The Power Of Vision Boards

How To Make One That Actually Works

What is a vision board?

Do you have goals that you want to achieve, but you’re having a hard time keeping track of them and sticking to them?  Or do you have a hard time actually SEEING your goal come to pass in your life? Well, perhaps its time to make a vision board!

A vision board is basically a cluster of pictures and words on a board, that represent the goals and visions you have for your life right now. The items on the board, when visualized and focused on daily, help give you clarity in what you really want to accomplish and do.  They also keep your attention on your intentions and reinforce your affirmations and positive self talk.

 

Our Minds are Very Powerful!

Visualization is the process of developing a mental image or intention of what you want to happen or feel in reality. It’s the simple law of believing or attraction.  What we think about, manifests into our lives. As the book The Secret states,

“The Secret is the law of attraction!  Everything that’s coming into your life you are attracting into your life. And it’s attracted to you by virtue of images you’re holding in your mind. It’s what you’re thinking.  Whatever is going on in your mind you are attracting to you.”

 

Prentice Milford (1834-1891) said,

“Every thought of yours is a real thing- a force.”

 

Exercising the Mind

We can exercise our minds by way of visualization, which has been proven to help reach goals faster. Athletes use visualization, mental rehearsal, guided imagery…all the time.

When I was a competitive gymnast, we had a sports physiologist come in and teach us the power of guided imagery. We would visualize ourselves doing a certain skill or a full routine. We would “step into” that feeling and include all of our senses. Then we would try to imagine every detail and the way it felt to perform each skill. The mental rehearsal would be Visual with images and pictures, Kinesthetic with how our body felt and Auditory with the sound of our thoughts or the equipment as we utilized it.

Practicing in this way, by utilizing the mind, helped enhance our skills through repetition and rehearsal, very similar to physical practice. Our minds and bodies became trained to actually perform the skill or routine that we had imagined.  Sounds crazy, I know! But it really worked.

There was a time when I injured my foot by spraining all the ligaments down the top of my foot and into my big toe. So it was hard for me to walk, let alone practice gymnastics.  I improvised by doing a lot of physical conditioning, strength and mobility (without using my foot) and A LOT of visualization. After about 3 months when I was able to start practicing a few skills again, it was like I didn’t miss a beat! My mental practice was just as powerful as if I where out on the equipment physically practicing.

 

Brain Power

During mental visualization, brain patterns are activated in a very similar way as if one is actually physically did something. This is why vision boards are so powerful!  They can be a tool and a sacred space which displays what you want to bring into your life.

And as a side not, just remember that the pictures or objects on your board should evoke certain emotions that should NOT be laden with fear. Fear prevents good things from coming to pass and causes that actual fear to be manifested instead. Visualization works the same in the reverse. So all emotions stimulated should be positive ones.

 

Where do you put your vision board?

When you develop a vision board and place it in a spot that you see often, you end up doing short visualization exercises throughout the day, believing for or attracting what you want to come to pass. Which is pretty cool right? You can also pick a set time within your day, for 5-10 minutes to really focus in on your vision board and your goals if you choose to do so.  But this may take practice as well.  Our brains like to wonder… so starting with shorter amounts of time first, may be more beneficial when starting out.

Currently, I have my vision board right next to my bed.  So when I lay down for the night, I usually do between 10-45 min of visualization and prayer before my husband gets into bed and turns off the light (thats my times up lol… unless I fell asleep sooner).

 

Developing Your Vision Board

The secret to constructing a vision board that actually works, is that your board should focus on how you want to feel, not just on things that you want.  It can be great to add material items as well, however your board will be more fulfilling and accomplished if it focuses more on how you want to feel with in each goal.

For example, I have a picture of a healthy, strong, muscular colon with a heart on a stomach, on my board.  I have Ulcerative Colitis and I can get very angry and frustrated with my colon throughout each day.  Therefore, my goal is healing and strength within my colon. I will manifest that by changing my thinking about my colon and seeing it as this STRONG ORGAN.  I will also change the negative feelings of dislike and distrust INTO love and trust in my digestive track and in how it functions.

 

Another photo I have on my board is one of Chinese lanterns and a statements reading “Let It Go”. Which is a big goal of mine… letting little things go!  I get so fired up sometimes about little things in my life not going the way I want them too🤦‍♀️, that I just need to learn how to set the emotion or frustration I’m feeling on fire and let it drift away into the air.

