This article will show you how to create in 5 easy steps a Father's Day Vision Board that really enhances your relationship with your father no matter what is happening in his or your life or even if he has passed on!
Father's Day is coming up and for many fathers and sons it is a time of joy and great fun and wonder to share the day with their dad and their offspring.
For other men and boys and girls Father's Day can be a challenging day because a) their relationship with their father is not up to par or their father has passed on or they are a new dad adn not sure how to form a real bond with their kids.
How to create a Father's Day Vision Board step by step (basic version):
1) Gather together pictures of your dad alone and pictures of you with your dad -- if you have them from past albums or from old shoeboxes full of photos.
2) Get a large poster board or consider putting the pictures into a journal or even scanning them into your computer so you can take advantage of some of the computer vision board creation services.
3) Scan the pictures or sort through and pick out 5-6 pictures that just seem right to you.
4) Take some time and play some home movies or videos of you and your dad if you have them. Or do a short visit with your dad via phone if he's still alive and you are on talking terms. Or if he has passed on take time to go to the cemetary and visit his gravesite.
5) If you are not talking to your dad for some reason or have become estranged, take some time to revisit the good times you had with your dad via the movies in your own memory bank.
6) Make a list of 5 of the BEST times you had with your father, was it at an amusement park, was it playing ball with him, was it on a vacation, was it when he came home from work and scooped you up in his arms each night. Start with 5 you can add more or if more come to you start circling the best five that you feel warmest about inside you.
7) Make a list of the POWER words that come to mind when you think of your dad. What did he contribute to your life positively? What did he teach you that has helped you be a better person. If you can't think of anything because maybe you're angry with him or you were adopted or you never knew your father, you can do one of two things a) pick a father figure in your life -- a past teacher or a coach or refer to b) your heavenly father or c) put down those power words of great actions you just know your father would have liked to have shown you if he was able to such as LOVE, Warmth, Bravery, Courage, Perseverance, Humor etc.
8) Start in the center of the board by arranging a picture of you and your dad in a happy time. Or if you don't have a picture of your dad, use a picture from another father figure or a picture of you under the guidance of your heavenly father or the Universe which has guided you in the past and will again in the future.
9) Arrange some of the other wonderful reminders of the good times in your life with your father in a circle around the center picture. If you don't have good time pictures then pick some out of a magazine or off of the Internet (be sure to get copyright free photos by looking for the term Creative Commons on photo websites).
10) Add the power words -- either type them up on your computer or add words that are the same out of magazine headlines or add power words that come with your Vision Board software program.
11) Add some embellishments-- add some stickers or add some glitter (yes glitter is fine for men too) or add some momentos from your dad and you -- maybe a ticket from a movie you both went to recently. Or maybe one of his medals from the service or even a note you have from your dad that shows his handwriting.
12) Paste or glue all of this on to your board or if you are making a computerized board scan it into your computer so you can move the pictures around.
13) Affirmations: -- add some affirmations about how you'd like to remember your dad if he's passed or how you'd like to resolve difference or have a better relationship with him. Such as My Dad and I have lots of fun together. My dad gives great insight to me. Speak in the present tense not the future and not the past (even if he has passed on).
14) Place your board in a prominent place where you can see it -- in your office or in front of your computer. If you're shy -- get a scan made of the board and use it as an inspirational picture for a screensaver or wallpaper for your phone. OR make a smaller version to use on a keychain and share it with your dad as a present.
You can also make variations of this MAKE YOUR OWN VISION BOARD with your dad such as a daddy and me board for dads with small children or a parents board for mommy and daddy and me. SHARE THE VISION
Joyce Schwarz is the author of The Vision Board: the secret to an Extraordinary Life from Harper Collins Publishing and she is also head of JCOM marketing and emerging media consulting service in Marina Del Rey, California.