Capturing Your Year: Make a Time Capsule for Reflection & Growth

1. Welcome: What if you could bottle up the memories, lessons, and key moments from the past year? What if by reflecting on the past, you could bring a stronger foundation for your future? Well, in this class, that's just what we're going to do. We're going to create your own personal time capsule. This is a powerful tool for reflection and growth. I'm Jamie Smith, and I'm an artist and teacher, and welcome to my class. Capturing your year, make a time capsule for reflection and growth. I am so excited to guide you through this time capsule journey together. Reflection is one of the most powerful tools for personal development, and creating a time capsule allows you to honor the past while making space for the future. And that's what we need sometimes. This class actually pairs perfectly with another class I made inspiration to reality, make a vision board for your goals. In that class, we explore how to turn your dreams into a reality by envisioning the future. The vision board class is all about setting future goals and focusing on that, visualizing what we want to manifest in our own lives. In this class, we are all about looking back for our time capsule, reflecting on the lessons and the experiences of the past year. The end of the class, you'll have a personal time capsule filled with memories, insights, and all things that kind of relate to this future that we're looking forward. It's a complimentary way to do this and the vision board class together. In this class, it's for anyone that wants to deep reflect on the journey, honor your growth and create something meaningful to revisit later. We're going to look back and capture the essence of your year. We're going to create that space for intentional so we'll begin by celebrating our wins. We're going to reflect on how you spent your time this last year, the lessons that you've learned, but we're also going to take the time to say goodbye. Let go of anything we don't need. So let's jump in and get started. 2. Your Project: Your project for this class is to make your personal time capsule. This is a reflection, a collection of reflection, thoughts, symbols, and that all represent this past year that you had. This is your own keepsake to revisit in the future, and it's filled with memories and intentions. So why a time capsule? Well, I wanted to create a tangible way for us to honor this journey. Often don't take the time to pause and reflect and think about what we have just gone through and give ourselves space for that. So it's not just a fun project, an art project, but it's actually a tool for self awareness and growth. So all you're going to need is a jar, a shoe box, a container, some sort of capsule. And you can figure that out now or you can wait and do it later. It's totally up to you, but you want to jump into the exercises that I'm going to walk you through. So for that, you're going to need a paper and pen and any other small items, mementos, anything that you want to put into this time capsule, as well as any art supplies because we're going to decorate it, as well. I did make a time capsule PDF, and that is for all of our reflection exercises. You are, of course, welcome to just use a journal and write on whatever you like. You want to think about the size of your time capsule because that will depend on what you're going to write on. So it's important to not really worry about it too much, but as you're doing it, think through your reflection and remember that you're going to put those into your time capsule. So we are going to use this as a guide. There's no wrong answers. This is your reflection, your time capsule. So we are going to get started doing exercises together, and the first thing we're going to do is celebrate our wins. That certainly sounds fun. 3. Brag Box: So before we dive deeper into reflection, let's take a moment to celebrate. Let's celebrate our wins. Sometimes we forget to acknowledge all the good things that happen to us, especially those small victories. So grab your time capsule PDF or a piece of paper and start filling in your brag box exercise. I want you to write down all of the wins you've had in the past year. These could be huge achievements, like a work promotion or something that you really wanted to happen happen or small victories, like a new habit you started or something you really wanted to get done and you did. Anything that you're actually proud of yourself for from personal growth, big milestones or huge challenges, it could be a very unique year for you. We want to take the time to acknowledge the big and small wins to really think about the growth that we've actually made. So taking this time, it's not all about just moving forward. Remember, don't worry how small the win is, write it down anyways. Sometimes the smallest victories have the biggest impact on our overall journey. So your only job in this exercise is to fill the entire box. Once you've written down all of your wins, let's set it aside, and this will go into your time capsule as a reminder for the future of everything that you did get done that year. So let's dive in. Let's think about this year together as an important asset to move forward. In the next lesson, we're going to think about how we've spent our time this year, so I'll see you there. 