The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to align your goals and set the tone for the year ahead. Many of us have heard of Vision Boards but have you tried putting one together or is the thought of it daunting or intimidating and why are they important?
Neuroscientist Dr Tara Swart explains: “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 brain assigns a higher ‘value’ to images than written words on a ‘to-do’ list,” says Swart, “And the more you look at those images, the more those images move up in importance.”
So here at gsport we’ve put together a guide to get you going and make 2023 a productive and fruitful year:
5 Steps to Create a Vision Board That Does Its Job
Creating a vision board can be fun and easy. You don’t need to overthink the process. Your own vision board is for you and you only, so there’s no one you need to impress with it.
You can create a physical vision board that you can hang anywhere in your home or office following these steps:
1.Gather your materials – For instance, you’ll need a board as a base. There are several types of boards you can use, including:
- Wire boards
- Whiteboards
- Magnetic board for your fridge
- Corkboards.
2.Take some time to clarify your vision – Before you start crafting, take more than a few moments to clarify your vision. What do you want to manifest with your board? Get clear as you can on your vision.
This step is the foundation for your entire board. You will find that you get even more clarity, and detail, as you create the board.
3.Find images and objects that represent your vision – You’ve already gathered your materials. Now, it’s time to prepare them to be displayed on your board. In addition to images, you can find quotes to add to your board. You can print them out or write them yourself with a nice pen or marker.
4.Arrange your materials – Your layout should inspire you. There’s no need to rush it. Feel free to play around with different layout options until it feels just right for you. This process is part of developing a clearer, more detailed vision for the future. You may discover that you’re missing something when you get to this point. Don’t hesitate to go back if you want to add anything new. When you’re done, secure everything in place with your binding material of choice. Don’t secure your items too quickly.
5.Place your vision board where you’ll see it often – It’s finally time to place your vision board. Choose a place that makes sense for you. It should be easily accessible daily.
You can try:
- Your fridge
- An empty wall in your kitchen
- An altar
- A mirror
- Your nightstand
- Inside your home office if you work from home
Benefits of Using a Vision Board:
A Vision Board Helps You Clarify What You Want
Your vision board acts as a visual representation of your goals and dreams. This makes your dreams vivid and displays them in a tangible way that you can see every day when you look at your board. Creating your board is a process that doesn’t have to be done in one sitting—you can take the time that you need to determine what you’re aiming to do.
It Helps Set Your Intention
Your success begins with your intentions. No matter what you’re setting out to accomplish, it will start with an idea before you manifest it into reality. Most of the things that exist right now in our lives (smartphones, computer programs, and cars) started with one single idea.
And once you have an intention, you’re able to make your ideas come to life. This principle applies to both the things you want to have and the person you want to become. If you want to become a doctor, you have to first decide that you have the intention of doing so before you start working toward that goal.
Research has found that setting intentions and visualizing success can help you get closer to achieving it. This study showed that the brain patterns that are activated when a weightlifter physically lifts heavyweights are similar to the patterns activated when the lifter only visualizes the weight lifting process. This suggests that the mind cannot differentiate reality from imagination, which means if you visualize your skills getting stronger, you can actually improve as if you were undergoing real physical practice.
It Fosters Motivation
It’s hard sometimes to persuade yourself to get up and get moving. But on those days where you just want to lay around, seeing your vision board can provide you with the motivation that you need to get yourself going. One benefit of a vision board is that it regularly makes you think about what you want to achieve, which then accelerates your drive to get to work.
Vision Boards Promote Focus
You know the importance of your focus these days – everyone is fighting for it. We face so many distractions and interruptions every day, which is one reason people fail to achieve their goals. Goals can get forgotten in the mix, especially if your life gets busy. But with a vision board, you’re able to keep your focus on your goals every day. This can help direct your daily tasks to guide you toward reaching your goal of achieving everything you’ve put on your vision board.
It Allows for Reassessment
When you’re able to take a step back and analyse your vision board, it can reveal a lot about yourself, where your mind is, and what you’re hoping to get out of life. The images and words you see in front of you represent your thoughts-–so reassess how your board makes you feel.
Your vision board never has to be set in stone–it’s a working document that you can refine whenever you want or need to.
It Works
One study that surveyed more than 1100 people and 500 entrepreneurs found that 82% of participants who used a vision board had accomplished more than half of the goals depicted on their board at the time of the survey. This research demonstrates the power of imagery and how people who visualize themselves achieving their goals have more confidence in their ability to be successful than those who don’t.
Be Creative, Destress, and Have Fun
Visualization promotes relaxation, so the action of crafting your vision board gives you a chance to step out of your hectic life and experience some stillness while you’re engaging in some self-reflection. And because your mind is occupied with setting goals and decorating your board during the process, it certainly won’t become boring.
Aside from the more “grown-up” DIY projects that cross our paths, many adults don’t get much of an opportunity to be crafty. Enjoy the experience of putting together your vision board, because doing so can allow you to take a cathartic break from your everyday life.
Credit: https://www.developgoodhabits.com/vision-board-benefits/




