Questions to reflect on the year and manifest the rest of 2026
Plus: tuning back into our childhood loves & auditing our daily routines
Yesterday, I co-hosted a whimsical summer vision-boarding event with Sasha Purdy of Manifest Creative Club.
10 beautiful strangers gathered around picnic blankets in a beautiful park, laughing at Lisa Frank stickers, clipping images of their dream lives from lifestyle and travel magazines, passionately bonding over their tastes in music, sharing anecdotes of life transitions and milestones, and inadvertently witnessing each other in the journey back to themselves.
“I’m in a season of getting back into my body,” one of the attendees shared. And, that was literally the theme of the evening.
As we flowed into the gathering and reflected on our visions for the rest of the year, the tactile practice of layering glue and block-font and gemstones unlocked the stories between us. People shared about their health journeys, return to (and departures) from career paths, passion projects (that they were trying to be more brave about sharing), and the complex emotions behind the question “what’s next?”.
Throughout the evening, we noticed that returning to the activities we loved to do as children was a big part of our collective return to ourselves.
As the sun set and evening chill started to creep in, folks lingered to exchange numbers and even make plans to connect more over a meal.
One individual stopped me mid-clean-up to share that the night had reminded her of a ritual she used to do: at the end of each day (after a day's worth of accounting work), she would come home and paint or sketch. It was a routine that she cherished and felt alive doing. But, as many of us can relate, work began to take over her life and she forgot about it.
“Now, when I start to pick up something creative to do, it feels weird,” she said. “But, I want to get back into it.”
So, I ask you, dear reader: what is a routine, habit, or activity that you’ve lost touch with but want to bring back?
I hosted this gathering to help folks reflect on the year so-far, tap into their intuition, pause from their claustrophobic social and work calendars, and visualize their life priorities going forward.
But, even if you were not able to join us (from wherever in the world you are), I want to share some questions to reflect on before the summer ends. Many of these I credit to fellow creative entrepreneurs Naomi Peña of That Art Party and Magali Mathieu of The Unlock Your Vitality Community & podcast.
Questions to reflect on the year so far
What do I want to celebrate from 2026 so far?
When have I felt most myself this year? Most energized, creative, and light?
What no longer feels aligned, or draining?
What are the top 3 lessons I’ve learned (from both wins and challenges)?
Have my priorities changed from the beginning of the year until now? How so?
Questions to manifest the rest of 2026
Who am I becoming (or want to become), and am I supporting that vision of myself?
What would I do differently if I lived more consciously in the next 5 months?
What do I want the second half of this year to feel like?
If I only had 1 month left in 2026, what would suddenly feel important?
Think about the habits that are currently working for you. What new habits do you want to cultivate, and how can you leverage the learnings from how you’ve built good habits in the past?
Ok, you know what you need to do, right?
Find an open and expansive chunk of time this week or weekend and sit down with these questions, a pen, and a piece of paper. Maybe, suggest these reflection prompts as a group activity with loved ones (friends? a romantic partner? your grandma?), and share your answers with each other after you’ve had solo time to reflect.
Reflecting on your honest answers to these might just be the mid-year life audit you needed.
With zeal and gratitude for this creative life,
Vanessa
Quick reminder to join us for…
[August 14, 2026] Creative Lunch Club x Adobe SF, a creative lunch gathering we’re co-hosting in San Francisco. Enter the lottery to attend here.
[August 26, 2026] Tiny Lessons From Obituaries: Stories That Could Change Your Life, a co-hosted event with Mary McGreevy at the Local Economy (Oakland) that will be a fun and profound experience involving reading real obituaries as a way to reflect us back to ourselves. Get your tickets here.
More August happenings to be announced soon - stay tuned!
Beautiful and reflecting might be one of my fav things to do!!