4. Time Pie: Let's reflect on how you spent your time over the past year. This is something we don't talk about a lot, but time is actually one is our most valuable resource, in my opinion. And it's kind of important sometimes to take that inventory and think, how did we invest this valuable resource? So pull out that time capsule PDF or a piece of paper, and we're going to go to the time Pie exercise. What you're going to see is a circle. That circle is what we're going to use to create a pie chart, and we're going to use it in different categories of our life. There's a whole list there. You can change, you can add, you can put in new categories if you want, but start to kind of estimate how did you spend your time this year. And you're going to make this into a pie chart. So, for example, think about the things you spend a lot of time on, and those are kind of be the bigger slices of pie. I find this this easiest way to do it and then kind of build out with the other areas of your life in smaller ways. It's kind of a good way to see that guestimate and see if it works out. Keep in mind, there are no wrong answers. This is for you. This is to see just a reflection on where this time went. So you're going to fill in your pie, and you're going to reflect on these questions with me. What areas did you spend most time tending to? And how did this affect your past year? What area did you spend maybe not enough time tending to, and how did this affect you? So we're going to think about that and then move on to the second circle. That second circle I left for you as a way to kind of think about how you want your time divided for next year. And this is really important because we want to think, do we want to grow and learn from this exercise? So you're going to make a visual representation of what this looks like for your future and then answer some reflection below. Once you fill this in, I want you to think about these questions. If your time was divided in this way, how would it affect your life and why? And what is going to be that key focus for next year with your time? Having these questions in mind is going to really help you take more of an inventory of the hours that you're putting and where and why, and if you want that to be that way. So this one was a hard one. I'm so impressed that you're sticking with me. We're going to jump into the next lesson, and we're going to talk to our past self, so I will see you there. 5. Dear Self, Thank You: Now it's time to show some love to your past self. Isn't that lovely? This is one of my favorite exercises because it's all about acknowledging the resilience and wisdom you've shown over the past year. And it's easy to forget sometimes. So take a moment and write a letter to your past self. Grab your time capsule PDF or a piece of paper and just start filling in the ideas. Dear self, thank you. That's the activity sheet. Start by thinking about what you've learned this year and what you want to thank yourself for. Maybe you made it through a tough situation, learned a new skill or simply stay the strong when things got hard. Your letter can be short and sweet or as long and poetic as you like. There are a lot of lines there. You don't need to fill them all in, and it could be as simple as, thank you for staying strong through a difficult time. I'm proud of you for pushing through and learning to take care of yourself. Or it could be a long letter to yourself, and both are great. You are going to be the person to read this. But we don't take that time often to just take a moment and acknowledge our growth. That's what you're doing by taking the time to do this. So don't worry about being perfect. Just right from the heart. Your future self is who's going to read this, and I think you'll be so thankful that you did this when you read back and see the kind of year you had. So it's a gift to your future self. Aren't you nice? Once you're done, set it aside. This is going to go into our time capsule, and we are almost ready to make that time capsule. We just have a few more activities to go. See you there. 6. Word Of The Year: We're now going to capture the essence of our year in a single word. I know it sounds hard, but words can offer us a symbol of the journey that we've been on. So I want you to think about the past the past year and a word to describe it. We're gonna put that into our time capsule PDF or on a piece of paper. Your word could be growth, resilience, transformation. There's some big fancy words that you can put to it, or it could be simple, like breathe, calmness, whatever your year was like. But take a moment to sort of think through and look back at the writing you've already done to really choose that word that summarizes that year. We are going to use this time to reflect as a whole, about how this word represents our journey. You're also going to write why so that your future self can kind of remember why. You might have forgotten in a few years. But don't overthink it, choose a word that feels right. Have some free writing about it, and I know your future self is going to be so excited to kind of see that word and everything that is symbolized to you now. This word you might also use as you decorate your time cap, so later, it's something that is going to come up for you. So what is the essence of the last year you've had? Write that down, don't overthink it and get it all into one place. I'll see you in the next exercise. 7. Saying Goodbye: Before we create our actual time capsule, it is time to say goodbye. We are going to leave the things that no longer serve us. So I have created a space for you to do that. It's in our time capsule PDF, and we're on a piece of paper. And sometimes this is a challenge, and it's time to let go of those things. Maybe it was a year that was really tricky, and it's time to say goodbye. Maybe it was a great year, and you just want to kind of close it off and have that closure. So you're going to get writing. You're going to dig in. We're going to let go of anything that you need to. And it's all about this exercise is, how do we learn from this last year? How do we gain lessons for the year that we've had? Let's let go of the things that don't serve us, opportunities that we no longer need. So it's a chance for you to release. You're going to release any lingering thoughts, emotions. You don't want to hold them in as you move forward. You are the only person that's gonna read this, so enjoy the time to just let it go. Say goodbye. And this piece is going to go right into that time capsule, and your future self is going to see those hard lessons you learned, which is really, really exciting. So I'll see you in the next lesson, and we're just about there. 