Crafting a New Year’s Resolution Vision Board – Dreams to Reality
Do you ever wonder what it would be like to live the life of your dreams? I do. And each year I get closer to this dream with the creation of my New Year’s resolution vision board.
A vision board is a visual representation of the goals and dreams you’re trying to achieve.
And it’s a personal choice whether you make one or not. Some say they don’t work, some say they do. But they work for me and I continue to reap the benefits.
You can, too.
Powerful Benefits of Creating a Vision Board for the New Year
Each year we have the opportunity to start fresh and follow our dreams. A vision board is a great way to begin the process. Not only are they super fun to make, but they help inspire, gain clarity, and challenge beliefs.
All of those things are important to me because they make me a better version of myself which allows me to do my best work.
And it can do the same for you. So get ready to take advantage of these benefits.
Provides Clarity to Help You Achieve Your Goals
If you’re a person who often struggles to get clear about your goals, putting a vision board together can help you gain clarity. It’s a tangible object that serves as a reminder to keep working towards what you want out of life.
Otherwise, it’s possible your goals may get put on the back burner.
Take me for example. I love goal setting – whether it’s in my mind or by writing it down on some random page in one of my 100 notebooks. And how does that work out for me? It doesn’t! When I do it that way, my goals don’t always come to fruition.
Do whatever you can to keep your goals at the forefront of your mind.
Challenges Limiting Beliefs through Visualization
Limiting beliefs are those beliefs etched in your mind that stop you from taking the first step toward your goal. Basically, they keep you from progressing.
When you decide to create a physical representation of your desires and goals, you’re sending a message to your subconscious mind. I will have this. I deserve that.
For five years, I walked around with a limiting belief that there was no way I could ever run a blog. I believed that I wasn’t smart enough to start my own blogging business and that no one would want to read what I wrote. But here I am – writing this post for you!
So, don’t hesitate to put all your desires on your vision board!
Generates Positive Energy for Manifesting Desires
If you haven’t read my post on starting a manifestation journal, I mentioned that it was a tool full of your intention and energy.
Your vision board is the same! Think about this – putting things on your vision board is usually a positive and exciting experience (at least for me it is). Through your energy and positive thinking, at some point, you start to visualize the feeling and experience of having achieved your goals. And all of those things play a role in the law of attraction.
Setting Resolutions and Goals for the Upcoming Year
The very first step in setting up your vision board is to identify what it is you want to achieve. What things do you want to change?
No worries if you don’t know the answers yet. As you read through this post, I’ll share a few ideas to help pinpoint where to start.
Reflect on the Past Year
You’re doing yourself a great disservice if you don’t take the time to acknowledge and celebrate your accomplishments over the past year. Sometimes we’re so focused on where we’re going, we forget how far we have come.
So take a few minutes and think about things you’ve done that make you feel proud.
Now think about what you could have improved. What were some of your major obstacles?
Over the last year, I struggled with procrastination – badly. No matter how many to-do lists I made and no matter how many tasks I jotted down in planners. I still couldn’t get anything done. Going into the new year, this is something I know I will have to work on so that it doesn’t impact my blog business in a negative way.
Create Your Resolutions List
After I’ve reflected on my year, I like to think about what I desire over the next year. What is it that I want to manifest? What changes do I need in my life?
Look at every aspect of your life when you sit down to make your resolutions list. So finances, health, spirituality, and anything you deem crucial for your happiness. I
If you’re struggling to come up with some ideas of your own, check out my post on goals for the end of the year.
Or head over to Pinterest for some additional ideas.
Implement Important Goal-Setting Tips
- Keep it simple. That’s my #1 goal-setting tip. You don’t have to overcomplicate or even overwhelm yourself by setting extravagant goals. Break your large goals down into smaller goals to make them more achievable.
- Make sure your goals or specific and realistic. For example, instead of saying I will get more sleep, try I will go to bed at 9 pm every night.
- The last and one of the most important is to make your goals action-orientated versus outcome-based.
A few years ago, I received an email from a YouTuber named Erin Henry and she explained that setting action-orientated goals is better because that is what we have control over – not the outcome.
