Let's Get Visual: Vision Boarding for Non-Believers
Around the time the clock hit 2019, you were likely bombarded by encouragement to make resolutions, set intentions, and identify goals for the new year. Amidst the Facebook ads, Instagram posts, and email newsletters, there may have been mention of vision boards. If you’re like most people, you either hit delete, kept scrolling, or saved the idea for “later;” never to give it a thought ever again.
Life is busy! Who has time for arts and crafts? We’re TIRED and we work HARD and by the WAY, glitter gets everywhere and is impossible to clean.
True story.
But.
Vision boards are all over Pinterest for a reason- they work! A visual representation of what you want your life to look like when you achieve your goals, your vision board might be the key to actually making those New Year’s resolutions stick.
“Energy goes where attention flows?”
Have you heard this adage? Essentially, it means that we attract into our lives the things that we focus our thoughts upon. If the law of attraction is your jam, then you’ve certainly heard this before, and you’re probably not rolling your eyes. If you’re more of the pragmatic inclination, pull your eyes out of the back of your head and bear with me- there’s good stuff here for you, too.
In a manifestation interpretation, our thoughts are powerful messages to the universe about what type of energy we’re ready to bring in. If we let ourselves focus on the negative- i.e. all the reasons we WON’T get that promotion, all the ways people treat us unfairly, or how BAD of a day we’re having...the universe “hears” that chatter and assumes that we’re looking for more of the same. However, if we make an effort to focus on feeling grateful for what we have while visualizing how fantastic we’ll feel when that promotion DOES come around, and how much BETTER this day is DEFINITELY going to get...the universe hears that we’re ready for some good juju. And delivers.
We live on a planet that flies through space around a ball of fire, with a smaller ball following us around making the oceans move in and out...so why not believe in some magic?
And if you don’t, that’s fine too. What you can probably wrap your head around, however, is the law of attraction on a logical plane. When you focus your energy and attention on a goal, you’re going to get there a lot faster than if you never give it any thought at all. This applies to anything; if you’re shopping for a new car, you’ll suddenly notice cars more. Your ears will perk up when someone mentions their vehicle. Suddenly, car commercials and billboards are everywhere. Because your attention is on cars- cars are going to show up in your world. If for no other reason, because some little synapse in your brain that used to sleep through the car ads is now awake and paying attention.
Whether you’re of the universe-having-your-back camp or on team show-me-the-science, vision boarding is inarguably valuable to focusing upon and achieving your goals, ultimately bringing you closer to the life you want, and deserve, to be living.
Photo by Estée Janssens on Unsplash
Create your vision board:
STEP 1: GET CLEAR ON YOUR VISION
Your board’s purpose is to inspire you to work toward the life of your dreams. So you’ll need to know what that looks like. Do you dream of financial abundance? If so, what does that look like to you? For one person, it might look like a shiny new car. For another, a gorgeous beach house and sparkling ocean. Or maybe it’s a group of children in a third world country with smiles on their faces, because you provided assistance and food.
It probably does not look like a big stack of money.
Get clear on what your goals will look like in YOUR life vision. The images you see in your mind that make your heart beat faster- those are the images you want on your board.
Photo cred: Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
STEP 2: GATHER THE BASICS
Your vision board will be unique to YOU, so there are no real rules here. The traditional vision board is done on a poster or cork board, and then attaching meaningful images and words. The typical scenario will be the focus within this article, but if you feel more drawn to create a board digitally (Pinterest being a popular option), that’s great too.
So typically, you will need:
A board of your choice
Scissors
Tape, push pins, or glue
Photo by sarandy westfall on Unsplash
STEP 3: SELECT YOUR MATERIALS
You can get images and words that will appear on your board from anywhere you’d like. Magazines are a popular option, especially if you happen to subscribe to publications that already inspire you. If all you have are your mom’s old Home & Garden issues from 1995, however, you might need to call on dear old Google. Searching for and printing up quotes and pictures you find online is 100% ok. Nobody is going to sue you for using their Instagram post on your board. It’s only for you.
STEP 4: MAKE THE MAGIC HAPPEN
Some people like to split their board into different categories. For example, one corner is for career, another for relationships, another for travel, etc. A feng shui vision board situation, if you will. Others make a separate board for each aspect of life- it’s completely up to you.
Regardless, be intentional about the placement of your vision. Put what inspires you most front and center. Arrange things in a way that is aesthetically pleasing, and that makes sense to you.
But don’t overthink it. You can change your mind and change your board anytime you’d like.
If you’d like to jazz up your board with ribbon, glitter (beware the cleanup), bling, etc., go for it. Again, this is a reflection of you and the life you are working toward. If you’re fancy...make that board the fanciest board anybody has ever seen.
STEP 5: DISPLAY YOUR MASTERPIECE
You can’t expect your vision board to do any good if you can’t see it! Ideally, you want to place your board in a spot where you’ll see it every day. So even on a day that you’re feeling defeated, your subconscious will be treated to a collage of all the beautiful things you are headed toward. We can’t control every thought we have, but with your vision board in sight, you ensure that your big plans won’t be crowded out.
Call it manifestation, the law of attraction, the universe working for you...or just a daily visual reminder of your grand plan. A vision board helps you to get closer to the life you want to live. What do you have to lose?
-Liz McKean, Vow + Vast Contributor
CONNECT WITH LIZ
INSTAGRAM: STARFISH_DIARIES
FACEBOOK: STARFISHDIARIES
WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.STARFISHDIARIES.NET/
