Ignite Your Creativity + Reach your Goals: Create an Inspiration Book

Many, many years ago I had heard about the power of visualization - if you could picture something long enough you could make it come to fruition. I'm not talking about winning the lottery, of course, but I am talking about attainable, achievable goals.

A few years ago I had created a visualization book of sorts. I found an old 3-ring binder and filled its pages with all sorts of images and words, mostly from magazines. At the same time I was waist deep in the murky waters that led to the finalization of my divorce. They were dark days - some of the darkest I have ever experienced. My life was about to drastically change and I had no idea whatsoever what lay ahead. So I filled the book with images of what I wanted and hoped the next few years would look like.

Once I had moved into my new temporary home (although nearly 5 years later and I'm still here!) I found the notebook in one of the boxes I had unpacked and decided to flip through it. I was completely taken with a few of the images... specifically a small Cape Cod style beach house, white with green shutters along with pages of white interiors, beachy, breathy, crisp. Looking at these images struck me as odd as I am a bold color person, but I must have wanted a change - I must have wanted the newness of the white, the fresh start that white seems to offer. I then looked around my new home, though not a Cape, was indeed small and white with green shutters and a mile from the beach. Inside crisp, newly painted white walls and perfectly maintained wood flooring along with the big airy bay window in living room looked as if they'd jumped right out of the pages. 

It seems that I have come to a standstill yet again... with the hopes of re-ignting my own creativity and finding a means of giving my career a more defined direction, I have decided to create an inspiration book. I note, as I start to rip through pages of magazines I've long wanted to toss, that the images I'm drawn to for inspiration have nothing to do with materialism and everything to do with living and travel. As I near the big Five Oh this summer my hopes and dreams for the next few years are markedly different from those of a few years ago. I'm excited to see what becomes of this year's Inspiration Book!

How to create an Inspiration Book

Materials you'll need:

• 1 notebook of any type. I chose a slightly used Composition Notebook. I decided not to go ahead and rip out the pages as they would be covered anyhow.
• Scissors
• Tape or glue. Glue sticks are best for this.
• Magazines, newspapers, post-cards.... anything you wish!
• Pens, markers, etc... I like to add notes, comments and words of inspiration to the images.

Getting Started:

My favorite way to get started is to simply grab all the magazines I have and start pulling pages, images, words, etc and make a large pile. (You can neatly trim the edges with scissors or leave them rough hewn. I do a little of both.) With my pile I either set it aside for another time or I start placing them on the pages of my notebook. I love to do this at the end of the day, in front of the TV. It's really incredibly relaxing. Add a glass of wine or a warm cup of tea... Perfection.

What to include in your Inspiration Book

• Images that inspire career
• Images that inspire travel
• Images that inspire fitness and health
• Images that inspire personal goals
• Create lists of books you want to read
• Create lists of books you've read
• Places you want to go, near and far
• Document successes
• Use part of it as a bullet journal
• Use it in part as a journal, documenting events and memories along the way
• Use it for anything that moves, motivates and inspires you
• Give your inspiration book a theme if you wish
• Document new meals you want to make and have made
• Document new restaurants you want to and have gone to
• Document your fitness goals and progresses (yoga, pilates, running)

This is also a great rainy or snowy day activity - perfect for wintertime!