Looking for some inspiration? Create your own inspiration board!

This highly motivating and creative activity came to mind after a journal prompt got me thinking about all the things that have inspired me over the years. As I ran my eye over the various sources of inspiration that I had listed out I felt butterflies buzzing around in my stomach and a rush of determination to get on with my plans! I wanted to bottle that ‘get up and go’ feeling that had been evoked by my list, especially for days when some sort of setback occurs or for when I’m just feeling a bit stuck!

Leaving the list in my journal, possibly never to be looked at again, seemed like a huge waste. So, in a similar way to putting a vision board together, which serves as a visual reminder of your future goals, I thought why not do the same for all the things that inspired me.

An inspiration board will help you to recall the things that really light you up and that have encouraged you to envisage new possibilities, provided a sense of hope, unlocked the innovative ideas within you and unleashed your creativity and imagination. You can take a look at your board whenever you need to keep yourself on track and boost your mood and motivation.

Just follow these simple steps to create your own inspiration board…

• Who or what inspires you? Have a good think and write a list of all your sources of inspiration! What sparks your creativity and helps you to generate new ideas and approaches? What makes you believe that you are capable of achieving your goals or gives you the impetus to achieve them? See the prompts below to help you to get some ideas on paper. Top Tip: If you have a copy of the images, texts, or relevant website addresses make sure that they are within easy reach if you ever want to refer to them.  You could curate your own collection of inspirational resources to go alongside your board.  

• Relish the process of recalling all the things that get you into a positive and creative space. What is it exactly about each item on your board that inspires you? Note down any key insights that you gain from asking yourself this question.
• Decide how you want to create your board.  You can do it either electronically or on paper (whatever you prefer).  Find visual images that represent the items on your list (you can look for images in magazines or search for free images online).  You may also want to put certain words, phrases or quotes on your board which inspire you.
• After you have compiled your words and images arrange them on your board in any way that you want. You may want to make a collage or arrange them into themes like People, Places, Books etc. If you are doing this on paper then arrange your images and words first and stick them down once you are happy with where you have placed them.  If you are doing this electronically then move the images or words around on the page until you get the arrangement you desire. This activity can be done on an A3 or A4 Word document, on Canva or any other software of your choice.

You should now have your very own inspiration board. Make sure that it does not get pushed aside and resigned to a drawer. Pin it up somewhere you will see it on a regular basis like an office wall or in your kitchen. If you want a digital copy then take a screen shot or a photograph of the board and save it as an image on your device. Add it to your wallpaper on your PC, laptop and phone for inspiration at your fingertips!