creating your vision

Why Vision Boards Work - And Why You Should Create One

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

 
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Let's chat about what an ordinary day of adulting really looks like, shall we?

You wake up via an annoying cell phone alarm, after ever-so-gracefully hitting the snooze button about three times. Then you stumble out of bed and commence your daily routine of making yourself look half way decent and head to work. After a long day's work, you come home, have dinner and shoot the breeze (possibly watching Netflix or Hulu) until you go to sleep and do it all over again the next day. 

Here's the deal - it's incredibly easy to live that same exact story over and over again - day in and day out. 

While doing something different, going on adventures, pursing new goals, or learning something new look amazing as you're scrolling Instagram, they all TAKE EFFORT. It takes a significant amount of your time and energy planning and executing for these things to actually become a reality. (Oh, and you also have to be consistent because if you're not careful, you could start planning and then your goals can disappear in an instant if the roller coaster of life get's in the way.)

That's where vision boards come in. 

A vision board is a visual representation of all the things you want to accomplish over a certain period. While it's common use a poster board to build your vision, you can create a vision board using any medium that fits best with your style.

I like to do create a vision board at the beginning of the year instead of setting a New Year's Resolution because I love having a huge canvas each year to set goals in every area of my life

Creating a vision board could be just what you need to break out of the every day snooze fest, here's why:

 

Vision Boards Give You A Reason To Reflect On What You Want Out of life.

In any given day, you can point out the things you don't really enjoy about your life. You can also daydream about things you'd want to accomplish if you had only the chance. Thinking about these things every day means absolutely nothing if you don't make an effort to fix them.

Creating a vision board is your opportunity to reflect on your life - the good and the bad - and redesign your story. Through your vision board you can set goals to do more of the things you enjoy about your life and less of the things you don't enjoy. Your vision board is your escuse to take a moment to think about your needs and focus entirely on your action plan to make it happen.

My favorite book for exploring your self, your desires and your destiny is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. A friend gave this book to me when she realized I was struggling with adulting and needed a serious lifeline. Now I recommend it to others. 

 

Your Vision board serves as a constant reminder of your goals.

The real power in vision boards is the daily interaction with them. If you put your vision board in a place where you'll get to see it every day, it will begin to train your mind to think about the things you want, even when you're not necessarily thinking about them or focusing on them.

While you may have had difficulty focusing on accomplishing your goals, your vision board will be your point of focus. Depending on what you put on your board, you're placing yourself in the position to solve those problems or focus on those goals even when you're not trying. 

 

Your Vision Board Is Your Reminder to live a full life

The most powerful thing about the vision board is that it's your own blank canvas and you're absolutely unlimited in what you can put on it. Your business goals can sit right next to your travel goals, next to your money goals, next to your relationship goals. When  you look at your board, you're not only thinking about the home you want to buy, but you're also thinking about how you're going to align your money habits to reach those travel goals and buy your first home. With a vision board, you begin to view your life as one full picture and it's your job to put all the pieces together in perfect harmony. 

Vision boards are powerful for many different reasons, but the biggest value you get from a vision board is the effect it has on your mindset.

The second you decide to create a vision board you are making a consious decision to put yourself and your needs first. You make the decision to take control of you life. You assert your strength over your life. When you create your vision board, you paint a picture of your future - you tell yourself and the universe that this is what you will have. And even if you don't hit the moon, you'll surely land amongst the stars. 

xoxo

 

Want To Start Planning Your Vision Board Party? 

  1. Download the FREE vision board party planning checklist.

  2. Craft your inspiring vision board workshop talk with our FREE High Impact Storytelling Journal Prompts

  3. Plan, promote & host your first (or next) professional & profitable vision board workshop with our signature course, Sold Out Vision Board Parties.


About the author

Cyrene is a fun and accomplished workshop facilitator, learning and development guru and Human Resources professional. Being at the helm of Thrive Lounge has been a long-time dream. Through vision board workshops she plans to accomplish two-way learning. Sharing her vast years of knowledge to motivate and encourage others; while simultaneously getting the reward of great energy, ideas and questions to ponder back from each group. A super win-win. Please join our Thrive Lounge community so you too can benefit!

