A Vision for the Year Ahead

A slow start and a workshop

This year I’ve decided to focus on the everyday things in life. The things that nurture me and brighten my days. Savouring that first cup of coffee in the morning, my slow, morning dog walk (whatever the weather!), reading, writing, drawing, mending, listening to uplifting music and inspiring podcasts, eating good food, pottering in the garden. After all, it’s what we do with our days that make up our years.

I want to make the most of where I live (which includes continuing to decorate and style our home), visit local galleries, theatres (I love Rural Highlights), nature events and other cultural activities, and especially, make the most of having the Lake District on my doorstep.

I plan to travel further afield to some favourite places too. Plus I’ve been wanting to explore Suffolk for a while, and have found very special place to stay later in the year.

You get the picture.

That’s not to say I don’t have any bigger intentions. I’m not going to ignore the great challenges that we face in the world at the moment (climate emergency, loss of biodiversity, war, oligarchy etc.) but getting myself in the right place will put me in a better position to make a difference in my own small way.

My number one intention this year is to simplify my life, and as far as work goes, I want to do more projects that align with my interests and values. In addition to business support and consultancy work I will share my passions (and continue to learn and develop my practice) for journalling, green sketching, slow stitching and mending. I think the key to all this will be collaboration. (Shout if you’d like to chat!)

Oh, and, after reflecting on 2024 and realising that I could have avoided some stressful situations, I’ve decided I need to listen to my intuition more!

So my key words for the year are SIMPLICITY, LEARNING, COLLABORATION and INTUITION.

I’d love to know if you have chosen words for the year too :-)

I’m looking forward to creating a vision board to reflect these thoughts, although I’m not sure how I’m going to represent intuition!

This will be the fifth year I’ve created a vision board and the third year I’ve run a workshop to support others to create theirs. Each year my board has been different. Sometimes it’s just been images cut from magazines and newspapers, or my own photos. Sometimes I’ve added words and feelings. Some years I’ve had BIG intentions and others I’ve wanted to make small changes in my life. It’s always interesting looking back and realising how much I’ve achieved, but also how my ‘ideal life’ has evolved.

This year’s workshop is face to face in Kendal, Cumbria on the afternoon of 26th January. For details and booking look here.

I’ve chosen to hold my workshop at the end of the month as I like to have a slow start to the year, in line with the seasons. If you’re nearby and would like to gather your thoughts together and make a visual representation then I’d love you to join me.

Once you’ve signed up for the event I’ll send some carefully curated prompts to help you visualise a life you’ll love in 2025. You can use these to write down your thoughts, but I also recommend walking with your thoughts.

If you’d just like to receive the prompts, please subscribe to my Substack and I’ll happily share them with you.

A final quote that resonated with me as I was working on my vision:

“You know you’ve made the right decision when it gives you energy”