It’s that time of the year again; 2018 is coming our way. Just like everyone else, I tend to be very optimistic and set many, way too many goals every New Year. And although I accomplish most of them, there are always those that seem impossible to achieve – like winning the lottery or losing weight. However, there is something I have been doing the last couple of years that has changed the way I set my goals: creating a vision board.

A vision board contains images of the things you want to accomplish. It is a tool used to clarify, visualize, concentrate, and maintain focus on the things you want. It is said that vision boards activate the law of attraction.

A vision board can have many shapes and forms; you can make it very personal. I, for example, use a white poster board. I Google the images that represent the things I want, and paste all the images arranged in a way that pleases my ever-changing brain. Sometimes I even frame the board to make it easier to hang. I like to get images that not only represent the things I want, but I also try to find images that can portray my feelings and other things that can’t be touched, like love, or getting closer to God. You can bet I always get a picture of the beach, and of course, like every year, I choose a picture of the nice, flat stomach I want to have. My point is that anything goes. It’s your own personal dream board, and you can add anything you want. Here is the one my husband and I shared this last half of 2017.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

I am sure you are wondering about this vision board. How exactly does it work? Well, a vision board is simply a tool of visualization, and visualization can help us focus our attention on the things we want. According to the book The Secret by Rhonda Byrne “The law of attraction is forming your entire life experience, and it is doing that through your thoughts. When you are visualizing, you are emitting a powerful frequency out into the Universe.” I highly recommend this book if you are interested in learning about the law of attraction.

But, if you are not a believer of the law of attraction, at least believe me when I tell you that your brain will work to achieve the things you are feeding your unconscious mind; either good or bad. In the back of your brain, there is a small finger-sized control center called the reticular activating system (RAS) that sorts and evaluates incoming data. Your RAS is responsible for filtering all the incoming information that your brain receives and determining what is relevant and what is not. This is the reason why you can pick up your name from a conversation across the room; your brain is programmed to hear your name; it has been tagged as relevant or important.

Because the mind responds strongly to visual stimulation, vision boards are highly effective in programming your RAS to pay attention to certain things in your environment that are in line with your goals. This selective attention filter makes you aware of daily opportunities connected to the things you have tagged as important; which means that unconsciously, you are working towards your goals. The most interesting thing about RAS is that it can’t differentiate between what you see and what you imagine; it will take any message you send, so be sure to stay positive and visualize your goals.

Without boring you anymore with the details, here are some tips on how to make the most out of your board, which is if you decide to do one of course.

1. 1. Create a personal board, one just for you. But also create one with your significant other, your family, roommate or anyone with whom you share any goals.
   2. Do not focus too much on the things you have on your board. Instead, visualize yourself having those things you want and how it feels to have them.
   3. Put the board in a strategic place, somewhere you can see it every day.

Now that you know what a vision board is and how it helps you achieve your dreams and goals. How about we embrace the New Year and create a vision board?

Comment below what you think of this post and feel free to share a picture of your vision board.

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