“New year, new me.” You’ve heard of that before, right?
“I’ll start it next year.” You’ve said that before, right?
Next year has already arrived so how do we get there? Let’s make the life we want by creating vision boards to visualise the future versions of us. I’ll be explaining everything to do with vision boards, how it works and why this trend has skyrocketed so much in the last few years.
1. What
2. Why
A vision board is the triple whammy of setting aspirations and that’s why we do it: visualisation power, manifesting and a way of forming an emotional connection to our goals.
Visualisation power
The concept of a vision board is to have a constant visual reminder of the life you strive for so that the more you see your aspirations in front of your eyes, the better choices you’ll make towards them.
Manifesting
It is said that if you speak your dreams into the universe, the more likely they are to come true. When you acknowledge specific aspirations and put them on paper, you’re encouraging your brain to act on these goals rather than leaving them as a floating idea.
Emotional connection
The act of taking the time out of your day to physically collate images and thoughtfully create a vision board is enough to motivate and emotionally connect you to these choices as you have thoughtfully selected each image and where to place them.
3. Where
Vision boards can come in different forms - I’ve chosen to create my vision board in my journal by cutting and pasting physical images and stickers by hand as that’s a method that works well for me. If cutting and sticking isn’t for you, you could attach your images to a pegboard so you can swap and change as you go. Why not make a traditional vision board that is freestanding on an A3 canvas that you can hang in your office or prop up in your bedroom? Digital vision boards are also becoming increasingly popular as it’s mess-free and it can easily be converted to a phone background to carry with you everyday!
4. How
Gather images
To start, you’ll need to gather images that feel aspirational to you or that represent exactly what you want - imagine you’re creating the life you want on paper at a single glance. Don’t worry if you feel these aspirations aren’t achievable yet, it’s a vision board not a list of goals!
Layout design
Decide how you’ll present your photos - you can loosely categorise your images if you have aspirations for life, work, love, hobbies etc. I’ve decided to flood half a double-page spread leaving the other half blank for a strip of photos.
Add flourish
I’ve added smaller cutouts to represent some smaller goals that I have and a wavy flourish to write down some keywords associated with my aspirations. Washi tape and stickers are also great to add some colour or to hide any rough edges.
5. Who
Your vision board is all about you and only you. By the end of the process you should be able to clearly see the version of you that you aspire to be on a single page. These are great to revisit at the end of each year to see if your priorities have changed or if you changed as a person and reflect on why. With each vision board you make, the more you learn about yourself meaning your aspirations will become more specific and even more ambitious!