Example of action-orientated goal: I will write and publish 6 blog posts per month.
Example of outcome-based goal: I will get 100,000 pageviews in 6 months.
Craft Your New Year’s Resolution Vision Board
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s get to the fun part. Let’s dive into creating your vision board with intention.
Step 1: Gather Supplies, Arts and Crafts, and Inspirational Content
With your resolutions and goals in mind, it’s time to start gathering meaningful items.
Here are some ideas to get you started, but this is your board! So feel free to add whatever you like:
- Posterboard
- Magazines to cut out motivational pictures and words
- Images that represent your vision (stock photos, printouts, or pictures you’ve taken yourself)
- Items for appending things to your board: glue, tape, or even a stapler
- Other fun items: glitter, stickers, stencils
- Items to write and color with: pens, pencils, markers, and crayons
Throughout the year, I collect a ton of magazines (my partner has a magazine subscription) to use at the end of the year so that I don’t have to go searching for board content. But if there is an image that I don’t have and want to use, I’ll just print it out.
Step 2: Decide on an Influential Layout
The layout of your board is just as important as the things you put on the board. You want to organize your images and words in a way that will make the most impact.
How can I customize my board to make sure it’s inspiring, motivational, and representative of who I am?
I used a poster for my 2023 vision board and placed words around the perimeter and images in the center. It was very basic but it got the job done.
My Vision Board Layout for 2024
This year, I’m going all out! I’m going to use a 3-fold project board – like the one you used for your 7th-grade science project.
The left fold will be where I list my positive affirmations. The right fold will be where I list my why. – the reasons why I am working and striving towards my goals and dreams. In the center fold, which also has the most space, I’ll place a collage of images in the middle and words around the perimeter.
Assemble the Board in a Fun and Creative Way
Once you have everything you need and a design in mind, it’s time to make your vision board.
Set the mood by turning on your favorite playlist and grabbing your favorite drink. Cut out pictures and words that represent your intentions and goals, and paste them into your preferred layout.
And spice up your board with some glitter, stickers, or whatever you feel called to add. Make it sparkle!
4 Tips for Making Your New Year’s Resolutions Stick
You’ve made it to the final step. First, you came up with your goals and resolutions. Then you cut and paste representative images to make a vision board. Now, it’s time to ensure that you stay consistent as you work towards making changes in your life.
Tip #1: Hang Your Vision Board as a Physical Reminder
I know you’ve probably heard the saying “out of sight, out of mind”, which means it’s easy to forget about things you don’t see frequently – goals included.
To combat this and keep your resolutions at the forefront, hang your vision board in your home where you will see it daily.
Here are some places you can hang it:
- on your bedroom wall
- above or on your bathroom mirror
- in your home office or the room you spend the most time in
Tip #2: Celebrate Your Accomplishments Along the Way
Don’t forget to celebrate the progress you’ve made towards your overall goal. Each step deserves to be rewarded. Not only will that provide a sense of accomplishment that encourages you to keep working, but it also reminds you to never give up.
Tip #3: Imagine What is Possible in Your Life (or the Impossible)
Continue to dream the biggest of dreams. While you don’t know what will or won’t happen, positive thinking goes a long way. Truly, anything can happen.
Tip #4: Hold Yourself Accountable
If you can’t do any of the tips above, please at least hold yourself accountable. It’s one of the best ways to stay focused.
This is something that I didn’t prioritize in the past – and it showed. After starting my blog in 2020 I had all of these great goals I was going to achieve. But I couldn’t even hold myself accountable to regularly write blog posts.
Don’t do that! Find a way to track and check in on where you are at, or where you should be.
And if you can’t hold yourself accountable, share your plans with your family and friends, and I’m sure that’ll help because they will be checking in on your progress. And do you want to tell them that you haven’t done anything you said you would do?
Happy New Year! Let’s Make This Year a Success
Let’s make the coming year the best year yet! Start thinking about your New Year resolutions now. Create the best vision board you can and live your life with intention and purpose.
And I’ll be doing the same!
