Vision Boards (For People Who Don't Love Vision Boards)
"Notice what you're drawn to" ChatGPT told me.
“Notice what you’re drawn to,” ChatGPT told me.
This was after I asked how to make a Vision Board Night a success.
Around the same time:
A client casually mentioned that visualizing things helps her create personal change
My favorite comedian talked about “getting back to the vision board” on her podcast
I remembered my sister hosting a Vision Board Party years ago- how relaxed and approachable it felt, and how much less goal-y it was than I expected
So I got a wild hair to make a Vision Board.
And I’m really glad I did.
Here’s my mindset going in, as a Don’t-Put-Me-In-A-Box / I-Don’t-Want-A-Million-Goals / Do-These-Things-Even-Work / What-Would-I-Even-Put-On-There-That-Would-Last kind of girl:
The whole thing came down to this:
Notice what you’re drawn to.
And I think that part matters.
We humans love a fresh start, don’t we?
New Year’s resolutions have been around for…ever?
And somewhere between December 27th and early January, “getting back to my routine” becomes a shared language.
Here’s something I’ve noticed after working with women for seven years-and living my whole life alongside them:
We are so hard on ourselves when we don’t meet the standards we’ve set (Read: or the standards we’ve inherited and internalized so deeply they feel like our own).
So what if something as simple (and maybe even a little silly?) as a Vision Board could help us do one simple thing:
Notice what we’re drawn to.
Here’s what Vision Boarding did for me:
Helped me reflect on what I want to be true about me in the year ahead
Gave me clarity around the values I want to lean into (a calm, non-reactive parent and spouse being at the top of the list)
Made me feel 17 again with magazines all around me which was an added bonus
For me, Vision Boarding is about identity, not metrics.
I want to be reminded of the rhythms and values I want to inhabit- not weighed down by guilt if a goal doesn’t get met.
So I’m curious:
Does this feel compelling- or a little eye-roll-y?
Does it soften you toward yourself a bit?
And for those of you wired differently than me- who love structure, routines, and clear goals: What helps you move toward those things with grace? Maybe your routines themselves already carry some grace.
However it looks for you, one thing is certain:
We’re in this together.
-Meredith from the Get Mom Ready Crew