It’s the beginning of a new year and most people have some sort of ambition to achieve new goals and complete their resolutions. Not to be confused with mood boards, which usually depict aesthetics, vision boards are a collage of visuals that depict or represent a specific goal or aspiration. Vision boards can be a very useful tool in the process of planning and achieving one’s goals.
While creating a vision board may seem like a simple cheat code to achieving goals, there are still some major do’s and don’ts when making a vision board. Rather than simply creating a jumbled assortment of many goals and desires for the future, it is much more effective to separate each goal and organize an individual vision board for each goal. Once a clear goal or number of goals is established, the fun part begins. There is no limit to these goals, the sky is the limit. Be specific, but dream big, and don’t hold back with how big these goals are. Once the vision board is assembled, be sure to put it in clear sight where it can be accessed daily.
So why do vision boards work? According to neuroscientist Dr. Tara Stewart, "Looking at images on a vision board primes the brain to grasp opportunities that may otherwise gone unnoticed. That’s because the brain has a process called ‘value-tagging’ which imprints important things onto your subconscious and filters out unnecessary information.” The human brain tends to place more value on images than words, which is why looking at pictures that represent goals will be more effective than words in programming the brain to focus on those goals. Furthermore, the brain is more impressionable right before a person falls asleep. Therefore, if a person looks at their vision board right before dozing off, those visions will be further imprinted in their brain and will likely appear in their thoughts and dreams.
Let 2024 be the year to stick to your goals and shine. There is no limit to the possibilities and potential that we hold. To help welcome in the new year, give a vision board a try and watch your wildest dreams come to life.
Works Cited
Doherty, Lara. “The science behind vision boards — The Motivation Clinic.” The Motivation Clinic, 1 November 2021, https://www.themotivationclinic.co.uk/blog/blog-post-title-three-grwe9. Accessed 7 January 2024.
Regan, Sarah. “How To Make A Vision Board & What To Add To It.” MindBodyGreen, 20 December 2022, https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/how-to-make-a-vision-board. Accessed 7 January 2024.