Vision Boards As Part Of Your Practice: What Can They Do For You And How Does It Work?
A vision board might be the perfect tool to help you manifest your goals, desires, and deepest wishes. Whether you’re dreaming of a new career, a soul-aligned relationship, better health, or simply more joy and fulfillment, a vision board can help you get there. But what exactly is a vision board, and how does it work? And how can you incorporate this tool into your daily (morning) practice?
Let’s find out together.
What is a Vision Board?
A vision board is a visual representation of your goals and dreams. It’s a tangible collection of images, words, and affirmations that reflect what you want to attract into your life. Think of it as a collage that captures your ideal future. By having this board in a place where you can see it daily, you’re constantly reminded of your intentions and inspired to take aligned actions.
How Does a Vision Board Work?
Vision boards work because of how your brain processes images and goals. When you look at a vision board, it activates a part of your brain called the Reticular Activating System (RAS). The RAS acts like a filter, helping you focus on what matters most. By seeing your goals as images every day, your brain starts to notice opportunities and ideas that align with those goals. This helps you stay motivated and makes your brain believe those dreams are possible, which can push you to take actions that bring them to life. It’s like training your brain to focus on what you want, so it can help you make it happen.
The Benefits of Creating a Vision Board
Creating a vision board isn’t just a fun arts-and-crafts project; it’s a transformative process that can have a profound impact on your life. Here are some benefits:
1. Clarifies Your Goals: A vision board helps you get clear on what you truly want. The act of choosing images, words, and affirmations forces you to define your goals, making them more tangible and specific.
2. Keeps You Focused: By placing your vision board somewhere you can see it daily, it serves as a constant reminder of your goals. It keeps you motivated, even on those days when self-doubt or distractions threaten to derail you.
3. Boosts Positivity: Surrounding yourself with positive images and affirmations can lift your spirits and shift your mindset toward optimism and possibility. This positivity boosts your vibration, attracting more good things into your life.
4. Activates the Law of Attraction: Vision boards help you align your thoughts, feelings, and actions with the energy of your desires. By visualizing your dreams daily, you’re putting out the energy needed to attract those experiences into your life.
How to Create A Traditional Vision Board
First I’m going to explain how to create a traditional, physical vision board.
Step 1: Turn inwards
Before you start, take a moment to turn inwards. What do you truly want? What dreams and desires are calling you? You can connect through meditation or through journaling. If your goals aren’t that clear yet, you could focus on how you would like to feel and build your vision board around that feeling. For me the feeling of ‘Freedom’ was very important, and even though I didn’t exactly have in mind what I wanted, I did know I wanted to feel happy and free and started focusing on that.
Step 2: Gather Your Supplies
You will need:
• A board (corkboard, poster board, or even a blank canvas)
• Magazines, printouts, or images that inspire you
• Scissors, glue, markers, and any other decorative items you love
Step 3: Choose Your Images and Words
Look for images, words, or quotes that resonate with intentions. These could be photos, affirmations, symbols, or anything that represents your dreams. Choose visuals that evoke a strong emotional response—it’s important to feel the energy of your desires.
Cut out all the images, words and symbols that speak to you and put them aside.
When I created my ‘Freedom’ board, I selected images, words and phrases that evoked that feeling in me.
Step 4: Arrange and Glue
Once you have your images, lay them out on your board without gluing them down at first. Play around with the arrangement until it feels right. When you’re happy with it, start gluing everything in place.
Step 5: Add Personal Touches
Personalize your board with affirmations, dates, or specific goals. Use markers or paint to add words that inspire you, like “Abundance,” “Love,” “Freedom,” or “Health.”
Step 6: Place It Somewhere Visible
Put your vision board in a place where you’ll see it daily—maybe in your bedroom, office, or even on the fridge door. The goal is to keep your dreams front and center, reminding you of what you’re working toward.
Tip: Creating a traditional vision board is a super fun activity to do with your friends. Besides a perfect excuse of getting together, sharing your dreams and desires with the people you love will make them even more real. Set out a few hours, turn it into a nice ritual and get creative together.
Here are two examples of what a vision board could look like:
Short on time? Create a Digital Vision Board
Although I am a firm believer in the power of making a physical vision board, sometimes you simply lack the time and supplies to get this process started.
If this is the case, you can easily create a digital vision board. Using tools like Canva, Pinterest or Freeform, and gather online images, quotes and affirmations that align with your goals.
You will find almost every image you are searching for online and can gather them by simply making a screenshot of the ones you like, and arranging them on a blank, digital canvas later.
The beauty of a digital vision board is its flexibility. You can update it anytime, add new images and even set it as your phone or computer wallpaper for a constant reminder of your dreams.
Because a digital vision board is so easy to create, I started using this tool in my morning practice and made several boards per week. I dedicated entire boards to just one topic such as: Dream House, Money, Dream job and Travel.
It is so much fun to pick out images that make you feel happy and spark your Soul, and it’s a great way of connecting to what you want and need in your life.
Here are two examples of what a digital vision board could look like
Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Vision Board
• Engage with it daily: Spend a few moments each day visualizing yourself living the life depicted on your board. Feel the emotions as if it’s already your reality.
• Stay open to how it unfolds: The universe may surprise you with how your goals manifest. Trust the process and stay open to unexpected opportunities.
• Update as needed: As you grow, your goals may shift. Don’t be afraid to update your vision board to reflect new desires and dreams.
It Really Works!
When we were living in New Zealand and planning our return to Amsterdam, I decided to make a vision board to visualize our dream home. I chose images of houses from my favorite neighborhood, the exact style of architecture I loved, and even set a specific budget we wanted to stay within.
Every day, I looked at that board and truly believed it was possible. A few months later, we found ourselves moving into a house that matched the vision almost perfectly—right in the neighborhood we’d dreamed of.
It had been a while since I last looked at that digital board on my phone, but one day it popped up unexpectedly. One picture caught my attention: the stairs of a classic Amsterdam canal house with a red cargobike ( a very common type of bike in the Netherlands, often used to carry kids) parked in front. It was then I realized we had bought that exact same cargobike—same color, same brand—and it was standing right in front of the stairs of our new house, just like in the photo. It felt like I was looking at the photo, but then in real life. That’s the magic of vision boards!
Final Thoughts: Manifest Your Dreams with a Vision Board
A vision board is more than just a creative exercise—it’s a powerful manifestation tool. By engaging with your vision board daily, you’re actively aligning yourself with the life you want to create. It’s a beautiful way to connect with your Soul’s desires and to remind yourself that you have the power to shape your reality.
So, if you’re ready to bring your dreams to life, why not give it a try? Grab some magazines, set aside a cozy afternoon, and let your imagination run wild. You might just be amazed at what unfolds.
