If you are anticipating words like ‘law of attraction’, ‘manifesting’ and other words that fit under the category of Woo-Woo, I warn you that you will be sorely disappointed. Though I do believe in the power of intention, subconscious mind, attraction and all that Jazz, I like to tread the thin line between the metaphysical and the material (as in matter).
If you aren’t sure what exactly a vision board is, it is basically a picture collage of the things you want stuck on a white board, or as I do it, stuck with glue stick in a blank drawing book. I prefer the latter option since I like to keep a lot of things private, including my projections of the future.
I’ve made it a habit to peruse my picture book of desires every morning before work but if you want an actual board where you can see it often, that’s great too.
So why exactly do you need a vision board?
Make Your Goals Concrete
Creating a vision board is one step towards your goals the same way picking out tile colors is one step towards remodeling your house. Taking the time to think about the things that you want, printing out pictures and sticking them to your board is a physical task that shows some seriousness.
Its one thing to know that you should work harder, be more creative, and create a second source of income and so on but these aren’t compelling enough reasons to actually do these things. I find that going through my vision board every morning gives me concrete reasons to actually exert myself and try hard.
Giving your goals physical representation rather than have them rattling around in your mind give you a sense of responsibility. You don’t need to debate with yourself why you should wake up earlier or read that personal finance book or save perfectly good beer money. Creating a better life requires sacrifices and it is often difficult to justify these sacrifices when all you have is a vague idea of why you need to do the right thing.
It also goes without saying that you aren’t going to live your dream life if you don’t have a dream life to begin with. You aren’t going to magically stumble on your ideal life. A vision board is a great way to create a clear picture of what you actually want out of life.
Positively Influence Current Actions
Our actions stem from our thoughts of what we consider is good for us. Good doesn’t necessarily mean what is right in an objective sense but what is right in the context of the end you have in mind. If you want to have a good time, going out to get drunk with your best friend is a good thing. If you want to crush an early morning interview, going out with your best friend isn’t the appropriate thing to do given that you also want to have a good time in the moment.
If you are shortsighted, so shall your actions be. Your vision board if taken seriously might be just what you need to determine appropriate action in the present. Willpower is finite and it is difficult to deny yourself what would be good for you in the moment unless you have some future objective that hinges on your acting contrary to your most immediate desire.
Most people aren’t disciplined because that’s who they are, but rather because their larger objectives require them to behave in a certain way in the present.
Good for Perspective
A vision board can be overwhelming especially if you don’t have a step-by-step plan for getting all the things you want. Make it a habit to post everything you desire including the little things. If you can’t afford it now but intend to get it with your next paycheck, stick it.
Tick off every item you get from your board. Seeing the ticks accumulating is a deeply satisfying experience. You will notice that you get things that you didn’t think would happen until a much further date if at all.
It is easy to conclude that what hasn’t happened up until this point will never happen. Ticking off your desires is a good reminder that luck, chance, providence and other powers beyond your rational thought faculty are at play in the universe.
You might also discover that getting the things you want out of life isn’t that difficult after all.
Discipline Your Desires
We live in a materialistic world which isn’t bad in and of itself. Every day we are faced with evidence of the things that we lack. You see a nice Mercedes and you want one. A nice GTR swooshes by and that’s something else you don’t have. A pimp stick, 80 inch flat screen, yacht – there is no shortage of things that would be nice to have.
It is easy to overestimate just how much you don’t have if you have no idea what you actually want. Every nice thing you see will be another reminder of how you fall short of the glory of capitalism.
Once you have a vision board set up, try to confine your desires to these things. You can always add more things as you go along but the task itself is just difficult enough to make you reconsider whether that thing is really worth having. A good mental picture of your desires is insurance against the nasty habit of wanting everything. You can’t have everything but you can have plenty for a content, even happy life.
Bonus: Impulse Buying Becomes Sort of a Good Thing
It’s hard to be disciplined with money especially if you don’t have a lot of experience in this area. Impulse buying is almost always a bad thing but it doesn’t have to be. If you have a windfall or extra cash it is easy to spend it on two-for-the-price-of-one gold plated colanders that strain strobe-lit liquid of every color in the rainbow.
A vision board increases the chance that your impulse buys will be things that you actually want in the first place. You might also be surprised to find that thing you wanted is half price and you just happen to have the money. The point is, frivolous spending is almost a guarantee every so often so why not have the things you truly want?
Vision boards aren’t just for ‘those people’. A vision board is a great way to compress your life’s ambition in a way that is easy to understand. It is a great way to organize your plans and ambitions and give physical representation to your desires and goals.
On The Way to Find the Way 