My Five Year Plan

Late last year, I decided to start thinking about a Five Year Plan. I wanted to set some big goals, and then break them down into smaller, actionable chuncks. Start working on the baby steps now, so that the big steps will come easier in the future. It was a lot of fun to "dream big", but I definitely noticed that I was self-censoring a little bit. Toning down, or adjusting my goals based on what I think I "should" do or "can't" do. So lame! And how disappointed I was in myself in that moment.

Yeah, that's definitely some of the old Lisa coming through. It's hard to unlearn those thoughts and feelings that seem to come automatically, and unbidden.

Y'know, the "you're not enough and everything you touch is shit" kind of stuff.

REAL TALK
Part of the reason I really love working on this project, is that I am building in the practice of getting better at things, at practicing the skills that I will need to tackle the BIG STUFF. I know that these goals and intentions aren't set in stone - heck even three months in I am already changing tack - but I appreciate the knowledge that I am setting myself up for success at something down the road.

And I know that the doubts will creep in now and again, but having a list of "easier" stuff makes it easier to push those doubts away. Succeed at the small things, and the big things will come.

Or something like that!

THE ALBUM
Anyhoo, let's dive into the album...

I read this page (the inside cover) when I was taking photos, and I couldn't figure out why I didn't source the quote I used. And then I realized that I didn't use a quote. Those words are 100% Lisa. I'm smarter than I thought.

"It's far too often that people give up on a DREAM when they can't see it happening in their reality. They give up when they think it's too hard or that they can't have it right now. Everything has it's own timing, and right now I am in the timing of a dream that is coming to fruition."

HOT TIP: If you really love the look of sewing in your mini album, but can't fit your whole album into your sewing machine, stitch around one element and then glue that bad boy down. Genius.

See that big orange flower? It is covering a big goal that I was really nervous to write down and include. I'm still not 100% sure about it, but #nervousmeansdoit and by writing it down, I have given myself permission to explore all options. Which feels good. Nerve wracking, but good.

I used to love doodling a frame, and then filling that frame up with words. That is something that I really love about art journaling like this. Old favourites take on new life. I covered up the writing on the right page, because I am not ready to share that just yet.

I loved teaching at Treasured Memories, all those years ago. This "little" goal snowballed out of control, and I am so pumped to see what the future brings with this one. First step is build my portfolio, aka do more albums like this!

I used a lot of my own stamps in this book. They have become tried and true additions to my art journal kit. Add a little colour and doodles, and they can be reinvented on each page.

I am not a fan of every page in this book, and that's okay. They can't all be 100% awesome. I mean, I really love that globe I painted, but I do not love how the envelope turned out on the page facing it. Oh. Well.

ONE LITTLE WORD
As I was working on the pages, I realized that I really wanted to include my One Little Word in here somehow. But, as the title page reads, this book is going to be with me until 2023, so I didn't feel right about including only my 2018 OLW. So, after this "Connect" page the rest of the album is blank with the exception of notes to remind me to include my 2019 through 2023 words.

 The cover was really fun to throw together. It is a mishmash of things I had laying around. Stamps, sewing, sticker letters...and I just noticed while I was taking this photo that the "R" from the word year has bit the dust!

The hardest part of this book - and this exercise to be honest - was writing the end date. I cannot even fathom what I will be doing in 2023. Which is kind of the point of this whole thing, isn't it.

FLIPTHROUGH

I realize that I didn't really write about how I created my 5 plan, what things I thought about and included, how I broke down the the steps, and what I plan to do to keep myself on track.

If that sounds interesting to any of you, I can definitely do a post about that side of this whole exercise. Just let me know in the comments!

xo

FURTHER READING
I love writing about Goal Setting and Intention Setting. Read more of those posts here.
My go-to person for Goal Setting inspiration and practical tips is Elise Cripe. She isn't blogging anymore, but her archives are a treasure trove of info and she has built an amazing product line of goal-setting tools. Her blog is here, and her Get To Work line is here.