I saw a quote that read, ‘Goals that aren’t written down are just wishes,’ but can I ask you this?
What if you can’t write down your goals? No, I’m serious. What if it’s hard for you?
- Maybe you aren’t the most organized person, or goal setting isn’t your strength.
- Perhaps you’re more of a creative, and you can see your future, but it’s tough to write the plan in words.
- Or what if you’re too discouraged or depressed to dream?
So again I ask you, what do you do when you can’t write out your goals?
I’ll tell you what you do. You find another way to paint the picture, and you can do that with a vision board.
A vision board lets you:
- Create a plan without creating a ‘plan.’
- Build a source of inspiration and focus.
- Cast vision even when your vision is hard to see.
So, yes if you’re too discouraged to dream – this will help you.
And yes, if you have too many ideas and feel overwhelmed with them – this will definitely help you also.
Or if you don’t know where to start, this will help you start simple with creative goal setting.
Finally, if you’ve got it all together or just want to see what I have to say – let me not waste anymore of your time. In this blog, I’m going to tell you a super dope and simple way to set goals using a vision board, mood board, or dream board. I will also give you tons of ideas and visuals to help get you started!
Vision board goal setting
In 2015, I created the vision board of my life! I used colorful images and inspirational words to help me visualize the goals I had for work, my brand, my home, and my family. Initially, some of the things I put on my vision board seemed to have little to no meaning.
Let me tell you a quick story about that. I added this colorful bouquet of flowers with ‘love in bloom’ on my vision board because it was pretty and a small graphic with ‘three-year plan’ for no reason at all. Well, to my surprise, later on, love in bloom manifested for me in threes.
- For the next three years, my relationship with God bloomed.
- My love for people without bias bloomed.
- And my love life bloomed.
***LISTEN TO HOW GOD USED MY VISION BOARD TO TELL ME ABOUT MY FUTURE HUSBAND***
All unexpectedly and without much notice or cooperation from me. I say without much cooperation because I didn’t know that I was on a love journey until about 15 months into the process. And finding out wasn’t fun either. Let me tell you about that too. I was dating a guy, which for me was big because I’d been single for a very long time. I was so happy being single that I had zero desire for a man or marriage.
But this guy was different. He honored me. He prayed for me. And the special thing was that neither one of us was interested initially in the other. It was refreshing to experience a man that respected me as a peer and was genuinely a great guy. You’re probably thinking, this sounds like too nice of a story to end, but it did. This guy was great, but he wasn’t for me, and when it ended I was hurt, so I prayed.
Heartbroken and crying, I asked God to heal my hurt, and He directed my attention to the vision board. It was at that moment that God showed me His purpose in the goals I’d set knowingly and unknowingly. Actually, looking back at my vision board, I can say much of what I added happened. Now is this because my vision board was magic? Not hardly, but keep reading.
Why my vision board manifested
My vision board manifested for two reasons. One – because I co-created the vision with God. So even the little things that I thought had no meaning did. And two – because my vision board helped me to see what I wanted and from there, I focused on making what I could control happen.
Here’s how you can do it too.
Vision board ideas
Step One. Get your supplies. Use magazines, sales ads, newspapers, stickers, or whatever you can think of. I mostly use magazines, but I think it’s cool to mix mediums too. So, I like to incorporate bold graphics and typography with stationery and scrapbooking materials. Here’s a creator’s tip for you: Check with your local library or a doctor’s office for old magazines. After you get your magazines or whatever you decide to use, spend about $5 on a base for your collage (use foam board or cardboard), a pair of scissors, and a glue stick.
Oh — grab a glue gun if you are using heavier pieces. And don’t limit yourself, if you want to buy a framed board, go for it! My son did the coolest culture themed vision board using a mounted board for school. It was so dope that his teacher never gave it back. No really. I think she stole it to use as a model for other students.
Step Two. Get your pictures. Your first priority is cutting out what you like and things that pop out at you. Then your second priority is arranging the pieces to make sense. You got it? So first, cut out your pieces and second, focus on your pieces making sense together. Also, make sure you grab background images too.
Step Three. Find a space and go to work. But wait to use the glue. Create a flat layout of everything to your liking before you glue anything to your board permanently. Also, add a picture of yourself or a light mirror on your vision board, so you can see yourself in the vision. Then put your vision board somewhere that you can see it every day! More importantly, use it to set mini-goals to help you reach your ultimate goal. Vision gives you a target to aim for, and when you can see your target clearly, it’s easier to hit. So use your vision board to help you create a plan without a ‘plan’ and hit your mark.
Other vision board ideas
You can make your vision board as small or big as you like. You can create an index card-sized vision board to keep in your car or maybe at your workstation.
You can also create a digital vision board on a collage app or design tool like canva.com. After you finish, download your digital vision board to add as a screensaver on your phone, background image for your computer or print it out as a poster!
Whatever you do, do what you like.
Setting simple goals
Your goals are achievable. Start simple to avoid overwhelming yourself. After starting simple, if you get stuck and hit a creative block, try using a theme. And if you become overwhelmed, focus on one thing first. Here’s a focusing question by Gary Keller, use it to help you prioritize what to start with: “What’s the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary.”
One last thing — I know your dreams are big, so are mine, but you can do it. Here’s a short prayer that I use to help make my big ideas simple.
God, you have given me big dreams. Dreams so big that they seem to span beyond the size of my heart and into eternity. And I need help making them happen because sometimes I feel overwhelmed or like it would take me two lifetimes to achieve all that I want. So Father, please give me wisdom and guide me daily in prioritizing my dreams, goals, and plans. Let me know when I’m doing something wrong or even something unnecessary. I ask you to connect me with people that can help me with my big ideas. And as I go after my dreams and achieve my goals, show me how to leave signposts along the way to help others. In Jesus Name, Amen, and thank you!
By the way – I would love to see what you create, so feel free to post pictures in the comments section or tag me on social media @lolacabaya!
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