5 Things To Do BEFORE You Make a Vision Board

 
 

I've kinda become a pro at creating a vision board that works. Seriously, no matter how much my life sucks and how big and unrealistic my vision is, every vision board I've created has pushed me to make the impossible possible in my life. (I am totally a goal-gladiator.)

It's hard to believe that a tiny board with some magazine clippings on it has so much power, but the truth is that it works because of HOW I created it.

I didn't just slap some pictures of Oprah on a poster board and call it a day.... I spent weeks reflecting internally about what I wanted and then combed through a giant stack of magazines, tossing out anything that didn't SPEAK VOLUMES to my soul. 

The entire process takes weeks... and each time, it's totally worth it. 

Here are the five things you should do BEFORE you even begin creating your vision board:

 

Reflect on what you've already accomplished this year.

A lot of things happen over the course of 1 year. If you consider social media alone, millions of things happen over the course of 1 day. (In any 30-minute span, you could see public outrage over some company's insensitive+non-inclusive ad followed by excitement over the latest zoo animal to have a baby which quickly gets upstaged by a Kardashian being, well, a Kardashian.)

Take a moment to reflect on what has happened in your life in the past year.

What did you accomplish?

What did you try and fail at?

What did you do that made you proud this year? 

Taking account of your successes will help you understand what you need to build on.

 

Think about the direction you want to take your life next.

One thing many people forget is that you are definitely in control of your life. If you don't enjoy something in your life, you can change it

One affirmation I take with me every day (and write at least three times a week in my journal) is: 

I am the architect of your life. I build it's foundation and choose it's contents.

How many times have you stayed in a job, a relationship, friendship, living situation simply because... There's no real reason you're there, but after a while you start to convince yourself 

"I guess this is just the way life is"

The beauty of a vision board is that it's an annual reminder that you can change direction and that you GET TO CHOOSE your next destination.

 

What Do You Want To Change?

No matter who you are, where you are or how successful you are, everyone knows at least ONE THING they want to change about themselves.

Maybe you want to...

  • Lose weight.

  • Finally get your side hustle off the ground.

  • Spend more time with family and friends.

  • Strengthen your marriage.

The things you are unhappy with are the key to determining where you want to go next.

Once you understand exactly what you want to change, you can do the real work figuring out HOW you will change it.  

 

What Would You Do Differently... If There Was Nothing Holding You Back?

I know what you're thinking... what do you want to change and what would you do differently are pretty much the same thing! (I swear they are not! 😃)

Often, we find ourselves in an unusual position where we have something that we want to change, but there's nothing we can really do about it. 

Most people have at least one thing that ties them to something they don't particularly want in their life.

  • Your spouse's job may keep you in a certain area.

  • Your children's daycare costs may keep you from saving as much as you want.

  • Aging parents consume your free time so you can't start that business you've been thinking about.

What would you do if none of those barriers were holding you back from living the life you want today?

 

Be clear on your next BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal).

Having a goal in mind BEFORE you start clipping cute quotes and pictures out of inspirational magazines is crucial to creating a vision board that serves your purpose. 

Your goal could be...

  • Building on your past success

  • Changing something that's making you unhappy

  • Eliminating (or getting around) barriers holding you back from living your best life

ONLY when you have a clearly defined goal can you be strategic about finding the visuals to put on your vision board to serve that goal. 

Want To Start Planning Your Vision Board Party? 

  1. Download the FREE vision board party planning checklist.

  2. Craft your inspiring vision board workshop talk with our FREE High Impact Storytelling Journal Prompts

  3. Plan, promote & host your first (or next) professional & profitable vision board workshop with our signature course, Sold Out Vision Board Parties.


This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cyrene is a fun and accomplished workshop facilitator, learning and development guru and Human Resources professional. Being at the helm of Thrive Lounge has been a long-time dream. Through vision board workshops she plans to accomplish two-way learning. Sharing her vast years of knowledge to motivate and encourage others; while simultaneously getting the reward of great energy, ideas and questions to ponder back from each group. A super win-win. Please join our Thrive Lounge community so you too can benefit!