How To Create A Vision Board: 5 Astonishingly Simple Steps

You have dreams. You want to fly.

You want to give it your best.

But you’re not sure how to make it happen for you.

There’s one thing that gives great clarity and power to manifest your dream. It’s called a vision board.

A vision board is a picture collage of your dreams and goals. It’s a visual representation of your deepest desires and aspirations, so it can serve as a source of inspiration and motivation.

The process of building a vision board can help you dig deep to know what you want.

It can help you declare that with courage, clarity and confidence.

A vision board gives you

• Perspective on where you want to go
• A chance to put out who you want to be
• A chance to get attention on what you want, so you can focus on it

“We attract into our lives whatever we think about most, believe most strongly, expect on the deepest level, and imagine most vividly,” says Shakti Gawain.

A vision board is a sure-fire way to give shape to your life and work.

I made one of my favourite vision boards in December 2015.

My living room was a big part of it.

It is where I spend most of my waking hours; whether I’m hanging out with friends or working.

I wanted my living room done in a modern way, much like the homes put up on Pinterest.

It overlooks the sea and I wanted to maximise the amazing sea view.

I knew the colours I wanted and the kind of furniture I’d love.

I dedicated a whole bunch of pictures to detail out my dream living room.

That was not all!

I wanted a professional designer to do it up, and present it to me as a gift.

About 3 months later, I came across a Facebook post asking if anyone wanted a room makeover at home.

It sounded like fun and I was one of the first to respond.

Soon after, I was chosen for a room makeover by India’s leading lifestyle television channel, NDTV Good Times.

They didn’t get just a professional designer, but a leading lifestyle and luxury interior designer on board.

She took my brief to recreate the pictures I had put on my vision board.

Her team went all out to select the exact grey sofa and the precise teal and white colour palette I wanted for my living room.

Since it was also a Home Office, they crafted a strategy to mark out a separate space for my work and clients.

That way I got a professional designer to do up my home exactly in line with my vision.

The makeover was sponsored by Asian Paints, the country’s premier paint company for their wall coverings brand Nilaya. The furniture was supported by Pepperfry, a popular online furniture portal.

It doesn’t end there. A 30-min episode featuring my work, life and vision boards was telecast on national TV with the actress Soha Ali Khan as the host.

It all happened like it was on my vision board, without me having to shell out a penny, just like a gift.

What more could I’ve asked for? 

Creating a vision board requires you to invest some time and the courage to declare your dreams.

Inspired to go down the vision board lane with me?

Great! As powerful as a vision board is, creating it is also simple and fun.

There are two ways to do it.

You can choose the traditional way. You need a pen and paper, and a couple of hours at hand. You also need some magazines, scissors, glue and thick card paper.

If you want to go digital, all you need is a computer and a good Wi-fi connection.

No matter what way you choose, remember to keep tons of your imagination handy.

Let’s get started.

1. Begin with Visioning – Dig Deep To Know What You Desire

The truth is you already know what you want.

It lies in the deep recesses of your heart.

All you need to do is dive in to see what that is.

Oprah Winfrey says “I do believe, and I’ve seen in my own life that Creative Visualisation works.”

Let’s start with an actual exercise.

Keep aside some time on a day when you’re free from distractions.

Turn off your TV and phone (you heard that right).

Choose a place where you can work in solitude.

Shut your windows to reduce any outside noise.

Start by sitting on the floor or on your favourite couch. Be comfortable.

You may draw the curtains to shut out extra light and create a tranquil space.

If you want to burn incense or a fragrant candle to uplift your mood, feel free.

Shut your eyes and sit in silence for 2-3 minutes.

Watch your breath and go deep inside.

As you feel connected, ask yourself these questions:

If nothing held you back, if there were no limitations, you had all the money, opportunity, confidence, talent - what would your ideal life and work look like?

Who would you BE, what would you DO and what would you HAVE?

Allow the answers to flow.

Do not question them or wonder HOW they'll happen.

Let these answers flow for a good 5-10 min. Observe.

Close your eyes and tune into your heart.

Now give these a thought. It’s a good idea to first read these questions before you start visualising.

Where do I live?

Who’s around me?

What kind of work am I doing?

Do I have a workplace? What does it look like?

How do I feel when I am at my workplace?

What kind of work am I creating?

Whom am I working with?

How does my work impact people – those who work with me, those whom I serve?

Observe what you see. Don’t judge.

You can do this for longer than 10 mins, even 20 mins or longer.

When you’re done, open your eyes and take a moment to gather yourself.

Now note down what you saw.

Don’t judge. Don’t delete anything.

Put down exactly what you saw.

Besides what you saw, do add anything else that comes to your mind.

Write it all down. Take a pause.

Then feel free to add everything else you want.

Want time off to travel? Want time with the kids, or with family and friends? Crave for time to learn, rest, play? Want to run a marathon? Want to pursue a hobby? Own a dream home, car or a fancy watch? Anything else close to your heart? Pack it all in.

Don’t play safe.

Stretch your mind till your answers jump right out of the comfort zone.

