Creating a Vision Board

I’ve been trying to really figure out my “why” for this season.  (OK…I’ve also been binge watching FRIENDS reruns, but if you give me a few minutes I’m sure I can fit that into my life purpose somehow.)

What is the deeper purpose behind each activity and role I’m involved in?  Am I filling my life with busy but missing the more important destination in the process?

Over the next couple weeks you’ll notice me posting from a couple awesome books I’m reading right now on this subject:

These books are helping me process what I’m really about, how to pursue my passions in practical ways, and how to harness the creativity God has given me to meet a need in the world.

But tonight I needed to take a break from the reading and details and fall back on the processing I know best: creating a visual vision board.

Yes, I admit to being a product of the pinterest craze- but who says we create an offline board to help us visualize where we are headed in life?

A vision board could mean different things to different people- to me, it’s a fun way to get the big picture of all the big commitments and roles in my life, and help me understand where I’m ultimately headed.

If you don’t know where to start, It always helps to begin with the most important/ non-negotiable roles in your life.  For me that’s being a wife and mother.

Then begin to add other roles, responsibilities and interests to your board. (School, volunteering, causes, etc) For me, this includes everything from the online writer’s community/publishing connection I joined (Uplift Creator) as well as the mom’s group I’m privileged to volunteer with (Mastering Motherhood).

It includes some things I’ve been working on for years (like my writing) and some groups I’m trying to be involved with in new ways, like Joyful Christian Ministries

If you can’t find personal photos or logos online to represent your life vision, I recommend checking out pixabay.com for free stock photos. Type in a key word to search for a photo that represents your interest or activity- then download it to your computer.  (FREE!)  THEN, check out canva.com where you can upload your picture and add fun fonts. Then print you picture and add it to the board! (The picture below shows me editing a photo to represent my writer’s group.)

When you’re done, your board might look something like mine:

OR it could be whatever you really want it to be.

Creating a board like this can help you to:

• Gauge how many activities you’re currently committed to (and where you need to add or remove something!)
• Discover how your current activities fit into your overarching passion in life (find common threads)
• Pray over what/who each picture represents
• View what your priorities are in a given season (and swap photos out as seasons shift)
• Enjoy what’s in front of you right now.
• Explore new opportunities.

Creating a board should be fun and very personal- it’s about celebrating and posting the things you care about.  It might take you one night or it could take you weeks to put together.  Don’t be afraid to take something off if it doesn’t fit, or add something new that comes to mind later.

In the end, hopefully you’ll have a little clearer sense of your why for this season in your life, and what you need to pursue to get there.

We’re not all visual learners- what ways have you found that work well to help YOU understand your vision and focus in life?  What is your vision or passion for this season?  How do your current roles and activities play into that vision?