In her new book, The Vision Board, Joyce Schwarz shares exercises and success stories to inspire you to achieve what you most want from life. A vision board is much like a Hollywood storyboard – it will help you visualize your goals and keep you focused.
The Collins group wants you to share your vision. Tell us: What is your dream in life?
Share your visions and dreams in the comment field below. The Gather team will select the writers of their top five favorite comments to receive a copy of Joyce Schwarz's book, The Vision Board. Of the top five, Gather will select their top favorite contributor to also receive a $25 American Express gift card – which can be used towards buying supplies towards creating your very own vision board!
Comments must be posted by Friday, November 21st. You can share as many dreams and visions as you like.
Find out why Joyce Schwarz wrote The Vision Board.
Learn more about this book throughout November in the Bright Ideas from Bestselling Authors group on Gather. Click here to join.
Click here to buy the book.
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Comments: 156
At sixteen I found a love of writing, and decided that my dream and goal in life was to write a novel that I'd eventually have published. Since then I've strived to make that goal as much of an reality as I could. This included marching on in the face of adversity - be it nay sayers, writer's block, growing pains, style changes, genre changes, etc.
I have sought out materials to help me hone my skills, and to strengthen and identify my weak areas. I've been participating in (and winning!) NaNoWriMo for two years - this year is my third time participating. I've grown as a writer, yes, but I still have a long way to go until I reach my goal.
At 31 years old, I am still reaching for that goal with the hope that one day I'll make that final leap and finally hold it in my hands, rather than just holding it in my heart.
I dream that ReCode Portland, the Portland Permaculture Guild, City Repair, DePave, The Portland Fruit Tree Project, the Portland Center for Sustainability, and groups such as these can help my communities thrive through the challenges brought about by long-time sub-optimal stewardship of the gifts of Garden Earth.
Peoples before us who have lived in harmony have many things to show us. I think of Wangari Maathi, of Kenya, and her stories from elders about the sacredness of the trees that prevented erosion on steep hillsides.
My vision for myself is in telling stories of brave people who call on the buried good parts in persons who don't look very good, as Wangari Maathi did. When the buried good parts respond, even if grudgingly, better ways of being can be created.
We need to replace hard-pan dead ground with Earth that lives and is diverse and interesting. I want to be part of that.
The parts of me that represent womanhood for many have been chopped off. I want to believe I can have better virtual womanhood by living, working, writing, and talking in ways that promote good-willed problem-solving.
My being human and this being Planet Earth, I know there will be cranky bickering along the way. Gaia-willing, I will laugh later, when I tell the bickering stories, or when I exercise discipline and don't tell them.
Thanks for posting this challenge. I must run to my breast-cancer survivor exercise group.
The second travel goal I have is to visit every major art museum in Europe. I've been to quite a few, but nowhere near the number I'd like. In fact, I really need to determine just how many there are. I love art, and spending time in a museum is just about my favorite way to spend a day.
Of course, there are so many more goals I have with regard to traveling: to go around the world on a single journey, to see as many of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites as I can, to visit all the greatest beaches, etc.
One of my fondest travel goals was fulfilled a few years back: to see the Acropolis in Greece. The other two places that are top of my list: Pyramids and Great Wall.
cheers,gayle
I would welcome the opportunity to present my book idea to publishers of self help,or reference topics.
So far I've led playwriting workshops for Kentucky women and I've been blessed to have been awarded 2 grants to lead year-long seminars for Kentucky women. One of the requirements of the seminar is that they each pass on what they learn to other Kentucky women.
My own vision is to have my play LUMPs (which deals with breast cancer) to be produced in all 50 states and internationally. So far it has been produced in 5 states, only 45 to go!
I also hope that my life makes a difference to at least one person in this world. I've been blessed to have many second chances with regards to my health. I'm like a darn lucky cat with way more than 9 lives. Each time is a reminder to commit the time I have to smile, laugh and love those around me.
I want to be able to understand those around me even when I do not agree with their views and choices. I want to be able to accept them the way they are - no questions ask.
