Six Reasons Why Vision Boards are more than just an Arts and Crafts Project
What is a vision board?
A vision board is a bulletin board or piece of paper on which you display your goals, aprirations or life you are working towards. As you can see above, that can include various different categories from relationships, to career, to travel - the list is endless.
Depending on where you currently are in your life, your own creation of a vision board can have different purposes. Maybe you just want to get clear on what you want and all the things you dream of doing. Maybe you are going through a difficult shift where you are feeling lost and want to find a clear direction moving forward.
Even if you are not completley clear on what is it you want from life, you can start by adding all the things you love to do onto your board. A vision board can be used as a goal setting space, where you place key words, locatons, or to-do's on the board as a kind of bucket list. On the other hand, a vision board can also be a way to display the way you want your life to look or the feeling you want it to have.
Because the board is open to your own interpretation, you decide how you want it to look and feel and what gets to make the cut to be on the board. Perhaps you really want to focus on travelling to Asia. Even though that is only one aspect of your life, you can still dedicate your entire board to it. Ask yourself questions; what do I need to achieve to make this happen (maybe financially?), when do I want to go, where do I want to go, and how long do I want to go for. The more specific, the better.
The Importance of Creating your own vision board
The main point of a vision board is to become clear on what you want and where you want to be going. It is important to write it down or cut out visuals because when you visiually see and remind yourself of your goals and dreams, you will begin making choices and steps in the direction of those goals.
I have outlined five other important reasons why you need to create a vision board for yourself, so keep reading and find out!
6 reasons everyone should make a vision board
1. It helps you get clear on what you really want and what your passions are
Your vision board should be something that you love to look at every single day.
It should represent goals or wishes you have for this life or what you want to your life to look like.
Vision boards are for everyone, but are especially helpful if you are feeling lost and are not quite sure what you want out of life. Flip through a magazine or scroll through pinterest and cut or print out images that speak to you. As you go through this process, you will begin to see where your interests and passions lie. Is there travel involved? Are there career related images? Do you have images that represent the kind of relationship you want with a partner or with friends? All of these can indicate what your heart is desiring, what that kind of life looks like, and what you should be putting your energy towards.
Once you have identified your passions or wishes, you can then hone in on what excatly a life filled with them will look like.
2. It reminds you everyday to make choices in alignment with what you really want
One thing I talk about on here a lot is making intentional choices. Intentional living is my mantra for minimalism and decluttering; its not about having a set quantitiy of things but instead quality in everything. Therefore, you end up only brining items into your life that truly spark joy and add value. The same goes for people, jobs, relationships, commitments, and so on that you welcome into your life.
Creating a vision board reminds you of the kind of life you want for yourself, and you can always refer back to it when stuck in a tough decision.
3. It can be emotionally motivating
Seeing your dream life or goals every. single. day. can get your fired up about them! It encourages you to keep going full speed ahead towards your dreams. In turn, you will be more receptive and open to opportunities that come your way because you are aware of your dreams.
4. Where focus goes, enegery flows
Now bear with me on this one because this is something deeply imbedded in my belief system. The energy of the world we live in can determine the direction of your life. You might not agree with me, and that's okay, but like i said hear me out.
What we place our focus on is where we ultimately put energy, and in turn, what we place energy on is what grows in our life. Makes sense, right? If you really want to take a trip to bali (aka me!) and you add that to your vision baord and see it every day, then you will be conscious of that dream abd begin intentionally making decisions that support you in reaching that goal. Maybe you will start budgeting or maybe you start meeting people who have been to Bali. Maybe opporunities start presenting themselves to you, not because those opportunities did not exist before, but because you would not have been aware of them if you hadn't become clear on this goal of travelling to bali through your vision board.
Vision boards help you refocus your energy when things in our daily lives get stressful. When you start losing sight of this life that you want to create or this trip you want to take or the relationship you want to have, you can simply come back to your vision board and redirect your energy towards the things that will make this life possible.
5. Become aware of the life that is trying to work its way into your consciousness
We live in a world that has a lot of expectations and narratives about what the "right" things to do are. One of these narratives is, "after you finish high school you need to go to university and then you need to get a job and climb the corporate ladder." There are many others like this that make us feel as though we need to make choices to fit the status quo rather than what our hearts are truly desiring.
Don't get me wrong, we need to pariticpate in society to make money and meet our basic needs; however, you have to listen to that little voice inside you in your gut to feel truly fulfilled. Sometimes this requires you to let go of how you thought life should be, and embrace the other things that are trying to work out for you. They might seem like interruptions but they are there for a reason.
Using the travel example again, maybe you are so career focused right now but have this little itch telling you to get out and explore. Add these little voices to your board and become aware of what they are saying. Maybe they will open up a life you couldn't have even imageined.
6. Affirmations
I love having affirmations on my vision board. Not only do I visually
see what I want my life to look like and the direction I am going, but I have verbal cues that encourage me and remind me of who I am and all that I can achieve. When I am struggling or feel lost or stressed about the future, I turn to my affimations and remind myself of the direction I am going and the power I have.
It's important to remember that your vision board is not permanent; you can change it whenever you like. You can make your vision board representative of the year you want to have or the next couple years. It's all up to you and open to interpretation based on what you need right now!
Another important reminder is that simply making the board and then sitting back on the couch is not enough. You need to get out there, live your life, start making plans, and be open to opporutnities!
So, now that you understand why its important and what
motivates you in life, grab some magazines and markers and sissors, open
up pinterest, and start collecting and gluing everything that
represents your dream life onto that board!
