As a kid I didn’t like how my complex Etch-a-Sketch creations — sometimes long in the perfecting — could be lost in an instant. Yes, it was freeing sometimes, for sure, to shake that thing and start with a clean slate, but I soon abandoned that toy because the effort didn’t seem worth it. I made a cool thing and then it disappeared.
Hey, cool thing, come back!
But I have ventured back into the world of erasable inspirations as I move toward the January launch of my book. I have so many things I need to do in so many different arena – blurbs to get, podcasts to record, book signings to schedule, capes to design (yes, everyone needs a superhero cape!) — so I got a big white board which has helped me keep an eye on both the big picture and the little details. I have the board divided into sections and I use colorful erasable inks so it draws and keeps my attention. If I don’t keep looking at it, it’s a wee bit useless, so I do my best to make it look joyful and inspiring.
My favorite thing about white boards, though, is erasing! I have always loved lists because I practically get high from crossing things out. You can do that on a white board too, if that, indeed, also makes you high. If I have done something big that I realize was not on my list, I write it down and then cross it out – after the fact!
Yes, you deserve credit for that! Good job!
I love accolades. I particularly love giving them. I started a private Facebook group called High Five specifically for the purpose of giving each other accolades for the stuff people normally don’t applaud:
· I didn’t complain when my husband, yet again, did not take out the trash.
· Leaving the kids with family for the weekend for the first time.
· I didn’t murder my mother-in-law. Yay me!
· My garage is clean for the first time in forever.
· I did this icky thing I really didn’t want to do.
Accomplishing things is fun. Winning at life in even the tiniest way is fun. A white board is a great tool to help you win and make big dreams come true. White space and colored pens are good for expressing dreams. From a dream your board can be your buddy to remind you of all the steps that will lead you to making it become a reality. Sometimes fun, new ideas come to me as I write on mine!
Of course not so fun stuff also has to go on the board: uncomfortable calls, resources that must be tracked down, paperwork to complete, etc. If I don’t consider something fun I try to make it look more fun with drawings and lots of color. Or I put a big box around it, make it super colorful and my goal is to get rid of the whole box.
I originally purchased what I considered a big board. I knew it would fit over my little podcast studio table across from my desk, and I knew I could easily yank it off the wall to take into the family room where I tend to do my creative work. But it turns out I need a bigger board now as I get closer to launch. More areas require my attention, bigger dreams are clicking in. More possibility.
More possibilities, please. Thank you.
People who have visited my house recently have been inspired by my board – either to get their own, to do something they saw on mine, or to create a board of possibilities for themselves. But I’m the one it needs to inspire so I try to completely erase it and restart about once a week. The vision gets bigger as things get done, other priorities rise to the surface.
The great news is that unlike in my youth when polaroid film and film processing was expensive so no one even thought of taking a picture of their Etch-a-Sketch creations, you can snap a picture of your white board creations so nothing is ever lost, which is what I’m doing today as I wait for my larger board to arrive.
I hope you consider a clean white slate of a board to splash with your possibilities and dreams. And, I hope you give yourself lots of high fives as you check things off your to do list!
Dream big, Superhero, dream big.