I think we can all agree that 2020 was a "practice" year; hopefully a year that we all learned a lot and grew as individuals but now, let's set our sights forward toward 2021!!!
Much like last year around this time, we are busy preparing our 2021 Vision Boards! We've compiled a little list of how we each prepare! After all, we are doing the prep work for an ENTIRE year and it's certainly worth proper attention and planning (yes, Ash is jumping up + down with glee)!
Here's how we each approach this process:
ASHLEY: This past year has been a whirlwind so in full transparency, I'm just feeling thankful that I survived this past year in one piece! We sold our house, my husband officially retired from active duty, we moved across country, bought a new house...all in the midst of massive shutdown/shelter-in-place (California) and a global pandemic. I talked more about this in my 2020 recap post.
All of this to say that for 2021, I am choosing self-compassion and a fresh perspective! When planning for 2021, I didn't even reference my 2020 vision board at all because I wanted to keep this year completely separate and prepared with my fresh lens. I want this new year to be less focused on the usual #newyearnewme and instead, embracing self-compassion and enjoying where I'm at TODAY, in this moment in time. Not that I am not eager to continue growing in the new year (every single day, really), but that I am less worried about a check in the box and more focused on a check-in with my spiritual, physical and emotional health than I am about crossing the finish line on projects. This past year of chaos has taught me to slow down, to ENJOY the quiet moments of life and be as compassionate and encouraging to myself as I am towards others.
I simply made a list with a few (max was 5) goals for 4 categories: Mental + Spiritual, Physical, House and OCN. I chose these categories because they are the priorities in my personal development and life. I also applied some excerpts from a book I read recently called Atomic Habits by James Clear. List-making was essential (hello, have we met?!), but I also wanted my intentions to be concise and I knew I wanted some pretty fonts (my version of being "crafty").
This year I did do something new for me! I chose to make my vision board electronically on my laptop via Canva (an absolutely fantastic site for the conventionally non-creative folks, like me). I chose a word for the year (a new annual tradition), and 2021's is a combo of 2 words, quiet and content. In my opinion, these 2 go hand-in-hand and I felt I needed both to fully express my intentions. Quiet: making no noise, free from noise; synonyms are still, restful, calm. Content: state of peaceful happiness, state of satisfaction; synonyms are fulfilled, satisfied. My overall goal for the new year is to listen more than I speak, to take time daily to be alone + quiet, and focusing on healing, recovering, strengthening, and praying.
MYSHA: What I've learned about myself is that a daily action plan is imperative. Even though I only completed one goal for 2020, I am overjoyed. As I mentioned last year, I don't think I had ever set a goal before my Nest vision board, and one is more than none! I'm super excited about the fact I can take my goals from last year, revise them a bit, and break them down into daily action plans to help me reach my goals this year!
My word for 2020 is ‘Follow-Through’ – Defined as, "the continuing of an action or task to its conclusion.". Basically I'm compounding off last year's "Create". I'm going to make things, but also complete my projects!
My process, though fairly new, is to sit down and really think about priorities. Of course I want to do a million and one things, but that's not realistic for me, so what are my top three, and then top five, and maybe top ten goals for this coming year. I then think about what kind of timeline does each goal require? Do I need to do anything before I can start on my goals? Do they have a specific order of completion? As I said, this year I know now that I need to break my goals down into daily actions and create my plan.
From both of us, we wish you a very HAPPY new year and send love + encouragement + grace! We hope you continue to follow along with us as we try new things, move toward these wonderful goals we've each set for ourselves, and learn some fun + adventurous things along the way.
