“New year, new me” and other common phrases are always said around this time of year. The gym is getting busier, people are starting to eat a little healthier, and other positive habits are beginning to enter people’s daily routines. However, if you’re anything like me, a lot of the time these daily routines slowly begin to fall off by the beginning of February, when you find yourself back to your old habits that you were hoping to fix. It is so easy on January 1st to say you are going to make all of these changes, but what are any of these changes without a serious action plan? One of my absolute favourite ways to make my new year goals and resolutions stick is by creating a vision board! This is a super simple way to have a visual representation of all your goals and just a constant reminder of some new habits you are striving to achieve.
Just as a quick disclaimer before I jump into explaining vision boarding and its benefits, I want to say that the new year is not the only time to make a vision board, and it’s not the only time to want to set new goals for yourself. You can make vision boards and set goals at any time of the year, so don’t let the fact that the new year started a month ago prevent you from setting new goals.
A vision board is essentially a collage of images or phrases that represent who you want to be in the future. It’s a visual representation of all of your goals and ambitions. Vision boards help you set very clear goals, and act as motivation for achieving your dream life. As someone who has been making vision boards for the past few years, I have noticed that when I reflect on the board I made earlier in the year, I can see where I have become closer to my goals, and what areas still need improvement. Overall, it’s just a lot of fun to play around with some aesthetically pleasing pictures that represent who you want to become, as a way of manifesting your future.
The first step to creating a vision board is to set out your goals. Take a few moments to think about some clear academic, physical, mental, and other general goals that you want to achieve this year. Some examples could include receiving straight As in your classes, meditating every other day, or going to the gym a few times a week. There is really no limit! Just consider what you want to achieve and how you want to go about doing that.
Second, you want to start collecting your images. I personally love using Pinterest both for inspiration and to collect photos. If you’re wanting to make a digital vision board, you can use sites like Canva to create a collage for your laptop wallpaper. If you prefer a physical vision board you can use different magazines or other scrap photos to create a collage, and stick it up on your wall—vision board resources are endless!
Once you get your photos in a collage, you have your vision board! It’s important to make sure that wherever you decide to keep your vision board, it’s somewhere that you will look at it everyday to keep yourself motivated and aware of your goals. As someone who has been vision boarding for the past few years, it’s honestly my favourite task of the new year! I love being able to not only create a new set of goals each year, but also look back on previous boards and see those habits slowly developing within my own life. So, spend a little bit of time by yourself, or even with some friends, creating a visual collage of where you want your future to go! Good luck vision boarding!