Our home is the most essential place we go to, yet we don’t take the time to really think about what we want from our home. It’s time to change this and create a vision for your home.
You see, far too often we spend our time serving our home rather than having it serve us. What I mean by this is that our homes are filled with clutter and stuff that does not serve us or reflect who we are or what we want from our homes. We spend countless hours cleaning caring for and maintaining all this stuff that we are usually not even aware of.
It’s time to get clear on what you want from your home, what purpose you want your home to serve, how you use the rooms in your home, and how you want your home to feel. Having this insight will change your mindset toward your home and allow you to see it with a fresh perspective. Once you do, you will easily be on your way to creating a place you never want to leave.
Of course, the best way to do this is by taking the time to sit down and create a vision for your home.
What Does it Mean to Create a Vision For Your Home?
Vision boards are often used in home decor design when you want to redesign a room. You may have heard of a vision board, but if you’re not familiar with one, it’s typically a single place where you collect images that represent the look you are trying to achieve.
However, I don’t want to talk about designing your home, I’m want to talk about creating a vision for the characteristics of your home. A way to list out and get clear on your goals and desires for your home.
By taking the time to set these things out you are more likely to achieve them. They help keep you focused and motivated to follow through.
Creating a vision for your home is about setting out a clear intention of what you want from your home. You will set out what purpose you want your home to serve, how you use the rooms in your home, and how you want your home to feel.
In doing so, you are creating a vision for how your home will serve you, rather than you spending all of your time serving your home.
Why Creating a Vision for Your Home Matters
Why Creating a Vision for Your Home Matters Our homes matter! The home is where life happens, it is where we start and end our days, it is a safe haven to retreat to. All this means, its function and purpose matter above any other place.
If you don’t identify what matters to you in your home, you will never be purposeful in its pursuit. While, the things that are important to you in your home may change with various seasons of life, who you are will always be at the heart of your home.
When you create a vision for your home, it allows you to get clear on:
- What relationships you want to cultivate in your home.
- How will you use your home to nourish those relationships and people.
- How you use your time. Whether in pursuit of stuff to fill your home with and all of the cleaning and maintaining of that stuff. Or will you use your time to nourish and cultivate relationships?
Taking the time to set forth your vision is what gives your home and your efforts to build that home a purpose. Creating a vision for your home will inspire you and give you the motivation to pursue that purpose.
I wrote on how to discover your core values in life and in that post I talked about how our core values are what guide us through life. Creating a vision is much like setting forth your core values for your home.
Creating a vision will guide you in the choices you make as to what you bring into your home and what goes out from your home. In other words, it brings a steadfast focus on what to do and not do to create a home you love you never want to leave. In the end, you will have a home that nourishes your deepest heart desires.
When you are clear about your vision for your home, saying no to the things that interfere with that vision, like the excess clutter, becomes so much easier. You will be fully confident in what you say yes to.
Setting a vision for your home is actually both fun and exciting as you move forward in fulfilling that vision.
So let’s talk about how you can start creating your vision.
How To Create a Vision for Your Home
Creating a vision for your home involves:
- Defining the purpose of your home.
- Getting Clear on how you use the rooms in your home.
- Determining how you want your home to feel.
- Looking at your home with a fresh perspective.
We are going to look at each of these in detail so you can begin to create your vision.
Defining the Purpose of Your Home
Defining the Purpose of Your Home Have you ever really thought about what the purpose of your home is?
For most of us, we want more from our homes than just shelter, a place to sleep, or a storage container for our stuff. Most of us long for a safe place from the busyness and chaos of the world. A place we can go and cultivate relationships, build memories, feel refreshed and renewed to face the next day.
However, we have not taken the time to really think about what the purpose of our home is. This is why we end up serving our home rather than our home serving us. We spend time caring for our home without getting what we really want from it. Because we are not clear on what we want from our home, we are not intentional in creating it.
The purpose of your home will likely look different from mine. It is going to be unique to you and your personality.
For example, if you’re an extrovert you may want your home to be filled with people. Having a home that serves as a place for hospitality, entertaining, and serving others may be at the core when you create a vision for your home. You may gravitate toward bright colors that energize you and the people in your home. You may want a few extra decor pieces to tell the story of you. Perhaps you want your home to be the neighborhood hang-out where all the kids come to gather and play.
On the other hand, if you’re more of an introvert you may gravitate toward muted or neutral tones with simple decor pieces. You may see the purpose of your home as a place to go for quiet and an escape from the outside world. Having a home that is cozy, warm, and relaxing may be at the core of your vision for your home.
By getting clear on your purpose for your home, you’ll be able to create an environment that serves you and the people in it.
When it comes to clearing clutter from your home it will become so much easier because you will be very clear on the items you own that serve that purpose and the stuff you own that does not. This of course makes it easy to let go of everything that does not serve you in your home.
