Going into 2023 I knew 100 percent that a typical vision board with pictures would not cut it for me. Photos are nice to stare at but I navigate life with goals and results. That’s when my 2023 Bingo Board was created in Canva. I keep making one every year. I made one digitally and instead of printing it out I just copied it on a blank bingo sheet and hung it up on my wall. I also got the cutest reusable stickers. Each time that I reached a Bingo I rewarded myself with something little or small. I guess it’s the dopamine and competing with my January self that kept me going.

If you want to make your own here’s a printable one and a digital one.

Highlights from 2024’s Bingo Board

Here are a few highlights from the 2024 board. Publishing a second edition of American Hurt meant everything to me. It is a poetry book about America’s faults and I originally wrote it in two days while were all stuck in the house during lockdown. I remember staring across the street of my 3rd-floor walk-up apartment and realizing that the world had paused but the steel mill was still pumping. I also did a few open mics and performed these freshly written poems and the ink was barely dry. I’m giving away one free copy to three folks on my Instagram so stay tuned for that.

Being known as the Murder Mystery Girl is paying off. Last year I got paid to host one and that’s amazing since before that I was hosting them in my dining room. Now I write custom ones and I already have one I’m booked for next year.

I learned that I do not like spas as I do not like strangers to touch me. It gives me the opposite effect and I tense up. So I’ll stick to the occasional pedicure.

I’m going into 2025 de-influencing myself from buying things. I don’t want to buy any more things as I don’t need them. I need new experiences and I’m excited about that. The Netflix Buy Now really made me think about how we accumulate so much stuff as a society and when we throw stuff away it just sits in a landfill ruining the ozone or another country in a landfill ruining the ozone.

The documentary talks about how companies like Amazon studied our habits to ensure that we purchase more stuff so they can make more money at the cost of ruining the environment. Companies are even making things to break so we can replace them at the price of the environment. There’s this concept of placing something in your cart and letting it sit for thirty days, and if you still want it after thirty days it might matter. I’m going to try that. It ended with “Whoever dies with the most stuff does not win!”

My sewing machine is going to get a workout in 2025. I had this shirt that didn’t fit but I loved it and on a whim the day that I wanted to wear it, I cut it, traced it, and took it in. Was it perfect? No! Was I proud? Yes! 2025 is going to include less waste and more repurposing.

I didn’t quite read 8 books this year but I read 4 and my top two favs were Betsey Johnson’s memoir. I love a fearless woman and that woman is it! She chose to be a single mom at a time when that was frowned upon. That small-town girl grew up to be an older woman known for bold colors, quirky designs, and cartwheels on the catwalk. I love that she didn’t let life dull her sparkle. I also enjoyed Birth Strike which spoke to the relationship between the birth decline and the lack of valuation in women’s work. Going to aim to make a dent in my never-ending to-be-read list.

Failing at something new is going on the 2025 board also because it’s humbling. At my last job, I was asked to write user stories for the first time and I did it was a disaster but I eventually learned and then taught my coworkers how to do it.

Highlights for 2025’s Bingo Board

Now here’s a glimpse at 2025. I’m going to aim to also do quarterly check-ins on my Bingo Board for motivation.

Some of the spaces on the new board are old but some are new. I kept learning a new skill because as someone who has been a secretary, Flight Attendant, Registrar’s Assistant, IT Business Analyst, Mayor, Freelance Writer, Community Engagement Specialist, and Communications Specialist, I love picking up a new skill. I collect them like Pokémon.

Doing a no-spend month includes only spending money on needs not ridiculous things. It will also make me look at my spending habits and budgeting, and keep me from being influenced to buy things that I don’t need. Watching Buy Now made me think about ownership of things and now I’m in awe about all of the things that I do not need and that there’s an industry telling us that we need these things.

Last year it was open mics, 2025 year I’m going to apply for writers residencies. I love trying new things and it also feels like a learning opportunity. I don’t like meditation for the same reason that I don’t like silent parties. Being quiet was never my thing but yoga sounds like something great to try.

Giving myself grace is a big one for 2025. I’m going to build more boundaries and stop saying yes to everything because that’s how one’s kindness gets taken advantage of and that could lead to burnout. I won’t completely stop literally giving people my last dime but I’ll be more careful as to why I’m doing the things that I’m doing and allow myself the grace to say no, to fail, to succeed, and realize that perfection isn’t always the greatest thing. I have to build and maintain better boundaries with people and myself or I’m not correctly holding myself accountable. It’s more peaceful when I’m giving myself grace that I give to others and if people aren’t out here giving me peace, why are they there?

Some fun and not-too-serious mentions include: hosting a tea party, buying a couch, and being a Halloween Haunt.

The Bingo Board is fun. I learned from previous years that even if I don’t get to everything it’s still an adventure and if it gets missed I’ll add it to next year’s.

I can’t wait to see what prizes I give myself in 2025 and what adventures are ahead.

“Celebrate the idea that you don’t fit in. Find your own fit. Stay unique.”

Betsey Johnson