tell Tess anything.

Health, Money And Mindful Choices

SPEAKER_01 19:09

We do, we do do that though. Like even I actually had that last night because my phone was on the table when um we're having dinner and you were FaceTiming. And Mick was like, that's killing you, isn't it? I was like, no, no, it's fine. But straight away, I was like, I'll call her now. It might be important.

SPEAKER_00 19:23

Pull a plate up for me, I'll have a uh steak medium there. But I think it's just it's that discipline. It's that discipline of being like, and and it falls into so many different things. It's being more present, it's being more mindful, it's being more aware, it's being more, even just more financially um disciplined and time disciplined. Um, you know, not losing myself in a scroll, not stopping and refreshing emails, like more discipline with that. I was so good with that for so long, and it's fallen to the wayside. So this year for me, 2026, 2026, I am going to be the most disciplined version of myself. I'm also going to be the fittest I've ever been.

SPEAKER_01 19:58

Say it now, speak its truth.

SPEAKER_00 20:00

And it's gonna be a fucking amazing year. Amen. Watch this space, guys.

SPEAKER_01 20:04

Watch this space. Well, I'm all To grill to get a hamburger and a bottle of Pinot Grigio.

SPEAKER_00 20:10

I'm not. I'm gonna get a beautiful salad when I get home. No, but I hope this inspires you guys to have a word of the year and hear the power of the word of the year and setting that intention of what you actually want to bring in. And this word of the year, we will exp it will expand us this year and we will also cling to it for fucking dear life. Absolutely.

Speaking It Into Reality

SPEAKER_01 20:29

And even now, with the fact that we've started speaking this out, watch how this will start showing up for us. Without a doubt, like without a shadow of a doubt, speaking it into us in into its existence now, this will start. We'll start seeing this play out. We're gonna see things where you're gonna be really tested with discipline. I'm gonna see things where I'm really gonna need to call on, like being my most elevated self. Having these words, they're there to support us, they're there to inspire us. But truly, it's I think when we set these words, it's an opportunity to be able to live it out and create phenomenal growth in that. What's hotter than that? God, that's such a cool thing.

Closing And Intentions

SPEAKER_00 21:10

All right, guys. Thank you guys so much for listening to another video. Conscious Alan Foddy. Love you guys, stay conscious.