Getting Clear on How You Use The Rooms in Your Home
Getting Clear on How You Use The Rooms in Your Home Once you have thought through some of the ways you want your home to serve you, it’s important to look at each room in your home and the purpose of those rooms.
This is where we need to look past the labels for each room. For example, a bedroom may be used for an office or playroom. The dining room may function as both a place for entertaining as well as being the center of homework sessions. The living room may serve for both entertaining guests and having family time. Or perhaps you have a den or bonus room for family time and reserve the living room for more formal events.
Regardless of the name of each room, it’s important to determine how YOU will use those rooms and what purpose will they serve.
Also, consider who will use those rooms. Do you have toddlers or teenagers? Which rooms are reserved for adults only? Determining how your rooms are actually used and who uses them, will help you determine what needs to be in that room to allow it to function in a way that will serve its intended purpose.
Once you have a clear purpose for how you use each of the rooms in your home, you’ll know exactly what things belong in that room and which are just clutter.
If something does not serve the purpose of the space, decluttering becomes much simpler. The room’s set purpose will act as a guidepost guiding you in exactly what you need and don’t need for each room. You will have a purpose for what you keep and what you choose to let go of.
Determining How You Want Your Home to Feel
Determining How You Want Your Home to Feel Our home is the starting and ending place for our days. This is why it’s important to figure out how we want it to feel. When we do, our home can reflect who we are and what we value.
Getting clear on the answer to the question of “How do I want my home to feel?” narrows in on your vision for your home.
When determining how you want your home to feel think about your lifestyle. Are you are a homebody who loves all things cozy, comfortable and peaceful? If so, lots of hygge vibes may be important!
Perhaps you are an adventurer who loves to get outside, travel, and see exotic places? If so you may spend less time in your home but want your home filled with memories of your adventures.
Or are you an introvert that cherishes quiet family times at home or time spent with a few close friends? If not, do you love to entertain and have people over often? Do you want your home to be the neighborhood hangout? Are you drawn to neutrals and simple decor or do you gravitate towards bright colors?
Knowing the answer to these questions will help you decide what you want to keep in your home and what would interfere with the feel of your home you are trying to achieve.
Some things to consider when you create a vision for your home as to how you want it to feel:
For a Casual Relaxed Vibe
If you want a relaxed casual lived-in feel to your home you’ll want furnishings that allow you to put your feet up on the furniture and things that are easy to care for. This means antiques or expensive items may need to be passed on to others or donated.
For A Peaceful Sanctuary
If you want your home to feel like a peaceful sanctuary you’ll want to keep clutter to the bare minimum. You’ll also want to keep decor pieces that are more neutral and have lots of textures. Candles and soft lighting will be important things to hold on to.
For a Home That Feels Welcoming
On the other hand, if you are all hospitality and entertaining you need places for guests to gather and sit. Yet you want to make sure there is plenty of room to walk around. This makes getting rid of extra non-functional furnishing will be important.
If You Want Your Home to Feel Creative
If you are the creative type keeping your craft materials will be important. You may want to designate a room for art or music or have some musical instruments as part of your decor.
The key is to declutter everything that does not support the way you envision the feel of your home.
Looking at Your Home With a Fresh Perspective
When you’re having guests over to your home, you tidy up, clear the clutter and maybe even set out some fresh flowers and light a candle.
You want your guest to feel welcomed and valued. What effect would it have on your home if you treated yourself as your guest?
When you look at your home as a guest would you will see it with a fresh perspective and begin to notice things you were not even aware of. Because you live in your home day in and day out, you become so use to seeing the items in there, that you don’t even notice them any longer. This is especially true when it comes to your clutter.
But by gaining a fresh perspective when you look at your home the clutter will stand out making it easy for you to see what does not work in your home and what you know you need to let go of.
As you walk through your home imagine that you are a guest. What are the things that you see out of place? What are the things that give you a clue as to what that room is used for? Do they support the purpose of the rooms you determined above?
Do you see piles of clothing or papers? Are there things covering your flat surfaces? Are there knick nacks or decor pieces that you don’t love?
The goal is to try and spot the clutter with a new and fresh perspective. You also want to focus on those things that do not line up with your purpose for each room. Ultimately you want to discover whether or not the things in the room serve your life and purpose?
Once you have seen your home with a new or fresh perspective you can kick-start your decluttering to align with your space’s function.
Creating Your Vision For Your Home
Creating Your Vision For Your HomeNow that you are clear on the vision for your home, you know what the purpose of each room is, and have examined your entire home with a fresh perspective it’s time to craft your vision. Grab a pen and paper and start writing down your vision for your home.
Answer the question of how you want your rooms to function. Next, write down what purpose your rooms will serve. Then list out how you want your home to feel. Finally, get started on decluttering all of those things that don’t align with what you’ve written down.
Once you do you will be on your way to creating a home you love!
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