8. Your Secret Wish : Alright. We've said goodbye. This is our last one, and I love this one. This one's a secret little one I put in. So this exercise is your secret wish for the coming year. It's really fun to look back on. You're going you can use your PDF or grab a journal, and you are going to use the little box provided to write down that secret wish. Don't overthink it. Go with your gut. What would be so exciting if it happened next year? So this is directly focused on next year. It's could be something small. It could be something big, but what's a hope? It's an exciting thing that could happen. Maybe it's about making more space for yourself. Maybe it's something that you want, a big promotion. This wish is for you. You don't have to tell anyone. So don't feel undeserving or unsure. This is the way that you're gonna put it out there into the universe. Especially if you go on to make a vision board, this is that secret wish you can put in there. It's like a small whisper to the future self, to the universe to say, This is what I truly want. Don't overthink it. I can't emphasize it enough. So get that written down your secret wish and take the time to kind of write out why. Let your future self know what you are thinking and get that on paper. And the next lesson, it's all going in the time capsule, and we're going to talk through all the things to think about when creating your art project. See you there. 9. Creating Your Time Capsule: You've done all the important reflection work. Now it's time to put it together. Now is the art project. I'm going to walk you through how to assemble your time capsule. This is going to be a meaningful art project, a keepsake that you get to revisit in the future, which is really exciting. So step one, choose your container. First, let's start with selecting a container for your time capsule. You want something that feels special, but also is practical for storing the memories and reflections. There are many options, so pick one that resonates with you. A couple ideas that I have had and ones that I've made myself is a typical jar. So a mason jar that can be decorated or you can just simple, put a tag on it and leave it in glass. But it's an easy storage way. A shoe box, a nice free shoe box. But you can decorate it, add patterns, stickers. Again, it depends how much you're putting into it and what kind of size you need. A custom container is also kind of fun. Maybe you see something crafty or want to create something upcycled. And another one that is an underdog of containers is a large envelope, and this one's kind of nice cause you actually can stick it on the back of your vision board if you want to keep those two things together. The one that I made for this year is actually a custom box that I got at a craft store, and it's made into the shape of a home, which I thought was really fun because my whole year was about moving house and kind of setting up in a new place. So the vessel really became part of the meeting for me and very symbolic, which I really like. So you might find something like that, but you also might just find a container. So don't overthink it, grab what you have handy and make it your own because there's lots of way to do that. You also want to think about where you're going to put it and how much you're going to put inside. So if you wanted to go old school and bury this in the backyard, make sure you have a container that it would do that. Or if you're going to store it for many years, make sure that it's reasonable, that it's something that you will tote around and have. So our step two is we're going to personalize the outside. So all our reflection is going in. We're going to add some other things inside, but we also can make it fun on the outside. So I really enjoyed this process. I used all the things I learned in my reflection to create symbols, cut out magazines, and kind of put it all on the outside to create this time capsule. I'm really excited for later because I will have that also as this arty memento. So some ideas that you can for personalizing is I did use some paint, which I really liked, washy tape patterns, but really making your own with paint, collage. So magazines I already had out because I was working on my vision board, and I found some quotes and photos. I even printed some photos with my family. So that is a really fun way to do it. The other thing that you can do is add the date of the year or even when you're going to open it could be on there. Quotes and words you can add, especially that you know your word of the year, and that can all go on there. Stickers, ribbon, how are you going to make this really uniquely your own? So step three, we're going to add your reflections and some mementos. So you have your container, and you can fill it with everything you've written in this class. You can take some of those words out. You can make them in different forms. But it's a great way to preserve all of this reflection into one place. So some things that you want to include, of course, is the time capsule PDF writings. Any reflections maybe from an older journal or something from the year you want to put in, letters, gratitude list, goals that you've had. Again, my writing that we did together was just a start. Great things to put in there are mementos, so this could be photos, ticket stubs, small trinkets. I have some of my daughter's toys in there just to remember the things that she loved. You could add drawings, sketches, elements of an old vision board could all be packed in and put in there. Make it fun. Step four, set a future date to open. This is one of the exciting parts of this whole experience and the fun part of a time capsule. So your future self is going to open this up. This adds anticipation and fun. So when to open