Chuck out resolutions … replace with vision boarding!

Boxing day 2018 and "team Cumming" our family nick name (well everyone but dad who was getting a well deserved sleep in) were sneaking out the house, as mother duck wants to hit up the sales, (well Kmart mostly).

As I continually fight the urge to impulse spend to my hearts content, I notice the stationary section is filled with bargains. I see the scrapbooking section, and have a flashback to back when I was working with two young people, new to the previous company i worked for. I decided that today I was going to run a "vision boarding" session with my girls.

"A vision board is a tool used to help clarify, concentrate and maintain focus on a specific life goal. Literally, a vision board is any sort of board on which you display images that represent whatever you want to be, do or have in your life". (www.makeavisionboard.com/what-is-a-vision-board/)

Example of a vision board

I look to my daughters and niece, aged 11, 7 and 3, and informed them to grab as many stickers, glue sticks, coloured paper and the like as they could.

When we got home i told them to think of three things they really want to achieve in 2019 (yes the three year old just had fun sticking as much stickers on her paper as she could). My two daughters were informed that this isn't a "win or loose" but simply a chance to pick three wildly important goals to focus on for the year (Thanks Leah, Micheal and Rose for the inspiration).

The girls got to work, as did I, as we set out the layout, picked our colours, lettering and methods to best articulate our visions.

Jenny was right on it, as she had two goals she wants to nail in 2019. These were to get to probe 2 reading level and to decrease her screen time.

Haylee has one goal for certain, which is to finally start her own YouTube channel. She is still working on the rest. The girls after an hour decided to retire for the day, but keen to finish the vision boards off tomorrow. Plus Olivia, the three year old, used up all our stickers (lol).

For myself, I was absolutley certain on my three goals for 2018!

Family

My number one prioirty for 2019! This is not to say they were never, but actions will speak louder than words in 2019. The actions I have chosen to work towards this goal are:

a: to spend more time together (QUALITY not just quantity)

b: that quality will be best acheived without screens in our faces the majority of the time.

c: that we yarn daily, in which everyday, time is put aside to really ask and listen to how all our days were, clear the bad, celebrate the good and make sure we all feel heard and supported by eachother. After all, that is what team Cumming is all about.

Self Care

a: get sweaty: I lurve to work out. No feeling is better than going to war in the gym for an hour at the start of the day. Denying this is denying who I am, which is someone who loves to get psychical. So many benefits and not a hard sell as a goal for the year!

b: eat smart: all the hard work achieved by the above gets destroyed again and again by my terribly bad habit of comfort eating. It is not about dieting, starving or any other unreasonable and militant eating regieme. Just eat in moderation, and eat smart, and every now and again, eat the damn cake.

c: learn to say no: I am positive and hopeful that this is the year i finally learn this skill. At the end of the day, the person who almost always gets hurt by not doing this, is me, and i am not a fan of this, but i am the only one who can stop it. Lets see how i go!

Learn

a: Wongi: Wongi or talking is about learning more of my own langauge but starting to learn others. Living and working in a country of immense cultural diversity, i feel that not only it is a strength to be multilingual, but a demonstration of respect. The aim is to identify and start immersing in another language through lessons or an app.

b: Mphil: Here is to starting the process of commencing my Masters of Philosophy! Why this discipline you ask? A master’s program in philosophy helps students learn to think, judge and reason. Additionally, it introduces students to different fields of thought and different cultures. You are exposed to the work of both Western and non-Western thinkers. You learn to evaluate their work and come to an understanding of it and become a critical thinker and problem-solver. Yes please!!!

c: Mindfulness: Truth be told I have already started this but hope to finish this course by the end of the year. Mindfulness is the psychological process of bringing one's attention to experiences occurring in the present moment, which can be developed through the practice of meditation and other training. A core skill for anyone, and definatley one i want to master.

If you get the chance, as you finish off the Christmas lunch leftovers and watch the cricket, whip up a vision board to set your goals for 2019. Chuck out the old resolutions ceremony. My vision board (once finished) will take pride and place at my desk at work.