The Mara Group – Mara Foods, Mara Closet, and Beautiful Smiles Project – has held a vision board visualization session with young women changemakers in the Upper West Region.
The session, held over the weekend in Wa, was in commemoration of the 2024 International Women's Day (IWD) under the theme, "Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress."
It was facilitated by the Founder and Director of the Mara Group, Madam Maria Johana Yuorpor who is also an Industrial and Organizational Psychologist, Business Consultant, Trade Associations Lead, and Upper West Regional Coordinator of the Northern Development Authority (NDA).
The session involved the participants in goal-setting and mind-mapping activities where they cut out graphics that represent their goals and aspirations and pasted on cardboard in very creative fashions.
According to Madam Yuorpor, the session aimed to help the young women changemakers to set their goals and aspirations which would enhance tailored initiatives towards achieving the set targets.
"It's always interesting and exciting to have such sessions, especially with young women. So I thought it that International Women's Day, to mark it, I would spearhead this fun and yet learning and interesting session of a vision board with these young women leading change in their various fields of work," she said.
She expressed optimism that the participants would be able to achieve their visualized aspirations to stay motivated in impacting their communities.
"It's my hope and prayer that the goals they have set out, what they have visualized on these boards, they are able to achieve them in their life time," she said.
Madam Yuorpor noted that periodic review sessions would be held to track progress and make necessary reviews regarding the set goals adding that, it is in her plans to hold the session annually to benefit more people
She encouraged the participants to be more innovative and not be limited by just what they visualized on their vision boards.
She, however, noted that it was normal in life for one not to achieve all that has been planned and yet even achieve greater feats that were not originally planned.
Miss Caroline Dari, a participant, said it was her first time making a vision board and that it was a great experience as it allowed her to experience the tangible form of a vision.
"I have heard about it, I have seen presentations about it, but it's my first time putting together a vision board and I would say the experience has been a good one.
"After making this board, it's given me a better picture of some of the things I want in my life and this will continue to be a constant reminder on those things and I'll strive better to achieve them because they are in my face all the time because they are in their picture form," she remarked.
She added, "I look forward to coming back next year to sharing my progress on this and making new plans."
Another participant, Fathiyat Mohammed Numbo said it was a satisfying experience having, for the first time, put together a vision board using actual pictorial representations for her set goals.
"It's a satisfying experience because I'm going to be able to track this, I'm going to be able to know which ones I'm able to do because it's going to be pasted on the wall in my room to serve as a constant reminder," she said.
She hoped that the vision board session would become an annual event on a large scale as she believed it has a greater potential to catalyze efforts to meet dreams.
The session was participated by ten young women changemakers from diverse fields ranging from entrepreneurship, technology, and engineering to civil society and academia whose ventures included, Royal-Avielle Bee Farms, Shea Essence, Fragrance and Gift City, SFD Foundation, Baquree Inspires Ghana, and others.