Life is filled with trials that bring us up and down but I know that together we can all be better equipped to deal with those trials. It is when we separate ourselves from the rest that we fail, feeling lonely and lost. I envision a community center where those in my community can gather to lean on each other. Currently we have nowhere for teens and troubled individuals to seek the company of others. I have always said "If I ever win the lottery, I will build a community center". Of course I will never win the lottery because I do not believe in gambling. :)
I guess what I am saying is that I want to make a difference in other lives. I have found that when I am busy serving others - I forget my own problems and trials - if even for a moment. :)
I am a mother to 4 very young children and it is very hard to raise children to grow up and be great honest hard working citizens. BUT, I believe and I have faith that my husband and I can do it! I believe that I can teach my children right from wrong.. I can teach them how to be hard working and caring and take care of their responsibilities.. Some people would say I am crazy, they say my strict parenting is going to backfire, well that may be so but I do not believe it will! I have Faith in my parenting and I have faith my kids will hear what I am saying and will do whats right in their life! I talk to my daughter who is 8 1/2 all the time about how she must go to college to earn a degree doing something she loves.. My daughter wants to be a vetenarian and a Doctor. She says she is going to college because she wants to build a ranch and have jumping horses and a 2 story home. She knows she can not get things like that in life if she is not responsible and go to college. She does not spend alot of time with her friends. I have her very occupied at home with her family and we enjoy doing things together! Family is forever and friends come and go and she sees that at her age already! I love that she would rather stay home then go to a friends! She is that way because the way we live and teach! My vision of my life and future is a wonderful vision and I cant wait to see my 4 kids succeed in life! I believe and I have Faith they can and will do it. So far So good! :)
On a personal level -my dreams have always been to assist with homeless and unwanted animals - especially pet rats and to be a photographer. I enjoy photography - especially of nature :)
I write romance novels, because, it's truly what I love. They are fun to read, full of passion, romance, and most of all, happiness and love. But, of course the hero and heroine have to go through many obstacles to get there. In the end, it's like true life. You have to struggle, and go through hardships to see what you are made of.
And, in the end, if you work hard enough, fight hard enough, see your goal in front of you, then you can accomplish anything.
That's why I visit the site everyday. To further envision the future I want, and hope to have. That's why I have other sites, I visit, to further get my vision out there.
I've met so many wonderful people over the years.
The best one, I will never forget is meeting my favorite author, Julia Quinn.
She truly is a great example, of my dream realized.
That's who I strive to be like.
A humorous, wonderful woman, who tells stories that drag through all the emotions. From love, to sadness, to anger, and back again to heart warming ending.
Ps: Would really LOVE this book - I requested it when they first announced these, but didn't hear back ={
I want to teach my son (with my husband's help) how to be a responsible, productive person. I hope he understands that life is only what you dare to make it, and that the biggest challenge is overcoming the roadblocks you put up yourself.
The only children's museums in our area are for older children...there is nothing to expand the minds of our younger children. I have witnessed that children learn quickly and benefit tremendously when they are active and involved, and having an affordable, fun, and exciting place to "play" and learn is just what we need in our area.
Niama Leslie Williams, Ph.D.
Copyright October 2008
i sit in the rocker
retrieved from the refuse
by her reformed, reignited,
in love with me, her, her father,
granpa joe.
papa joe, papa joseph my children
will call him and their cries
will not rouse that anger,
rage, fury, muffed down
snuffed out by my tinkering
tonelike bells of love in my voice:
sweet succor has put out his fire.
now it is sometimes he
who delights in the 2 a.m. feedings
the way Noby’s little fingers
curl around his wrinkled own
in love, trust, curiousity,
a baby’s faith.
he runs up and down the halls
james junior, cowboy,
in hot pursuit.
they have matching six guns
chaps hats
blowing up barriers illuminating for him,
papa joe,
the freedom to play again.
it was the way Jim looked at me
first time reunited
he ceased worrying about me then
papa joe knew his youngest gal would be alright
this man a keeper.
we are halfway to our fourth child
Jim and I and Papa Joe makes three
reconstituted family in refurbished reignited regal house
royal in the way we love it.
The Beige Queen, bargain antique sofa of understated loveliness,
ruling the private sitting room
my red chair the color foci of my downstairs office
green pfaltzgraf dishes dominate the upstairs kitchen
giving american simplicity’s girth and lead
a run for its money.
the given bedspreads ruling
the king James and I share
my collected quilts for papa joe’s full size
the white and yellow crochets
for wrapping the babies in.
James Junior a delight with golden skin
Noby her great-grandma and my niece’s direct descendant
a Shepherd woman without doubt and dark skin.
nightly i wrap my arms
around James’ long fleshy limbs
delighting still, always,
in the look and lust and taste of him.
we have petitioned and kept Father Yacobi
at our beloved Saint John’s
Shyamalan came to the wedding
the first of my books as film
hitting screens the next year.
Spielberg and Quincy have taught us philanthropy
No one knows Barack has our ear
We soothe and counsel and comfort
our fearless leader.
