Everyone has things they want in life. Maybe you want a new job, to go on a special vacation, to write a book, overcome an obstacle, or maybe just be happier. Wherever you want to get in life there’s a way to get there.

Sometimes we find ourselves in places where we don’t want to be. The temptation is to feel depressed, discouraged and sorry for ourselves. But that won’t take us where we want to go.

Instead, we can own where we are right now and create a vision of where we want to go. I’ll show you how you can create something called a vision board to help you.

Without vision, things fall apart.

THE IMPORTANCE OF VISION

We need to see where we want to go because we go in the direction where we’re looking. Maybe that sounds too much like canned psychology to you, but I have a visual that illustrates it. I saw this clearly one day when I had one of my granddaughters over.

I was helping her learn how to ride a tricycle and then also a bicycle. She was doing what many people do when learning to ride a bike. She kept looking at her feet on the pedals. But every time she did that, she’d go off the sidewalk into the grass. When she followed my instructions, “look in front of you” or “watch where you’re going”, she would stay on the sidewalk.

Hope gives us vision. Hope draws pictures in our heart that inspire us and motivate us to keep going when things are difficult.

Along my journey to emerge free from the pain of my childhood I needed hope and inspiration. I didn’t like where I was emotionally, mentally or spiritually but I also didn’t know any specifics of where I was going. I just wanted to become whole. I wanted to be free of the pain and crippling side-effects of childhood trauma. I found my hope and inspiration in God. In my book Emerging With Wings I call Him The Pursuer. Now I refer to Him as the Spirit of Grace. His grace is a constant source of hope and helps me get where I want to go.

The Bible says to write down your visions or dreams plainly so you can run with them. A vision board is a great way to do this.

HOW TO START

The first thing you need to make a vision board is to establish where you want to go, what you want. Are you wanting to heal or grow emotionally, mentally or spiritually? Are you wanting to accomplish a dream? Are you wanting to tackle something difficult? Write down what you want and be clear. These questions can help you clarify.

• What do you want?
• What do you need?
• What’s important to you?
• How do you want to feel?

Make your answers as simple as possible by using single words instead of descriptive phrases. For example, you want to be happier in your career. Choose the words happy and career.

SUPPLIES TO GATHER

You can make a vision board using poster board, a large piece of paper or a corkboard. Whichever works best for you is your best choice.

Then you’ll need glue, tape or pushpins (or thumb tacks) to attach your visions to your chosen board.

You’ll need a pair of scissors and pictures you can cut out. This can be magazines, newspapers, photographs or pictures you find online and print out.

Finally, you’ll need things to decorate your board and make it personally yours. You might like to use colored pencils, markers, paint, pen or even stickers.

HOW IT WORKS

Time – Designate a time and place to make your board. Give yourself a certain amount of time (start and end time). We focus and function better with boundaries. Don’t worry if you don’t get it done in that time frame. You can designate another time to complete it. Give yourself grace but don’t give up.

Place – Make the place where you do your project an atmosphere that inspires you. For example, calm and quiet or loud music and energetic.

Find – Look for and cut out the pictures (and even words) that inspire and motivate you for where you want to go. If a picture creates the feeling of coercion or shame do not use that picture even if it’s on the subject. Pay attention to how the picture makes you feel. For example, let’s say you want to lose weight. You find pictures of food you feel like you should eat or someone famous who’s super skinny. But these photos make you feel guilty, condemned, or fat and ugly – do not use them. This is a vision board, not a beat yourself up board. Instead, find ones that speak hope and motivation to you.

Build – Attach the photos, words, decorations to your board and make sure when you look at this board it makes you smile. Both your face and your heart inside.

LET THE VISION SPEAK

Take your board and put it up on display somewhere you’ll see it every day and let it speak to you.

After you put it up, get a piece of paper and pen for your next step. The next step is a genius way of accomplishing goals I got from Michael Hyatt. It’s how we take a giant thing and make it doable by breaking it into bite-size pieces – one thing at a time. It works because we can always do just one thing.

Sit and look at your board and write down just one thing you can do to move in the direction of where you want to go. Keep that one thing in front of your vision until you do that one thing. Then do the next step over again.

Eventually, you’ll get where you want to go.

WHAT NEXT

• Share what you have a vision for, where you want to go in the comments. Let me cheer you on.
• Have you ever made a vision board before?
• Get a vision of being loved here.

Danielle Bernock

Author, Coach, and Speaker helping men, women, and organizations EMERGE with clear vision of their value, TAKE ownership of their choices, and CHART a path to their promise, becoming Victorious Souls who Embrace The Change from survive to thrive through the power of the love of God

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