The Power of Vision Boards

Vision boards have transformed the lives of celebrities like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Oprah Winfrey – and they have the power to transform your life too. They are a modern manifestation method combining concepts taken from creative hobbies like scrapbooking with motivational mind-mapping and brand development techniques used by marketeers. A vision board is quite literally a collage of pictures, phrases, poems and quotes visually represent what you would like to experience more of in your life. An increasing number of Hollywood celebrities, Olympic athletes, television personalities and top motivational speakers have started to share how vision boards help sustain their success. Vision Boards are fast being recognised as more than just a bit of creative fun, and credited by leaders of our time a powerful tool for transformation. From Barack Obama’s Campaign Manager to Olympian Rueben Gonzalez vision boards are helping millions of people worldwide to manifest their dreams.

But vision boards don’t work for everyone. This is because most people make the mistake of beginning a board without first connecting to their inner wisdom. The result is a board filled with images and words that aren’t aligned to their authentic desires. If a vision board only contains pictures of what the ego thinks it wants then it won’t be effective. For a vision board to attract like a magnet it is important for it to be created with gratitude, positive intention, self-acceptance and a sense of flow. In order to begin the process relax your body, and mind and turn your attention within.

If you find yourself predominantly being drawn towards images of items you’d like to own, then it’s probably your ego creating a shopping list, rather than your soul expressing its fullest vision for yourself. A simple way to escape your ego is to ask yourself “what more would I want?” every time you run into something that feels like it comes from outside of yourself or represents someone else’s dream goal for you. Each time you ask yourself this question you’ll get closer and closer to the higher vision your heart holds for you.

The pictures you stick on your board may come from things in your outside environment like magazines and brochures, but you need your inner navigation system to guide you intuitively to the images and phrases that will inspire you and ignite the power of your board. Let the feeling of happiness in your heart help you find pictures that mirror what you’d most like to manifest in your life.

Another common vision board blunder is to create a collage crammed with ‘wishful thinking’ rather than overflowing with belief that you can truly have whatever you put on your board. Before any images are selected and stuck down it is important to have cleared out any limiting beliefs that may stop you from believing you have the power to enjoy the presence of your desired experience, person, place or thing in your life. If you don’t believe that you are entitled to or can bring about the things you placed on your board, then you will block them from coming to you. But if you release any negative thoughts and emotion, and create your board feeling inspired, excited and enthused, then your board will be super-charged with the positive energy of your true potential.

Once completed it is crucial to hang your board somewhere that you actively spend the majority of your day. Poor positioning is something can completely stifle vision board success. Many people create beautiful boards filled with inspiring images that celebrate their greatest vision for themselves, then hide the board in a cupboard or hang it up in a room they never use. For your board to truly bring abundant blessings it needs to be located at eye level in a space where it can be admired and appreciated regularly. The best place to hang your board is in your office or living room. The more time you spend with your board the more movement you will make toward your goals and the faster they will manifest into reality.

If you’d like to start the new year with a new vision for a new you, then a vision board is a powerful way to take stock on where you are at in your life and reflect on what you would like to do differently during the year ahead. Follow these 7 Simple Steps and discover how to take time for yourself, let go of all the things that didn’t work out in the past, acknowledge the powerful creator within you, align your vision with the life you’d love to live and support yourself in stepping forward with confidence and clarity into 2011.

How to Create a Vision Board – 7 Simple Steps

1. Board Basics – Choose a large piece of card, poster board, cork board or canvas big enough to spaciously arrange your selected words and images so that they have plenty of space to grow – about the size of a large newspaper opened out. You’ll also need pens, scissors, glue or pins, sticky tape, current photograph of yourself, and a big pile of assorted magazines – ask at your local hairdressers for spare magazines if you don’t have any at home.

2. Prepare a Space – Find somewhere quiet where you can be undisturbed and completely relaxed. Prepare a special space to work on your board. Gather all the materials you need together so that they are within easy reach. Do whatever it takes to make the space feel as comfortable and special as possible. Play some uplifting music without lyrics. Place a vase of fresh flowers in the area. Light a candle.

3. Mindset Magic – Let go of anything you feel you ‘should, ought to or must’ aspire towards. Give yourself permission to explore the things that you really want to welcome more of in your life.

Ask yourself the following questions:

“What would I like to be, do or have in my life if I knew it was okay to have anything I wanted? If I knew I deserved it? If I had full support from others? If I knew I could succeed? If I had no fear? If I had abundant resources and all the time I needed?”

4. Mission Statement – Connect with your sense of purpose and write a mission statement to summarise what it is you want to manifest in your life. If you are uncertain of what your mission in life is, take yourself back to your memories of how you enjoyed spending time as a child. Often we expressed the essence of our life purpose in the things that intrigued and occupied us as children. Also in the dreams we had of what we wanted to do when we ‘grew up’.

Take three deep breaths, turn your focus inward and ask yourself “what am I here to do”. Notice what thoughts, feelings or sensations you get. Write your mission statement in the first person, e.g. “I am an inspirational teacher, making a positive difference in the lives of underprivileged children”. Underneath your mission statement write the things you will experience as you actualize this vision of yourself, e.g. “I am happy and healthy. I have wonderful relationships. I experience abundance in all areas of my life. I enjoy giving and receiving love”.

Write your mission statement accompanied by a current photo of yourself at the centre of your board.

5. Flick, Snip and Stick – Have fun flicking through magazines for images and words that inspire you. Tear or cut out anything that jumps out at you and make a pile of clippings. When you feel you have enough images for begin your board, put the magazines to one side and sit for a few minutes sorting through your images. You don’t need to know what the image represents for you at this stage. Simply focus on keeping all the images you love looking at and trust your intuition on any pictures that don’t feel right. Sift through the pile so that only the images and words that really inspire you remain.

Then experiment by arranging all your other images on your board in whatever way feels good. Move them around until you are happy, then stick or fix them in place. There is no right or wrong way to secure your images. Some people like them to be easily changeable – fixed with scotch tape or drawing pins. Others like them to be pasted down with glue and varnished for a professional looking finish. Trust your gut feeling. The important thing is to arrange your images with plenty of space in between, so that you send out a message to the universe that you are always open to receiving more!

6. Position with Pride – Proudly display your board somewhere in your home or office where you are most active during the day and will see it regularly (even if this is from your peripheral vision). Position it at eye level in a space that is in alignment with your vision – i.e. not above your toilet or inside a cupboard! Ensure the space around your board supports your vision, clear away any clutter or things that don’t reflect the words and images on your board.

7. Ongoing Process – Allow your vision board to be a continuously moving creation with room to add more images as your ideas develop and change. Whenever you bring something on your board into being celebrate and express gratitude for this success :) pop a little smiley face next to the word or image, make a tick mark or write ‘thank you!’.

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If you’d like to start 2011 with a vision board aligned with your highest vision for the year ahead a why not join Power-Up Your Year – The ULTIMATE Vision Board Workshop on Saturday 15th & Sunday 16th January at the gorgeous 4* Lensbury Hotel & Spa, nestled in leafy Teddington right on the banks of the River Thames. Within easy reach of London Waterloo, M25 & M3. Visit www.visionboardworkshop.co.uk for more information.