How to Make a Vision Board

Need help setting goals or making resolutions? Learn how to make a vision board! Plus discover 6 steps for choosing a word of the year, as well as 150 word of the year ideas.

I don’t really make new years resolutions. I mean, I guess I do, but I prefer to think of it as reassessing my goals. Taking inventory of where I am, where I want to be, and what I need to do to get there. One of my favorite things about setting goals is writing down the steps I need to take to achieve those goals. While it’s great to say I want to exercise every day, how am I going to make that happen? For me, specificity is key. Instead of just making it a goal to exercise, I’ll say I’m going to exercise every morning right after I take Littlest to school.

I have two New Years traditions that help me with my goal setting. The first is picking a word of the year. Picking a word of the year is something I have done for several years now. I usually make a craft, last year I made a bracelet with my word, and it helps me really focus on that word and think about my goals that I want to achieve. My second tradition is a bit newer, but it’s something I already look forward to, and that’s creating a vision board for the year.

What is a vision board?
A vision board is a collage of images and words. A vision board serves as a source of inspiration and motivation. It is a visual representation of dreams and goals.

The very first vision board I made was at a blogger retreat at a beautiful cabin. No getaway went with the vision boarding this time, but I did set aside some time for myself to quietly and meditatively work on my vision board.

How to Make a Vision Board

Supplies:

• Foam board or poster board (I prefer a foam board because it stands up on it’s own)
• Magazines
• Scissors
• Glue stick

Start by going through the magazines and picking out words, images, or both that you want to include on your vision board. If in doubt, cut it out. Cut anything and everything you think you might want to use. I found it better to have lots of options when I was putting together my board. Then I could cull things down to what I really wanted. Doing this in a group is also fun and you can have everyone bring magazines to share.

Remember that your vision board should be representative of goals that you are reaching for, but not ones that are unattainable. If you choose images that are too unrealistic you run the risk of having your vision board become something that feels discouraging. Goals should push you, but shouldn’t overwhelm you. A vision board is supposed to be motivating and inspiring.

Once you’ve cut out all your words and images it’s time to start arranging them. I like to lay out all of my items before I start gluing them down. It gives me the opportunity to really love the layout. You might prefer the aesthetic of a vision board where images and words overlap, creating a collage look. You might group your vision board into sections, like work, personal, and family sections. I’ve left blank space where I can add hand written notes to my vision board with more details and specific steps I want to take. The goal is to create a vision board that visually inspires you.

This year my vision board centers around my word of the year, Align.

Do you pick a word of the year? More than anything else having the right word helps me focus my goals for the year. It acts as a singular focal point. A word of the year can also be all encompassing, it can apply to both work and personal goals and desires.

Last fall I saw an image with the word Hustle with a line through it and then the Align on top of it. I knew right then that Align was going to me the word for me. I get so caught up in being ‘busy’ that I let myself get distracted from what I really want to accomplish. This year I need things, work and personal, to align. Helping me focus on being the best version of myself.

Need some ideas for choosing your own Word of the Year? Last year my word was Bold, and before that I’ve chosen Joy, Lead, Impact, Grow, and Shine.

150 Word of the Year ideas:

• Abundant
• Acceptance
• Activated
• Adore
• Aligned
• Appreciate
• Awaken
• Awareness
• Balance
• Balanced
• Begin
• Belief
• Believe
• Beloved
• Bliss
• Bold
• Brave
• Bright
• Build
• Celebrate
• Challenge
• Change
• Cherished
• Choose
• Classic
• Compassion
• Confidence
• Connect
• Consistent
• Contentment
• Courage
• Create
• Creative
• Creativity
• Cultivate
• Depth
• Desire
• Devoted
• Devout
• Discover
• Divine
• Dream
• Ease
• Embody
• Embrace
• Emerge
• Enchanting
• Enlightened
• Enough
• Evolve
• Exquisite
• Faith
• Fearless
• Finish
• Fit
• Flourish
• Focus
• Forgive
• Forgiving
• Freedom
• Gentler
• Giving
• Glowing
• Grace
• Gracious
• Grateful
• Gratitude
• Gratitude
• Grow
• Growth
• Heal
• Health
• Healthy
• Heart
• Hero
• Heroine
• Home
• Hope
• Humbled
• Inspired
• Intentional
• Intuition
• Journey
• Joy
• Kind
• Listen
• Love
• Loving
• Luminosity
• Magic
• Magnificence
• Mindful
• Nurture
• Open
• Passion
• Patience
• Peace
• Peaceful
• Permission
• Positive
• Possibility
• Precious
• Present
• Purpose
• Radiance
• Radiant
• Reclaim
• Recognition
• Reconnect
• Refresh
• Release
• Restore
• Reverence
• Revolution
• Sacred
• Sassy
• Savor
• Savvy
• Seen
• Shine
• Simplify
• Soul
• Soulful
• Spark
• Sparkle
• Spirited
• Spiritual
• Stillness
• Strength
• Strong
• Support
• Surrender
• Sweetness
• Tenacious
• Thrive
• Treasured
• Trust
• Unique
• Unstoppable
• Valuable
• Vibrant
• Visible
• Vision
• Voice
• Wellness
• Whole
• Wholehearted
• Wholeness
• Worthiness
• Yes

  

My vision board is a combination of images and words and relates to both personal and work goals. All that blank space? I’ll be adding to it throughout the year, and writing some hand written specific goals as I go.

I like to keep my vision board on my desk where I can see it everyday. My vision board is currently sitting next to my desk, along with a new small notebook where I can journal some of my goals as well.