You just completed the first step – that’s “visioning”.

Dr Michael Beckwith, the pioneer of visioning, says that visioning can help you tap the “dynamic power of discovering direction and clarity regarding life goals or a current project”.

2. Run an Authenticity Check on Your Dreams

Once you’ve put down your deepest desires, pass them through an authenticity test.

Ask yourself these 2 key questions:

a. Am I putting down things that are ‘cool or must have’ but I’m not sure if I want them?

Think about it.

Be honest with yourself.

You may have put down that you want to own a yacht or an island. But are these your aspirations?

Or have you heard some cool entrepreneur friends wanting it? If yes, replace it with things that you really want.

Yet, if that’s what you want – go ahead and include it.

b. Am I playing it safe and not playing it as big as I want?

Catch yourself if you’re only putting things that you think are “possible”.

Are you asking yourself HOW these will manifest?

Cross those lines. Get impractical. Play big.

Detail out what you want, but don’t cling to it.

Don’t get too attached to the detailing.

Too much detailing or “outlining” and clinging to a specific outcome can block manifestation.

Let things flow instead.

A vision board is a way of putting out that you want ‘this’ or something better.

For instance, my vision was to get my living room designed by a professional.

I did have a few friends in mind who are fabulous with designing spaces.

I even zeroed in on their names. Yet I did not cling to those specific names.

When I said yes to the makeover opportunity via a Facebook post, I knew another designer would be on board. Yet I jumped at it.

It’s important to surrender your vision board after completing it.

The end result for my living room was gorgeous. Perhaps even better than what I had imagined.

3. Divide Your Dreams into Clear Sections

With the visioning bit over, let’s get organised.

Segment your vision into 4 clear parts: work, relationships, health and self.

If you saw yourself cracking business deals, slot them into the ‘work’ category.

If you saw yourself on a solo vacation by a mountain retreat – that’ll go under the ‘self’ category. And so on.

Sometimes these categories may overlap, and that’s fine. Put them where you think they fit best.

4. Picture This

Got a clear idea of the dream life and work you want to create?

Got it stacked in 4 categories?

Time to bring your dream alive with pictures: you can do it the traditional way by using good old pen and paper. Or go the digital way.

If you’re going traditional, collect magazines. Pick them across genres – sports, lifestyle, fashion, business or more. Look through the pages and pick out pictures that go with your vision.

As you’re collecting pictures, more ideas and thoughts may come up. Write them all down.

If you’re going the digital way, you can choose pictures from Google Images. Or explore image banks like www.stocksnap.io, www.pexels.com, www.unsplash.com and many more. (Do read & follow the terms of use). 

Pick pictures that feel right to you.

For example, you may have selected an image of a seaside home - but you don’t feel delighted about it. Put it away.

Look for another picture of a seaside home that feels right to you.

You’ll know it when you find it.

5. Complete and Finish Your Vision Board – Putting it all together

Once you’ve got the pieces together, it’s time to bring it alive the way you want it.

If you went the traditional way, make a collage by pasting the pictures on a thick chart paper or a board.

Touch it up with glitter, stickers, beads, ribbons or embellishment from craft stores.

Or leave it without any adornment.

If you chose the digital way, but you’re not savvy with Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator, worry not. Try simple graphic-design software such as Canva to make your own designs.

Or even simpler, get on to Pinterest or Google Images. Find the images that work for you. Paste these images on PowerPoint slides to make digital collages. Make as many slides as you wish. It’s simple and effective.

Add your own creative elements such as graphic elements or some filters to spruce it up.

I prefer going digital and pasting images the PowerPoint way. You’re not restricted to images and it’s by far the simplest, quickest way to create a vision board.

Congrats! Your vision board is ready.

What next?

Take a printout or mount it on your computer.

Keep it in a place where you can see it every day.

Look at your vision board at least twice a week. Internalise it.

Allow it to inspire you to action towards your dreams and goals.

If you feel you need to change anything, do so.

Once elements of your vision board start manifesting, remove or replace them. Or let it be as a fond reminder of how vision boards work.

Do what you feel is right.

Your vision board may or may not manifest frame by frame, however the process of creating it will move you in the direction of your vision.

Creating a vision board is like coming closer to your dream.

Find a peaceful place and time to dig deep into what you want.

Tune out any thoughts about ‘HOW or WHETHER this will happen’. Let it flow.

Beware of falling into the “cool” trap and stay authentic while jotting down your list.

Organise all that you visualised into categories like work, relationships, health and self.

Collect pictures that reflect your imagination. Cut magazines or make a digital collage.

Make your vision board yours, and put it somewhere you can see it every day.

Allow it to inspire you to take action towards your vision.

"No matter how we have ignored our dreams, our dreams remain, and we will have no peace until we act on them." ~ Julia Cameron

Go ahead. Make vision boards work for you. Create the life you want.

Are you excited by the idea of putting your vision board together? 

Already had a delightful manifesting experience as I shared? 

Feel free to share in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you.

Would you like to connect for a vision board session with me? Send an email for details to sampada@sampadachaudhari.in

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