Are you skeptical about vision boards like I was? I just didn’t get it – what’s the point of cutting out a bunch of pictures and pasting them on a board?
Vision boards came back into my view as I was reading Beautiful Money by Leanne Jacobs who recommended creating a vision board. I had mostly dismissed vision boards because it seemed superficial and not productive i.e how does this practically create a result? I gave it a google to find out if I was missing something and thousands of visions appeared. These vision boards seem to happen in the new year and most of them are pictures of trips to go on or cars to buy. Even if that was what I wanted, I didn’t get how a board of magazine scraps could help you achieve your goals.
In our discussion in my book club, the impetus for reading Beautiful Money, I asked the group “What is up with vision boards? How do you make them? How do they work?”
There were a few different answers about how to make them and the one that struck me was to just pick the images intuitively and it will come together for you. They also told me that it doesn’t have to be images, it could be words. One member of the group drew her vision board, which was very inspiring. No one could really tell me much about how it worked and my sense that the only way to figure out was to try it.
So, I gave myself an hour and I made a cup of tea and sat down to begin. I read through my list of quotes that I love and picked a few of those for inspiration and I started to go through a stack of Real Simple magazines that I had gathered. I tried not to think about it too much and just starting pulling out images that I liked.
I picked them for all sorts of reasons – I liked the colour, the image, or it had to do with an activity that I like (writing) or maybe related to one of the quotes that I wanted to express. I joked with my girlfriends that many of the words were taken from ads for drugs. I enjoyed the exercise and I enjoyed seeing these words and images, they made me smile, provided a sense of peace and also excitement. I then arranged them in a collage and this materialized:
Now I had to figure out where to put it. I didn’t have a desk or space of my own yet (a yellow chair with some art supplies and a plant symbolizes it on my vision board) and I wanted to put it somewhere that I would see it regularly but would not necessarily be in view all the time. I ended up putting it in my closet, which at first I thought was kind of ironic because it was like all the hiding that I do of my dreams for my life. But little by little I started to like seeing these words every morning and night while I got dressed.
Welcome Worth.
My choice has power.
Make a mess.
The details make the story.
Start within
The vision board was holding a lot of energy for me but it didn’t seem like anything was happening. I am not sure what I expected to happen. Actually, I don’t think I thought anything would actually happen. Until it did.
As I was walking from the subway to my desk at work (passing by the Tim Hortons coffee shop as I do every day) I had a choice to make: would I buy more coffee or would I have water or tea that I had in my office. Some thoughts emerged: water is better for me than coffee. I choose to do something better for me. My choice has power [from my vision board].
That morning, I chose tea.
From this experience, I discovered that the words and images that you choose begin to integrate with your subconscious and provide a connection between who you are and who you want to become. It opens up your ability to see what’s around you differently. Our brains want to stay with thoughts that are comfortable and known and certain for us. Having a vision board can create new thoughts that you want to incorporate into your day to day processing of thoughts. It felt like nothing was “happening” because it was happening subconsciously.
As I now sit at my desk (that was symbolized on my vision board) gazing at my vision board my desired thoughts are renewed in me. It gives me a pleasing connection to the person that I want to become.
Live the moment as if you have chosen it (Eckhart Tolle)
Be wholeheartedly confident, wise, brave, persistent, and patient.
Serve
When you get, give. When you learn, teach. (Maya Angelou’s grandmother)
Imagine if
What if our vision boards were not just what we would like to have but how and who we want to be?
Let me know by instagram direct message if you have had any shifts or realizations as a result of your vision board. I am so curious to hear what your experience has been.
Melissa E Anders 