Rest and Retreat

I have a love/hate relationship with goal setting. I used to view setting goals as a high pressure/high stakes activity. Lately I have shifted my perspective on goal-setting — now I view goal setting as a time to reflect and re-orient.

A couple weeks ago I spent two days on my first annual(!!) Spark Retreat. I rented an Airbnb, armed myself with sticky notes, poster paper, markers, wine, and my trusty studio assistant (my pup named Aspen). While Aspen was on deer and squirrel watch, I hunkered down in the sunroom. I spent time re-evaluating my mission and vision statement, my core values, and what drives the work I do. This included reflecting on wins and challenges from the year, reviewing my services and packages, in addition to identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. 

What came from this dedicated time and space away was rest, reflection, and revisioning.

Rest: I took naps, went for walks, and enjoyed quiet and cozy evenings in front of the fireplace. It's hard for me to fully relax when I am at home. This was a gift!

Reflection: As previously mentioned, I reflected A LOT and filled many sticky notes thinking about the year 2025.

Revisioning: Analyzing 2025 helped me reposition and set goals for Spark Creative for the year ahead. I tweaked my mission and vision statement and adjusted things that felt clunky. This gave me freedom to set new or different goals (with a purpose) for 2026.

One of my favorite parts of doing all of these practices was reviewing all of my incredible clients. These people (you!) are doing amazing work in your respective communities and it is such a joy to partner with you in that. That isn't lost on me. I'll say it over and over again — thank you for trusting me with your brand and in the design process!

I wrapped up my time away by praying over all of my clients from the past year and praying over the un-named clients to come in 2026.

I hope you hear some encouragement here to take time for yourself to rest, reflect, and revision. Whether that's as part of the new year, or as a part of your daily life.

Check out my year in logos here!