I stopped making New Year’s Resolutions a few years ago. They felt dry. Now I make a visual list instead. Collages. Some people call them vision boards. I like making a collage instead because they are more creative and less pressure-filled. The point of making the collage is to invite mystery and magic into my life. Or to get more courage and clarity about what I really want.

For many years in January I invited friends over for a New Year’s collage party. We get messy with dozens of magazines, rip out pictures that appeal to us (mine vary from year to year, recently typical: hot springs, hammocks, typewriters, dancing in nature). We see what we are drawn toward. We paste together our collages and share them.

The words are often as important as the images.

Above you’ll find a collage I made last year as part of our first Quirkytogether 101 class. The most important words on this collage for me are “Truth Teller.” That’s because I want a relationship that is founded on truth. A relationship is only a trap when you can’t tell the truth. I look at “Truth-Teller” when I need courage. You’ll see lots of “flesh, sex, desire” on the collage. That’s important too. 🙂

Making a collage can also be an exercise in courage. For example, when I was struggling with the decision to move back to Buenos Aires to dance tango at the root source, my coach Peter gave me the playwork of making a collage. I made a collage to remember why I wanted to go. I gazed at the collage when my courage to go wavered. I eventually got on the plane.

It’s mid-January now, so it’s the perfect time to make a collage for the new year. On any area of your life: 2014, relationships, work, dreams, travel, health, quirkyalone, or quirkytogether.

Here’s how:

Supplies needed: Collect a bunch of magazines–make sure you are reading magazines that have images and/or words that appeal to you. If you’re not, go buy some! You will also need a large poster board or piece of construction paper, scissors and glue or rubber cement.

Set aside two hours of your time. Pour a cup of your favorite beverage. Put on your favorite feel-good music and start to flip through the magazines.

Rip out whatever images or words speak to your heart. If something makes you smile and the idea of experiencing that yourself feels invigorating or meaningful, then it’s a good indication that you will want to include it on your board. You don’t need to feel attached or serious about any particular image. There’s no pressure to “accomplish” everything on this collage in the future. It’s a completely free space to just tear out and add anything that speaks to you. This is completely light and free experiment.

When you have enough images selected, paste them onto your poster board. Be as wild and creative as you want and make this something you will look forward to seeing everyday.

Once you have created it, find a place to hang it so you will be encouraged to look at it often. This visual will give you peace, energy and/or excitement in your body as you envision being and doing what the images portray.

P.S. We make quirkytogether collages as part of our Quirkytogether 101 class as part of the visioning process to get clear about the kind of relationship we really want. It’s a little like my New Year’s Collage party. We do it together and it’s fun that way. The next QT101 class starts January 25. You’ll make a collage in the class, and you get to do it with other creative souls who are cleaning up limiting beliefs about relationships and learning to date in an open, authentic, QUIRKY way! We’d love to have you join us!