It’s always a special thrill to start something on the first day of the New Year. Blogging is no different. I love writing anything for the first time. As you step into a brand new year, instead of resolutions consider making a vision board for your blog.

I stopped setting fixed goals or making resolutions a while ago. But I switched over to intentions, mindfulness, a vision board and a single word for the entire year.

2018 was a brightly-coloured mixed bag, in more ways than one. It was the year I turned 40; the year I quit my secure job; the year I launched my business and the year I made more than my regular income from my blog.

It was also the year I went back to regular reading although I only managed to read 15 books in 365 days.

As I pondered how I wanted 2019 to take shape, two words- Growth and Gratitude- appeared to jostle for space. In fact, right until 2 days ago, I’d almost decided on ‘Growth’. Then, something happened.

I have been away from home, on a much-needed 10-day break from routine. As the break was winding down towards its end, I got a call from my sister that my mom had suffered a nasty fall. She’d tripped, fallen on her face, possibly fracturing her nose.

In that instant, every single thought vanished from my mind, save one: Dear God, please ensure my mom is fine. I sent up every prayer possible, shed a few tears thinking about her plight and also felt deeply upset by the fact that I was so far away from her and practically useless.

It wasn’t until I got the all-clear message from dad a couple of hours later, saying that the CT scan was fine, that she didn’t need surgery and would just need care and rest to recover, that I let out a breath I’d held close to my chest for that time.

And it was in that precise moment, I got my Word of the Year.

Vision Board and Word of the Year for 2019. Collage representing things that matter with the word 'Depth' at the centre.

My word for 2019 as well as the theme of my Vision board for this year is ‘Depth’.

This year, I’m going to focus on 5 core things and ensure that I do justice to them by going into each of them deeply.

Relationships

At the centre of my vision board is an image of what I feel holds the most relevant key to my existence: My relationships.

These include my close friends, my family and my blogging family. 2018 was the year I took a big step back from Facebook and paid more attention to the people who cared about me. I ended 2017 with a 50-tweet-long thread of people to follow.

In 2018 December, that number dropped to 13.

As I go forward, I want to deeply nurture, cultivate and pay attention to the relationships in my life that mean everything to me. That will mean less time online and more time off. Honestly, I couldn’t be happier. 🙂

Blog

I’ve always loved my blogs and 2019 will see me going deeper into the blogging process. It is my intention to write more deeply-thought out posts, more well-researched content and more in-depth tutorials.

I will spend more time connecting with my readers and creating quality content on this platform.

My blogs give me joy and it is time for me to nurture that joy into something deeply satisfying.

Books

I’ve fallen back into my reading habit, something I’d neglected in the last few years.

I attribute this to two things in 2018: Turning 40 (which in itself is sort of a wake-up call that life is short) and the book ‘Deep Work’ by Cal Newport.

I’ve discovered a fascination for non-fiction books in the last 2 years and 2020 will see me exploring this even further. I wound up buying a lot of books towards the end of 2018. Between paperbacks and my Kindle, I hope to read an equal mix of fiction and non-fiction.

To that end, I have set myself a fairly ambitious challenge of reading 50 books in 2019. (You can follow my reading challenge on Goodreads here. I tend to post ratings and reviews directly there these days).

Writing

2018 was the year I wanted to write a lot. And I did, if you count the blog.

2019 is when I worked a bit on the writing but didn’t manage as much.

2020, however, saw me go back to writing and with deep intention.

Business

2018 was where I tread water when it came to my business.

2019 is when I went deep into the specifics.

2020 is when I moved out of the planning zone and into the execution zone. In early 2020, I published two e-books for bloggers.

My first book was SEO Secrets for bloggers and my second was my 12 Week Pinterest Roadmap.

I made the mistake of trying too many things in mid 2018 and suffered minor burnout as well as an injured wrist thanks to over-enthusiasm. Now, however, I have a clearer vision of what I need to do: for my clients, for my business, my brand and my growth.

That will mean going deep instead of broad, putting my finger in one pie instead of many. More to come in the days ahead.

If you haven’t yet and would like to get a planner for the year ahead, I highly recommend the ‘CREATE’ Planner by Meera Kothand. It’s given my vision a richer sense of purpose and strength of direction.

I hope your year is happy, peaceful, prosperous and filled with everything you’d like your year to be. As a person, I believe in the power of affirmation and have seen the difference it makes to my life, my relationships and my work.

It is my sincere hope that you find it too, as you embrace the year.

Heard of a vision board?

It just sounds fancy but it really is just a visualisation of your intentions. Resolutions are so yesteryear, am I right? Now it’s all word-of-the-year and vision boards that hold sway.

I am a big fan of the word of the year concept. It really helped me the last 2 times I did it. This year, I figured I should give the vision board a go as well.

Why?

Well, for one thing (and if you haven’t tired of hearing me say it yet) I turn 40 in April. Yikes! Or rather, Yay! Depends on my mood on each day, my reaction to that idea. Also, this will count as my ‘3 months to 40’ post, since it ticks the boxes for being introspective and hopeful all at once.

For another, I loved the idea of visualising my intentions and goals (although that’s not a word I really use much these days). So I did the best thing possible and looked up Pinterest, my BFF (that’s Best Friend Forever for all you novices out there) and keyed in vision board.

The sheer variety of images that popped up almost had me fainting. But, I am a strong woman so I carefully selected one post and read up what it meant and how to make a board for myself.

How to make your own Vision Board

People usually do this on paper but I suck at craft, cutting paper, drawing and anything remotely related to art, so I played it safe and decided to go with Canva. Thank Goodness for its existence.

This was my Vision Board for 2018!

Have you considered creating a vision board for the year ahead? They are inspiring when you think about your goals for a new year. Here is an example of my vision board and it may inspire you as well. #VisionBoard #Goals #Resolutions #Writing #Blogging #2018

Here’s a lovely tutorial if you want to make one for yourself!

As you can tell, these are all the things I look forward to fulfilling as part of my year-long vision. The best part about a board like this is that there are no rules.

You can have any pictures, any quotes, any concepts that reflect your deepest desires and state of mind.

The top row is where I have put three key things I want to work on consciously: Health/fitness, my blogs and using my time well. I love the fact that the time image also has money in it, because time is money, you know?

I’d like to grow my blog consciously without compromising on my voice or my values and I’m hoping that’s working.

The middle row is where I want to indulge my passions and hobbies and to me those are reading and writing regularly. I’ve already begun on the latter, where I write on Medium as well as in my trusty bullet journal.

I’m hoping the regularity of the habit will help kick me out of slumber land and get me cracking on my memoir next year.

I’ve set a very modest reading goal of 25 books for 2020 since I want to choose the books very carefully this year. I’d like to immerse myself in each book, lose my way in them and come out feeling like a changed person. The last 3 books I read in 2017 did that to me.

The final row is also a reflection of where I want to be: Grounded. On the one hand I am enhancing my need for mindfulness in all my interactions.

On the other hand, I want to let go of so many things: hurt, anger, disillusionment, disappointment- and welcome my 40’s with the raring energy of a woman 20 years younger!

To that end, I shall be tuning my writing, my blogging, my relationships and my connection with myself towards my word of the year: Kindness. And in doing so, I hope that the vision turns into a reality that I can welcome as it unfolds each day.

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So, do you have a vision board? Do you like this concept? Let me know.