Life is quiet at 2006 De Kalb Pike
for Jesus rules here
His Father having first word
in all that we declare.
We have bought Russ a house
of his wife steered him clear
Rocky, his daughter divine, resides with him there
he awaits grandchild pitter patter
little ones to hold near.
We sigh a lot in happiness
for even Tribble smiles now
contemplating wife number two
with conscience clear
cancer receded
violent son behind bars.
visit us soon
i, dr. ni, will pose my inner eye
to seize any fear
dislodge disarm destroy
any broiling boiling sneery veneer
Joseph will lay bare how to sing
via pen and paper
what your heart will see
now that your vision clears
and if you need medication
James and naturopathing Dr. Bucci
psychiatrist and herbalist
will keep your bloodstream thoughts pure.
come by
visit
join us
your feet dancing up and down the halls
your soul a mist ascending
ascending to the home
we all deserve, desire, revere.
###
Love and blessings,
Dr. Ni
http://www.blowingupbarriers.com
My dream is to be the Poet Laureate for the United States.
In 1977 I was in a car accident when a drunk driver hit me head on. After two months in a coma, although I regained consciousness, I couldn't do much of anything. So for the next few years, I relearned to function, i.e., I relearned to sit up, feed myself, brush my teeth, comb my hair, walk, etc. I'm now much better, but I'll always be handicapped.
When something like that happens to a person, they quickly learn who really loves them; everyone else disappears from the person's life. For me, that was the worse thing about becoming handicapped, not the physical disabilities but the mental ones.
So it was my vision to live my life as I would have if the accident had never happened and to NOT appear to others to be less than anyone else they knew.
As I said, I have mostly achieved that since 1977. But it isn't a vision I could achieve and then stop. I have to keep achieving this every day. Luckily, I can do that pretty easily because it's my way of life. I'm not conscious of doing it anymore.
But I've had another vision for the last few years. That is one for the people who love me to realize that this isn't hard for me anymore.
My dream in life is for everyone to stop and think before they do certain things! They need to realize that everything they do will impact a life in one way or another!
From a business standpoint, I want to make enough money to start impacting things outside our household on a major level--a major reason why I value U.S. economic freedom. I want to adopt at least two children and then set up an organization where I can help other caring people who want children as well.
Several years ago, I suffered a stroke and once again, my goals were changed. My goal became, not being trapped in a broken body. I wanted to do the things that I used to do, like talk, brush my teeth, golf, shave, go fishing or just take a walk. Eventually, I settled into a set of abilities that I was fortunate enough to still have available and began to take stock of those abilities. I would have to limit my dreams to pursuits of the mind. This is the background for the vision that I am about to describe. One of the greatest things that I have learned about achieving my goals is that we must think not in terms of “I want to be …” but in terms of “I am …” because we become what we want to be by just doing the things that we want to do. So understand that though I speak of my vision for the future, I will speak in the present tense. You will have to do some homework if you want to figure out where I am on this road (Hint: check my website to see what I have achieved.)
I am an author who has written one book which is titled, “That’s My Story!” which can be seen at GHMonroe.com. I am working to become a master marketer because writing is only half the battle. There are sales goals to be met, which are always moving. Once a goal is met a new goal is set. As I work to become the best marketer that I can be, I have begun work on my next book. In between periods of work to meet these goals, I work every day towards my goal to become healthier. All of these goals dovetail with the two constant goals that I have always had and will always have which are to give my daughter all of the things, material, spiritual, moral and intellectual, that she will need in life; the other eternal goal is to make some lasting contribution to the world and help leave it a better place than how I found it.
These goals were met...but I have so much more to give. I would love to mentor children (I cannot have my own biologically). I would love to write a book and give out free copies to readers. I would love working with Oprah Winfrey at her school in South Africa. I have dreams of world peace, although I know that will be a long journey to achieve. I just want to give of myself and I dream that there are ways that I can still do that.
I have a dream that things will settle down and people will just learn to stop this sterotyping and learn to shut up and get along. I want people to be discliplined and not fat! Come on america, we shouldn't be this fat.
My other dream is to be able to make a huge difference. I want to be remebered, be able to know that people will remeber Kai. I am somebody, not just another chatpter in the the history books of the billions of people that have lived here. I want to remebered for the kind of person I am.
Those are my two dreams, for everything to be right with the world and to be remebered.
