In a 2008 interview on New York City Radio, Oprah told a story of how she attended a rally in California with Michelle Obama, Caroline Kennedy, and Maria Shriver. At the end of the rally, Michelle said to Oprah:
“I want you to leave here and envision Barack Obama taking the oath of office.”
When Oprah got home, she made a vision board for the first time. She put Barack Obama’s picture on it. Oprah even put a picture of the dress she wanted to wear to the inauguration. Later, when the votes were still being cast across the country, Oprah took her visioning to the next level.
“Take it out of the closet,” Oprah said to her stylist, referring to the dress she envisioned wearing to Barack Obama’s inauguration. “Let’s take it out. Let’s hang it up, and let it air out.”
And well, we know what happened next, don’t we?
Barack Obama became President of the United States of America, and Oprah became hooked to the power of a vision board.
What is a Vision Board?
A vision board is a collage of photographs, images, and words that represent your hopes, dreams, and aspirations. It can also be considered as a “map” of the future you want to create for yourself. The technique was popularized by Tony Robbins in his book, “Unlimited Power: The New Science of Personal Achievement.”
Vision boards are a tool that can help you focus on what you really want and can also be a source of motivation when things get tough.
The different ways you can use boards are endless: they can help you set goals for the future, manage your physical environment better, organize your thoughts, establish more fulfilling relationships with friends and family, and even take romantic relationships to the next level.
One way to think about vision boards is as a "map" that keeps you on track towards happiness and fulfillment in any area of life desired. This is why people use vision boards for various reasons, from wedding vision boards to vision boards for business success, relationship success, weight loss, abundance, travel goals, and more.
Analog or Digital?
While vision boards can be used for a variety of reasons, there are two different ways to create a vision board: analog or digital.
The analog method is great if you are a tactile person. This method involves getting a physical board, such as a piece of cardboard or corkboard. Then, you will cut out pictures or quotes from old magazines or print them out. You may even write your own quotes or draw your own pictures.
While some people enjoy this process, many others find it very time-consuming and arduous. For this reason, many people shy away from creating a vision board even though they want to try it.
Thankfully, digital vision boards like Visionbook are now making vision boards more accessible for people to incorporate into their busy, modern lives. This opens the door for more people to experience the power of visualization.
The Power of Visualization
Vision boards work because they leverage visualization. The power of visualization has been known for centuries and modern science has caught up with the benefits that it offers. Numerous studies have found that imagining our goals, whether it be for weight loss or a promotion at work, can produce real-life results.This is because when we imagine success stories in our minds, we are more likely to behave in ways that will result in achieving these goals than if we never had them at all. Vision boards further accentuate what we see in our minds, making the vision seem more real and within our reach.
Research published in the Journal of Marketing in March 2011, “The Effect of Goal Visualization on Goal Pursuit: Implications for Consumers and Managers”, shows that when goals become easy to visualize, it increases the effort and commitment to reach those goals. The increased commitment as a result of ease-of-visualization was consistently observed no matter what the type of goal it was: from performance in sports to commitment toward savings.
Habitual use of a vision board will amplify the vision of your goals on a daily basis. This holds power over your subconscious and directs your mind to automatically find evidence or action to support what you see.
The result is you prime yourself to take up opportunities and behave in ways that keep you focused on your vision, without feeling like you have to exert discipline, so it feels more effortless to achieve your goals.
Visualization is Backed by Neuroscience
Do visualization techniques and vision boards really work, or is it just a placebo effect? In other words, would someone have achieved their goals anyway, with or without using a vision board?Advocates of the vision boards don’t say that you must practice visualization techniques in order to achieve your goals. It is entirely possible to still achieve your goals without visualization. However, what they emphasize instead is that visualization helps you stay focused on what you really want, and thus keep your thoughts and actions aligned with that to achieve it faster.
This is backed by neuroscience. Your brain is trainable and has the ability to change. This is known as neuroplasticity. With visualization, you change the connections between neurons, essentially rewiring your brain for success.
It can even have a physiological effect on your body. The simple act of waking up and seeing the goals or dream life you envision first thing in the morning can fuel you with the “happiness hormones”, dopamine and serotonin. This can lift up your mood, and since emotion drives action, it can fuel your motivation to take the daily steps you need to do to achieve your goals.
When you consider the fact that numerous studies show approximately 80% of people give up on their New Year’s resolutions before the end of February, you can start seeing the true value of a vision board to keep people motivated and on track to achieve what they desire.
It’s no surprise then that many personal growth mentors, celebrities, and influencers such as Tony Robbins, Marie Forleo, Oprah, Lilly Singh, Zig Ziglar, and Jack Canfield are all advocates and self-practitioners of vision boards.