it. Maybe choose a meaningful date if you want. So it could be just a year from now to make it, you know, a short term time, could be five to ten years from now. If you're really excited about this really into the future, it could be a specific milestone, a birthday, a special event that's coming up. And that's kind of a fun way to set a time that you're going to open it. Write the date that you're supposed to open the container and don't forget. You could also set a reminder in your calendar or phone or put it somewhere that you see it and kind of build that excitement. So enjoy that future self time when you're going to open it. Step five is seal and store your time capsule. So make this a little ceremonial, and you want to seal this up so that you cannot touch it. It's more fun. You don't have to, but I thought it was fun. So you're going to you could tie a ribbon around it, tape. You could do a wax seal. You could really seal it up and bury it. It's just about making it fun. So it's all about kind of taking that moment to seal it is also about kind of closing off that year. So, you know, think of this as sort of the sacred time. And then when you're thinking about where you're going to store it, just remember that you want to have it easy to move around somewhere that you're not gonna by accident, open it when you get curious. So just kind of thinking about where you want to put it in your home. And your step six, post your project. I want to see this. I want to see this beautiful art creation. So in the next lesson, I'm going to show you kind of how to post that. But I would really love to see it. I'd love to hear you talk about this experience and what you kind of learn from remembering your year. So post that in the project session below. I would love to see it. And now you're ready to go. So you have this time capsule and whether you open it a year from now, ten years from now, your future self is going to be really excited by the experiences and everything that you went through that is going to all lead to who you are in the future, which is really exciting. Well done. Thank you. 10. Uploading Your Project: What I love so much about skill share is that students are able to share their finished projects with one another. It's really unique. And I have taken a number of skill share classes myself, and I find the classes that I push myself to actually post my project are where I truly learn the most. So please take time to share your project with me. I can't wait to see it. I'm going to give you a little demo of how to do this. So you want to take a picture of your work. I always do this just on my iPhone or my iPad, and you want to then go into projects. So on your screen here, this is a class. This is my vision board class. And there's projects and resources here, and you're going to click this green button that says Create Project. So here, you're going to see a place to upload a photo. So I just have this in my photo library. It's going to upload, and this is going to become my cover image that people will see. I can then put in my title, so my vision board. And audio correct is the best. And then I just wrote a little description of what my focus is for the year with my vision board. You can write what you like about your project, what you found difficult. You can always make your project private, but I do love being able to share and see other people's. And then you're just going to press the green button is publish. So publishing takes a couple minutes for this photo to show up, but you're going to see it right under your projects. We'll be there. One thing I love is if I go back to my profile and I scroll down, you can actually see where all of your projects live. And I find this really exciting. I'm really proud of the projects I've done and the classes I've taken. People can like it, people can comment, and it's a great way to have community within Skill Share. So I find the creative life can be a little hard sometimes. It can feel a little lonely. But remember that you're part of the skill share community, and it's a creative one, and it's an important one. So I know that I am a better artist when I'm working in community and I'm participating, and it can feel scary, but it's worth doing. It's so easy with online classes to start them, get distracted, and just not finish them. So push yourself, get that project up up, and I can't wait to see what you have created. 11. Next Steps: Congrats. You made it. I'm so proud of you. Thank you so much for being here. This time capsule is a powerful tool for reflection. It gives you the opportunity to look back with gratitude and closure, while making space for this new future year and growth. And when you revisit this in the future, it will serve as a reminder of how much you have learned really helped you become the person that you're going to be. So if you're looking to kind of what is the next step after this, I encourage you to do a vision board. And I have a class. It's on skill share, inspiration to reality, make a vision board for your goals. And in this class, it's all about thinking about how we're moving forward. It's envisioning, it's manifesting the life and the year you want ahead. Now that you've done the reflection part, let's move into the goal setting part. So the two classes sort of make this full cycle of personal growth, which I'm really, really excited about. So thank you for taking the time of looking backwards so that you can move forward. Remember, personal growth is an ongoing journey. It is ever moving and ebbing, and by you being here is just a step in all of those forward moving directions. So thank you so much. Congratulations. I'm making something meaningful today. And when the time comes, I can't wait for you to see all of your fun reflections there, all the growth you've made, and all the little victories you're gonna totally forget that you actually accomplish. So, well done. Thank you so much.