One of the most powerful tools for applying the Law of Attraction is making a vision board.
“Your Vision Board is a tangible representation of where you are going – it represents your dreams, your goals and your ideal life. Have fun with it. Be creative. Include your favourite quotes and affirmations and words that uplift you and make you feel good – like Love and Joy” – Jack Canfield
What is the Law of Attraction
Put very simply, the law of attraction is the name given to the belief that “like attracts like” and that by focusing on positive or negative thoughts, one can bring about positive or negative results.
Thoughts have an energy that attract like energy. In her book and movie called “The Secret” (2006), Rhonda Byrne tells us that in order to control this energy, you must practice three things:
- Ask – know what you want and ASK the universe / God for it
- Believe – have unwavering faith – know that the object of your desire is on its way
- Receive – be open to receiving it & know that you are worthy to receive it
This is known as Deliberate Creation – being able to create your own reality. This can be applied to your relationships, health, finances, career or any other aspect of your life.
Everything is energy and by choosing to think predominently positive thoughts, you will become a “Magnet”, attracting positive situations, people and things to you. Your thoughts become things.
Trust your instincts – practice listening to your inner voice. It will guide you and magnetically move you towards receiving what you asked for.
If you then break what you want down into small steps, you can focus on one step at a time, which is very manageable, as opposed to becoming overwhelmed by thinking of the entire project or end result that may feel huge to you.
“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King
Getting clear on what you want
Vision Boards are a great way to manifest your ideal life. When you make a vision board, you get clear on what you want to create in your life. Once you have clarity, you select images, pictures and words from magazines and paste them on a big poster board. Seeing this board each day aligns your brain with the outcomes you most want to attract.
Oprah and Ellen Degeneres both swear by Vision boards and the late Louise Hay and Dr Wayne Dyer were also huge fans.
It sounds simple (and yes, there are tips and processes to make your Vision Board more powerful).
So why doesn’t everyone create Vision boards?
Well, most of us don’t make the time. We let our busy, distracted lives keep us – busy and distracted!
The Power of Focus
By choosing what to put onto your vision board, you are focusing on what is most important to you.
It should feel inspiring when you look at it and help you to feel motivated on a day to day basis.
The Power of Visualisation
By having a visual representation that you see daily of your hopes and dreams, you are utilising the power of the subconscious mind to help to make that a reality in your life.
The Power of Consistency
By placing your Vision board where you will see it every day, you are sending out those thoughts that are “rockets of desire” into the universe, and it is this repetition that helps to manifest the things that you truly want.
What NOT to do
- Don’t get caught up in trying to make the “perfect” Vision board – think of it as a work in progress that you can update / add to
- (Note – if perfectionism is showing up for you in relation to your vision board, it may be showing up in other areas of your life too. Perhaps it is time to look at that and make a shift to release it)
- It is okay to have a few gaps on there – just get it 80% right and you can add to it as you go along
- Don’t put pressure on yourself to get everything on your board done yesterday – use it as a tool to inspire and motivate you towards your goals and vision over a period of time (rather than using it as something to beat yourself up about!)
- Don’t compare yourself to others – stay in your own lane and keep focused on your own priorities
- Don’t play it safe – put some stretch goals on there that will require you to grow to be able to meet them
- Be honest with yourself – what are your deepest hearts desires?
- What would you love to have happen in your life – that feels like it is out of reach right now / too good to be true if it happened for you?
- Put that on your board as a commitment to yourself – that this is important to you and a key priority that you want to manifest
- Keep it close to your heart – do not tell too many people as this can actually slow down the manifestation process and they may try to “project” their own worries or fears onto you
Getting Started
- Decide on how many boards you want
- do you want one board for all areas of your life, or a few different ones? Having separate ones can feel less cluttered and help you to focus more clearly on your individual goals
- For instance, one for your Personal goals and one for your Work / Career and financial goals
- I like to have a Vision board for my short term goals over the next 6-12 months and a separate Dream Board which is specifically for my longer term goals – the ones that could take 5-10 years to achieve
- Get your board / boards / and or book (if you are making a Vision book)
- Water colour boards are good – as you can use both sides
- Cork board
- Fabric board – to pin things to
- You can also put things on your fridge door / beside your bed – whatever inspires you!