How Vision Boards Can Change Your Life
You don’t have to be a mega-celebrity or an influencer to use a vision board. The wonderful thing about this tool is how accessible it is to everybody. All it takes is a strong desire for something or for how you want your life to look like, and you can create a vision board.Another beautiful thing about the vision board is it’s not just about the end result of achieving your goals. The entire process of creating and using vision boards can change your life in more ways than one. Here are just a few ways.
1. Vision boards can help you know yourself better
Vision boards can be a great tool for seeing ourselves as we want to be. This process can help us to truly understand ourselves and the values that drive us. It can also help us identify the life we truly want with clarity, free from the judgment or social pressure of others.
2. Vision boards can help you heal
The process of identifying a goal and creating the plan to get there can bring focus on the insecurities holding you back from achieving the goal. With this insight, you can take the necessary steps to heal so you can stop the self-sabotage process holding you back from achieving your goals.
3. Vision boards can make you more resilient and creative
Challenges are bound to come upon any goal-pursuing journey. Having a vision board can remind you of why your goal is worth it, and this can make you more resilient in pushing through the challenges. It can also help you to become more creative in finding solutions to overcome the challenges you face.
Starting a Vision Board: Analog or Digital?
Now that you can see the value of vision boards, the next step is knowing how to get started. There are two different ways to create a vision board: analog or digital.The analog method is great if you are a tactile person. This method involves getting a physical board, such as a piece of cardboard or corkboard. Then, you will cut out pictures or quotes from old magazines or print them out. You may even write your own quotes or draw your own pictures.
While some people enjoy this process, many others find it very time-consuming and arduous. For this reason, many people shy away from creating a vision board even though they want to try it.
Thankfully, digital vision boards are now making vision boards more accessible for people to incorporate into their busy, modern lives.
6 Advantages of a Digital Vision Board
Digital vision boards are apps or online services that allow you to create a digital vision board that you can access from any digital device. They are becoming the more popular choice because they have six key advantages over analog vision boards.1. Saves you lots of time
Searching, printing, and cutting out pictures and quotes to paste on a physical vision board can take up a lot of time. Conversely, digital vision boards often only require you to drag-and-drop what you want to put on your board, saving you a lot of time.
2. Give you unlimited creativity
Digital vision boards offer you more tools to unleash your creativity. So if you’re not a very artistic person, you won’t be held back! For example, you can choose from a variety of fonts or filters to give your vision board the exact look and feel that you want within minutes.
3. Mobility to go with you anywhere
The biggest limitation of a physical vision board is that it can’t easily go wherever you go—especially if it's big. Chances are, if you travel, you won’t bring your physical vision board with you due to the hassle.
A digital vision board however is easily accessible through any device you have with you. This means your daily visualization habits don't have to go on pause when you travel on business trips or vacations.
4. Gives you more control over your privacy
If you’re a very private person, you might not enjoy the fact that anyone can see your vision board by simply being in the space where you keep it. You may want to keep some things private to some people, and physical vision boards give you less control to do that.
A digital vision board, which can be password protected, is something that only you can see. Having said that, it doesn’t mean you can’t share it with those closest to you!
5. Easily share it with others
Having your vision board in a digital format means you can share it with those you choose—no matter how far away they are from you. The reason you share it can be for motivational support or simply to share the excitement of the future you envision with someone close to you.
6. Easily update your vision board as you evolve
As you evolve, you may gain some new clarity and want to update your vision board. Doing this with a physical board can be very difficult—you may even have to start from scratch!
This isn’t a problem with digital vision boards. Easily move things around, add, or remove anything from your vision board with the swipe of a finger.
How to Create a Powerful Vision Board
Not all vision boards are created equal. Here are five simple steps to create a powerful vision board that can alter the course of your life for the better!- Evaluate your top life values. This will help you focus on the goals that really matter to you.
- Select your most important goals and create a basic structure of what it would take to achieve it.
- Use photos depicting your desired state, places you want to go, what you want to achieve, how you want to feel, people you want to be with, and so on.
- Use quotes that motivate you and remind you of your goals to help you stay on track.
- Look at it daily. If you can “see” yourself achieve it, you will believe that it can and will happen.
Create Your Own Powerful Vision Board in Minutes
Are you ready to start reaping the benefits of a vision board in your life? Then check out Visionbook, an all-in-one personal development app that combines a digital vision board with journaling, daily routine tracker, and more.You can get started risk-free with a free 14-day trial of Visionbook. Sign up today to keep your visions, plans and life strategies in one place—and watch your life transform with the power of vision boards!
