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Community Corner

Learn to Make Your Dreams Come True at Library Seminar

Sign up for this June 25 event on the Warren Library's online adult programs calendar.

Do you have a goal that you just can't seem to accomplish? Or perhaps there's a lifelong dream that you hope will one day be fulfilled?

Then you might want to join lifestyle coach Carla Hugo at the Warren Township Library at 1 p.m. on June 25 to learn how to transform your goals and dreams into reality. As featured on Oprah and in the bestseller "The Secret," Hugo will use a Vision Board to guide attendees.

"A vision board is a tool to help people manifest what their objectives are," said Hugo. "It's really simple, it's really low-tech. Anyone can do it.

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Hugo, a lifestyle coach since 1997, founded her  Get Coached business and website after 15 years in corporate recruiting, retention and market development. As an Integrated Lifestyle Coach, she works with clients on various issues including parenting, relationships and general wellness in addition to sharing her knowledge through her blog and local workshops.

As part of the Warren Library's Saturday workshop, Hugo will show people how to create a Vision Board, with the first step being to identify the things you don't want, which will lead to a discovery of the things you really do want.

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"Generally we all have a long list of what we don't want," she said.

Then attendees will create a list of affirmations based on what they want and use that to identify pictures and words that resonate with them to be placed on the vision board. While Hugo typically has clients create their own board, on Saturday the group will create one board together to learn how they can create their own board at home.

"It's arts and crafts," joked Hugo, but the concept goes beyond simply cutting and pasting pretty pictures on a board.

Hugo said the Vision Board is based on the reticular activating system in one's brain, which simply put, is "when we see something it creates an imprint of it and it forces us to notice things more."

Hugo has experienced the success of Vision Boards among her clients and even in her own life. She created a Vision Board when she and her 10-year-old daughter seemed to be arguing more, particularly about healthy eating habits. She found pictures of mothers and daughters interacting in positive ways as well as photos demonstrating healthy eating and explained to her daughter why she made the board. Within a week, their relationship and communication had improved.

Hugo said helping people learn how to create a successful Vision Board also is about teaching them how to create new thought patterns and using positive images and associations to achieve your goals. For example, instead of using a phrase such as "conquer cancer," which would conjure up negative images, the phrase "live healthy" would be more suitable.

When setting goals, people often say things such as "I want," which suggests a lack of something and eventually leads to negative thoughts instead of positive ones. Instead of saying "I want to lose weight" or "I want to be healthy," she said the appropriate approach would be to say "I am fit and healthy."

Once the Vision Board is complete, Hugo said it should be placed in a prominent spot as a reminder but it should also be relocated occasionally so it doesn't become part of the scenery. And the board can evolve to reflect changes in your goal over time, because ultimately it's about giving you the mindset to bring those dreams to life.

"Act as if you have what you want," said Hugo. "You have a dream. Go for it. There's nothing to hold you back."

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