- Affirmations – you can put your favourite affirmations or Angel cards on your board and also in a nice frame and have this where you will see it each day
- You can also use online apps to make a digital vision board –
but there is something very powerful and magical about making your board and physically seeing it every day. - Take a pciture of your Vision board and set it as a screen saver – on your PC, laptop, tablet and phone
Vision of your Ideal Life
Reflect on how you want your Ideal life to be – review all areas of your life and how you want them to be over the next 1 – 3 years, then set your goals around that for the short, medium and longer term
(Note- this is a specific coaching exercise that I cover with my 1to1 clients and in my Manifesting Magic online course to Design your Ideal Life)
Key areas to reflect on / questions to focus on include:
- Your personal values
- Work and career goals
- Love life / romantic partner
- Family goals
- Health and nutrition
- Fitness and wellbeing
- Environment – at work and at home
- Ideal home / ideal car etc.
- Hobbies & free time
- Personal development goals
- Places you want to visit / holidays you want to take
- Key goals for the next 12 months
- Spiritual goals & spiritual practices
- Top 10 things you want to manifest this coming year
- What ENERGISES you and brings you JOY – put these things on your board to inspire you
- What it will LOOK like and FEEL like when these things happen (put these key words on your board as words or pictures)
- How do you want to be of service – supporting others / giving back
Sourcing your Images
Images will be a key part of your vision board(s).
You can get your images from many sources, including:
- Magazines
- Pictures / quotes saved to your PC and printed as a photo
- Photographs that you have taken
- Your Pinterest board
- Pages from a book
- Brochures / flyers
- Estate agents photos of houses you love
- Car brochures
- Holiday brochures
- Anything that inspires you!
- Use pritt stick glue, pins, tape or hot glue to attach your pics.
- You can also add key words, printed from your PC, or you could use letter stickers or stencils
- Use a combination of pictures and words on your board –
- Pictures – stimulate the right side of the brain (visioning, creativity)
- Words – stimulate the left side of the brain (analytical / logical)
- Get both sides of your brain working for you!
- I also add my favourite prayers, Angel cards and affirmations to mine
Prep Work
Start to gather up the things that you will need to make your board:
- Scissors and glue
- The board(s)
- A special book to make a Vision book if you are making one
- Magazines that are of interest to you
- Photos
- Brochures – from car showrooms, estate agents, travel agents etc.
- Key words / stickers / stencils
- Angel cards / affirmations
Make Your Board
- Set aside some time when you will not be disturbed to make your board
- Gather everything that you will need
- Play some music if you like
- Burn a candle / some incense and / or use some essential oils
- Connect in – meditate or say a prayer
- Call on your higher self/ whom you pray to for support
- Let go of any stress or tension you may be holding in your body
- Place your pictures, images and key words on your board
- Organise them in a way that looks and feels good to you
- Use your glue / tape / pins to attach them to the board
- Note –
- You can use an old magazine to lean on while gluing, so you don’t get glue everywhere
- Don’t worry about getting it “wrong” – if something does not look right, you can simply remove it from the board, or glue another picture on top of it later on
- You may not get it finished in one sitting – be open to adding to it over time
Place your board in a sacred place
Your board is sacred – it holds your deepest desires and wishes.
Once it is ready, put your board where you will see it every day – for instance in your bedroom, or beside your desk if it is your work / career goals.
I like to place my Vision board with my short-term goals (over the next 6-12 months) right beside by bed at eye level, so it is the first thing that I see each morning when I open my eyes and also the last thing that I see before going to sleep. This helps to remind me to make my Mind Movies (see below).
Take some time each day to make a Mind Movie – of how it will look and how you will feel when these things manifest in your life (ideally, spend at least 10 mins in the morning and 10 mins in the evening doing this). Also, by seeing your Vision board last thing at night, you are sending signals to your brain to say “I want this!”
- Remember to act as if – it has already manifested
- Offer a thought / prayer of gratitude as if it has already happened in your life
- Trust in the divine timing of your life – some things may manifest relatively quickly, some may take some time
- Be open to something even better happening for you – beyond your current expectation or belief of what is possible for you
You could add this text to your Vision board if it resonates with you:
“This or something better, in line with the highest good of all, under grace, in perfect ways. Thank you, thank you, thank you”
Going forward
It is a good idea to make a new Vision board once a year, with your NEW vision, goals and key areas of focus as you continue to evolve and expand.
Keep your old vision boards – to look back and remind yourself of your progress and how far you have come over the years.
Happy manifesting!
Ingrid Darragh is a Spiritual Coach, Author and Emotional Healing Expert, working with clients worldwide in her Coaching practice and also in her online courses.