A month into 2019 and those resolutions, intentions and visions we set have lost some of their luster. Today I’m sharing a couple of tools I’m using to help me live more intentionally and aligned with that New Year optimism all year long. Whether you’re on track with your goals or fell off the wagon a few miles back, these two are worth a look.
Life Design Planner (by the Rise Collective)
My collage vision of 2019 in my Life Design Planner.
I have a very fraught relationship with planning. On one hand, I love it. Give me a vacation destination, and I will go to town striking just the right balance between structure and sloth. On the other hand, as a creative type, I’ve enjoyed a fairly unscheduled work existence since I transitioned from PR maven to writer a dozen or so years ago. I no longer write annual summaries of what I accomplished and its value for my clients. And while I don’t miss those spreadsheets, I do miss the tangible proof that I accomplished what I set out to do.
I went in search of a flexible, creative tool to help me use my time doing the things that are important to me instead of just frittering it away by responding to the next situation demanding my attention. What I found is the Rise Collective’s Life Design Planner. Billed as the planner for “soulful creatives” this tie-dyed spiral bound notebook is a perfect mix of vision board, journal, calendar and workbook, this little gem will help you refine your vision for the coming year before you go signing yourself up for a bunch of activities that may or may not align with your personal and professional goals.
True to its name, the Life Design Planner, walks you through a series of exercises that look at every aspect of your life, from creativity and spiritual growth to finance, health and love relationships. Then it weaves the threads of all that visioning into yearly, quarterly, monthly and weekly goals. You’ll find spaces for dreams and divination scattered among standard to-do list planning features. Left and right brains have never melded so beautifully! My one piece of advice to those who use this planner is to allow plenty of time for laying this groundwork. I underestimated the depth of this pre-planning material. I thought I’d need a couple of days, but it was more like a couple of weeks.
Still not sure you want to give up flying by the seat of your pants? I’ll leave you with this pearl of wisdom from Lewis Carroll, perhaps the dreamiest of all the dreamers. “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.”
The Universe Has Your Back: A 52-Card Deck (by Gabrielle Bernstein & Micaela Ezra)
This gorgeous inspirational deck is another fun way to keep the good juju of the New Year flowing all year long! With 52 softly watercolored cards, this deck will dish up the wisdom you need once a week for the whole year! I am using mine in conjunction with my planner, picking one card each Monday and jotting down its wisdom in the week’s planning pages.
I also picked one for each month of the year and added that wisdom to my yearly overview. For instance, my January message was “Obstacles are detours in the right direction.” I tend to interpret any interference with my plans as an obstacle to be overcome at all costs. This month, thanks to my card, I’ve been reminding myself that when I hit a roadblock, it is really just the universe redirecting me to a better path for me. It has helped me access gratitude in situations that usually spark frustration. Can’t wait to see what February’s message will be! If you like the ideas of a deck of inspirational cards, but are not ready for full-on tarot cards, this is a great resource.
One last thing. This is not an ad. I paid for both of these products and am sharing with you simply because they are working so beautifully for me. I would love to hear from you what you are using to keep yourself in the flow of 2019. Comment below to share your favorite ways to hang onto that New Year mojo!
One of the 52 truths so beautifully expressed in The Universe Has Your Back card deck.