After a great New Year’s Day, I joined ABC 7’s Julie Wright and Eileen Whelan on Good Morning Washington to talk about how to have the ultimate vision board party.  I brought all my goodies – printers, snacks, magazines, fun scissors, color pencils, tape, glitter, and more to demonstrate how to create a vision board that will help you keep your motivation to complete your goals fresh  throughout the year.

You can watch the segment on Good Morning Washington here:  http://wjla.com/features/good-morning-washington/crafting-new-years-resolutions-with-a-vision-board-party 

I’m ready for 2018, are you?

This year I have committed to becoming more social. I used to have parties and get togethers with my favorite people all the time, but during law school I just didn’t have the time or energy. I realized I missed my good friends, and that I want to spend more time with them.

One of the first things we will probably do is host a vision board party at the house. This guide will help you have your own vision board party, and I have included affiliate links in this post so that you can click to get more information about and buy what we used.

I had a great time discussing vision boards, and we even got started on making them right on set!

Do you want to host your own vision board party for your family? Check out these ten steps to get your own party started. I have included affiliate links so that you can click to get more information about and buy what we used.

1. Gather materials.
   • Printer, portable photo printer, and paper
   • Crayons, markers, pencils, color pencils, pens, permanent markers (like Sharpies – we love the gold and silver ones)
   • Glue sticks, glue, brads, tape, colorful duct tape, hot glue gun
   • Paint, paint brushes, paper plates, cup of water
   • Note paper, construction paper, poster board
   • Glitter, stickers, gems
   • Magazines, newspapers, scissors
   • Camera, music, laptop, cell phone, trash can
2. Discuss the purpose of the exercise, and what you hope everyone will learn from it
3. Have each family member write down a list of goals for the year
4. Each family member reads their goals out loud
5. On an 8 x 10 piece of paper, each person sketches what they want their vision board to look like
6. Family members go through magazines and cut out images and words for themselves and the others.
7. Distribute glue, scissors, paint palettes, paint brushes, and an allotment of glitter, fasteners, tape, stickers, crayons, markers, and construction paper to each person, to reduce reaching across the table. Leave magazines, cut outs, and other lesser used items to encourage cooperation and sharing.
8. Begin adding items to boards. This can be timed or not.
9. When everyone is finished, require clean up before the boards are presented.
10. Have each family member present their boards and explain their choices and how their board represents their goals for the upcoming year.

This was an all day project for my kids, but you can set a time limit if you’d like.  I’d suggest setting a limit if you have older children and family members.  For those under 15, give them all the time they need. 

The kids had friends over to work on vision boards, and it took them about 3 hours to work on it. My 11 year old only got through cutting out her pictures and mapping things out before time was up. She finished it later, and had her friends over again to do a vision board reveal video with her…

Check out my daughter’s new Youtube channel for fun videos and shorts.

MORE VISION BOARD PARTY TIPS

Having trouble finding images of people of color?

• Grab a few magazines like Ebony, Essence, and Black Enterprise at the grocery store.  Local businesses may also have magazines that they are getting rid of at the end of the month.
• Download and print stock images.
• Go through photos of you and the kids doing your activities that you would like to continue in the new year and print them out.
• Draw your own! Check out these multicultural markers.

Dare to be different

• Use fun duct tape to make frames for the boards and photos.
• Cut large poster boards in half.  They are easier to store, and less overwhelming for kids and teens.
• Use brads and card stock paper to make interactive boards with moving parts.
• Download fun fonts and keep your laptop open to a word processing program like Microsoft Word. If your family cannot find the perfect words for their boards, let them type them and print them.

Spend time on preparation

• Explain the goal of the exercise fully.
• Don’t skip having everyone write down their goals and map out their boards before they start.
• Pick up a few aspirational and specialized magazines like Car and Driver or Better Homes and Gardens.
• Tell kids that they need to tell a story with their board and aim to fill up all of the space.
• Ask everyone what vacations or activities they liked the most that they would like to continue in the new year. Find those photos and put them in a folder on your laptop. You can print them out before you start the party.
• Set up a camera on a tripod and have family members record their goals on camera, including their hopes and dreams for other family members. Combine the videos and show the video before and during the party.
• Make sure you have enough of everything for everyone, and explain that sharing and cooperating is an important part of the exercise.  We won’t achieve our goals without giving help to and receiving help from each other. 
• Download mobile printing apps on cell phones and connect printers to laptops.

Tech, tools, and apps that I used for our vision board party

• Cell phone (I used the Samsung Galaxy S5, but you can use pretty much any smartphone)
• HP DeskJet 3755 All-in-One Printer (about $60)
• Social Media Snapshots App (FREE)
• Social Media Snapshots 4 in x 5 in paper
• HP Sprocket Photo Printer (About $130)
• HP ZINK® Sticky-backed 2 in x 3 in Photo Paper (already have the printer click here, order printer and paper here)
• Canon EOS Rebel T5i
• HP Chromebook (mine is a few years old, but you can use any laptop or PC that you can connect to a printer)

DON’T…

• Turn on the TV. Television is distracting, especially for young kids who are tempted to stop working on their vision boards and watch whatever is on the screen.
• Criticize anyone’s vision board.  Even if they didn’t fully understand the exercise, and it looks more like a wish list than a vision board, praise the effort, and try to explain it more clearly the NEXT time.
• Put off finishing the board for another time.  They never get done. If you have a cut off time, stick to it.  Explain that goals change, and that they can add to the board later if they are so inspired – but for now, it is finished.

DO… Make it a real party

• Have Handi-wipes (good for removing glue, paint, and glitter), hand sanitizer and healthy snacks and drinks nearby so that everyone can take a break and enjoy some good food.
• Put on some music once everything has been explained and the party has started. 
• Take pictures and video so that you can look back on the occasion.
• Decorate the area with last year’s vision boards, streamers, and motivational posters.

Do you do an annual, semi-annual, or quarterly vision board?  What do you do to make your vision board party special – even if it is a party of one? What are some of your goals for this year? Share in the comments. Happy New Year!