New Year, New You! I swear we’ve been spewing this toxicity since the beginning of time. Hear we are back again… another year in a pandemic. I don’t know about you but I am not feeling the New Year, New You business.

I hear you, there’s a sense of refresh that happens at the beginning of the year. Maybe that’s what we should focus on. Rather than trying to totally change ourselves in the matter of a month, lets look at refreshing the ways in which we felt utterly run down this year. Especially toward the end of the year. That holiday hustle and bustle with kids is no joke! But we sure can make some magic right… owww.

So hear me out, in order to incorporate some lifestyle changes that stick how about we make reflections instead of resolutions. See what worked and what didn’t. Out with the “It doesn’t serve me” and in with the “Yes, that filled my cup, more please”.

In efforts to switch my brain from resolution to reflection I started creating vision boards. Y’all I did this at a party in 2020 pre-pandemic with some girlfriends. We casually discussed our dreams and also casually threw “have a baby” on our boards. Fast forward we both had baby boys in 2021. A couple of the other ladies put move to Cali…and they did just that! Living lives they had previously only dreamed about. Im just saying… be cognizant of what you put on these bad boys. Vision boards really give you a moment to sit and reflect…the good and the bad. I really love them.

When I sat down to reflect on my year I went from feeling like it was “blah” to recognizing the sheer amount of blessings my family experienced. I realized it really was a great year full of family time, new opportunities, and some moments of normalcy, with a sprinkle of self care. Hoping to make that sprinkle a shower in 2022. Sometimes looking at life with a different lens can really help you reshape your reality.

This year I am focusing my goals on growth and learning. How can I be a better person, wife, mom, educator, and business entrepreneur. This will likely look like listening to more podcasts, jumping out of my comfort zone, learning from my mistakes, taking classes and attending conferences, saying yes to opportunity, giving myself grace, and understanding that you can’t show up for others unless you show up first for yourself.

So it’s time to make yours! You can make your vision board virtually or go with a good old poster board + magazine cut outs. This year I went virtual. This way I could add it to my home screen + print out a small one to display in my bedroom. The m0re you see it the better! Check out this video breakdown using Canva.

• Light a candle, spray some smell goods, use your favorite pen, or/and pour your drink of choice in a cute glass. Set a vibe.

• Take some time to reflect on your year. What worked what didn’t. Make some goals for your New Year based on that.

• Find imagery from your life or Beyonce’s internet that resonates with the goals and reflections you’ve made for yourself. Save those images because you’re going to want to be able to access them later.

• Open the Canva app and create a blank page. Now like your New Year you have a blank slate.

• I like to start by adding the images that I am carrying into the New Year from my year past. Once that’s done, I add the new things I want to build upon.

• If you are using poster board this will look more like finding those images in magazines + cutting and pasting them onto the poster board.

VOILA! You now have your inspiration and a guide book for your year. Place your vision board somewhere you will see it consistently and watch your year unfold.. with hard work of course.

What have you found from your New Years reflections? I am wishing you all a wonderful and joyous New Year. One where your wildest dreams come true + where you realize the dopest version of you is already within.