 

The picture of the my husband and I in the top right corner, evokes a feeling of the simplicity and joy of our marriage.  It was one of our engagement photos from 2012, before life got crazy and when we where just completely wrapped up in every detail of each other.  It reminds me to keep it sweet and how easy and fun our marriage can be when we are likeminded together and not distracted with the details of life… and kids always being in your face.

 

One more example, is the photo of the girl under the lantern picture, with her arms spread up wide.  To me she just looks like she feels GREAT! She seems to be strong, blessed and energized.  Those are attributes I want to manifest in my life… being whole, energized (because I’m so tired from my babies 🤪), delivered (of some genetic health opportunities I have) and pain free (from old injuries, overuse and auto-immune disorders).

 

So focus your images on the feelings you want to manifest about each goal.  Don’t stress over it… because you can’t do it wrong. What works for you now may not work for someone else or even for yourself in 10 years.

 

I Know You May Have a Few Questions….

1. “What do I put on my vision board?”

✔︎ Anything that motivates change or inspires you, would be perfect to put on your vision board.  The purpose of a board is to bring everything on it to life. When first starting out, think about or write down your goals (visit my article on goal setting here).   They can include, your health, fitness and body goals, and could also cover relationships, finances, travel, home and family life, personal growth- spiritual, social, career, education.

➜ From there, think about which short term, long term or continues goals you would like to really focus on first and make a note to add the feelings associated with those goals. Then find a picture or quote that resembles those feelings and add them to your vision board!

➜ You can find pictures or words/quotes in a magazine, online, anywhere. Lately, I’ve just been printing pictures out from my computer because I don’t read magazines and its faster. It definitely brings a different look to my board, but that’s what works for me right now.

➜ Pro Tip: Give yourself a good chunk of time to do this and don’t expect it to be perfect within the first hour (especially if you’re a perfectionist like me and like things done quickly lol).  I usually try and think about mine for a few days to a few weeks first, before I even start physically putting it together.

 

2. “Should I make a vision board for different categories in life?”

✔︎ This one is completely up to you.  At one point in my life, I had a separate mini board/ paper for fitness that I would keep in my gym bag, one for my schooling that I had above my desk, one for my health that I had in my bathroom and one for my spiritual goals that I would keep in my bible.  And the year before I got married, I had a wedding day/ virtuous women and wife specific board… which helped me focus on that major life change.

➜ NOW… now I just have one central visual board… and maybe a small separate, more focused one (sometimes just a simple picture or quote) at different points in the year, when I feel like I need it. I also have a wall chalk board in my kitchen that I write bible verses and sayings on that help me stay focused in that category throughout the day when I’m having a tough time… so more of a written vision board there.

➜ I usually keep my central vision board in my bedroom, so I see it right as I wake up and when I get in bed in the evening. Sometimes I do move it around to my home gym, kitchen or bathroom, depending on the area of my vision board I am having a hard time visualizing.  So just do what works for you in that moment and with the time that you have.

➜ There are even vision board apps now… if that works for you, go for it. Then you will have it with you where ever you go! Just set a reminder to look at it throughout the day 😉

 

3. “How often do I need to change or redo my vision board?”

✔︎ Whenever you feel like you need too or if the majority of the goals have been achieved.  I started using pushpins and stopped completely filling up every corner of my board with something… so that I can change it often and have the space to do it.

 

4. “What is the best age to have my child make one?”

✔︎ Once they can clearly communicate with you and think up ideas- they can make a vision board, with your help.  When my son was 3 years old, he made his first vision board. He did fantastic! We really had to talk through his goals… since he first kept saying he wanted to put a tractor on there. Lol But we got down a few great items.

 

Here Are a Few Things You May Need to Get Started:

1. A board (whatever works for you: cork board, poster board, piece of paper, and app).  Currently mine is a pretty woven corkboard in a frame that is 16″ x 20″.
2. Markers, pens, crayons, paint, a printer… some kind of ink.
3. Embellishments, physical items, stickers, hand written items, magazine cutouts (pictures or words), printed pictures/words… anything that will inspire you.
4. Glue, pushpins, paper clips, tape, scissors (the basics)

 

Then set the mood, if that’s your thing, and have fun putting it together. Give yourself plenty of time to work at it and if you need multiple days to do it, take them… just set a goal to finish it as well. Remember it doesn’t have to be perfect either… you can always change it (that’s why I like pushpins and a corkboard!)

 

What Do You Think?

Are you convinced that a vision board is a fantastic way to reach a goal faster? Will you make a vision board… if you don’t already have one?  If you do have one, do you see it as helpful?

Remember to check out my post on “How To Set Goals You Can Achieve”, to help you produce realistic obtainable goals.

Thanks for reading and sharing!