It is really frustrating because none of my doctors know much about it or even want to deal with it. When I was in the hospital for my hysterectomy, most of the doctors and nurses had never seen or heard of the condition. There are a lot of us out there who would love to be part of a study if we could only find someone who cares about us and our condition.
I suppose I could make more progress on this vision if I would get off my computer and just do it ! :)
I also wanted to be a writer, I am that.
My vision of the future includes shedding our debt, and saving money, so that we are able to survive if something big happens to us. I will probably always be frugal, but there are so many things I wish we could do, that we don't have the money for yet.
My vision of the future includes at least one large family vacation. Maybe a trip across country, or to Washington DC, or even just a visit to tour the UP of Michigan. I want to give my children wonderful memories they'll cherish always.
My vision of the future includes us being happy, healthy, and safe.
I want to live each day moving toward the point where my entire life's work is just helping other people--and if you help enough people, all the other aspects of success like money and more time with those you love ends up becoming a byproduct.
Gosh, at 47 years old, a question like that almost stumps me. For a long time, I no longer had any dreams left in my life since my health had gotten so bad but that has changed. My health, not perfect by any means, has improved and I have begun to enjoy life once again. I have begun to explore different venues in my life and I am enjoying them. A LOT! One of my biggest joys in life now would be my drawings.
I love to draw and I do it as often as possible. My favorite subject for drawing is horses. Now that I am 47 years old, I have given myself permission to be "horse obsessed." It's okay to adore horses and to draw pictures of them all the time. I have been looking for "how to draw" books to help me to improve my drawing skills. I do draw mostly with computer programs but I would like to explore other mediums as well.
So I would have to say that is my dream in life, mostly just to enjoy LIFE and all it has to offer. I want to do things that I enjoy such as drawing and perfecting my drawings. My vision is to be an artist who specializes in equine art and my vision also sees a real live horse for my very own someday.
I want it to be full of growing things, in Earth colors. I see myself in long gauzy skirts, bandanna tops and sandals, my hair as free as the conversation going on, while old friends, neighbors, and travelers get together and chat. As the reputation for it's peaceful setting grows, and it would, I could expand to hold all who come there. I would want a book for all to sign, and leave a thought for everyone to read. I would want several projects going at once, for the poor, for medical research to save those we love with new found cures. A project started there for the rights of animals, and to save them. Our Mother Earth, and how to preserve her and the beauty she holds for all of us.
Just a place for all to be themselves, relax, write, talk, share and build on ideas to help the local area and the World. It only takes one idea, and those interested in that idea to make it work. Sort of "den of discovery" if you will, with our shoes or sandals off, and energy, positive only flowing every second., Most of all, letting the natural feelings of love for humanity, all humanity, to fill the hearts of all who come there to my "Store", and follow them when they leave, so the goodness that can come from people being together can carry on outside of my doors. Utopian? I don't think so. I already have the wall colors, the carpeting and wood floor, some earth picked out. I hope I achieve it, can sit and write in it, when not chatting with my customers, and spend my days smiling and sharing life. Keep your eyes and ears open. Maybe you will be dropping in someday. Ellen B
I view life in these terms, and my vision is what lends shape to my more specific view of our natural world. Insofar as it is important in life to move toward knowing ourselves and our world, it is important to grapple with the question, "What it is to be a human being in the natural world?" To me, this is the central question. And my dream is to be able to impart a love of this natural world to others. That is why I went to Mexico as an exchange teaacher; so that I could teach the children to love the butterflies. As well as when I went to Costa Rica to teach the children there that we are connected through the beautiful song birds. For if children first learn to love something with all of there heart then they can encompass it within there own lives.
As far as visions for my life- to be the best wife and mother- I want to teach my children, to ensure they get the best educations possible, and to teach them to think for themselves. That is my one hope for my children. To be as educated as possible, and to be ready and willing to find the answers to the things that they don't know. I want to instill in them the joy and wonder of learning.
I'd love to have a book published, that's another dream of mine. To have a book published and share on at least one of the topics that I know very well, and hopefully help someone else with my words.
Now I want to start a non-profit organization for at-risk youth with Asperger's, Learning disabilities, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Tourette's syndrome (the disorders that my children have). The organization will increase access to the arts for at-risk youth age 16-19. I have been writing the Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws, curriculum and marking plans/moving forward.
[Now we just need our home to sell, so we can buy the land we found ... build our new home & art studio (where we will hold artist retreats).]
Finally I want to have my non-fiction collection of personal essays about raising two children with special needs published, to help other parents know that they are not alone.
I plan for some of the proceeds of sales to go to the non-profit.