National Vision Board Day is January 9. Why not start the year with this fun and effective tool for making your goals a reality? Here’s what you need to know.

What is a vision board?

It’s a poster you create to express how you want your life to be — a daily reminder to visualize your ideal outcome. Having a vision board to look at will ensure that you do these short visualizations every day, and stay focused on your purpose.

The technique of visualization has been used for decades by Olympic athletes, dancers, musicians and other successful superstars such as Oprah Winfrey. Studies have shown that visualization activates the same brain patterns as the physical performance, thus developing the habits of success.

The book  The Secret  states that simply declaring your intentions to the universe will attract the results you desire. Whether or not that’s true, a vision board is an excellent way of putting your dreams out there — and this technique has been proven successful time and time again.

How to make a vision board

Start with a poster or cork board (about a dollar at the office supply, hardware or drugstore), a large piece of cardboard, or a pinnable bulletin board. Fill it with words, drawings, photos, pictures cut from magazines, stickers, quotes, souvenirs or any other visual element that expresses your intentions. Find tons of inspiration on the internet by googling #visionboard.

You can have more than one vision board. For example, if you want to grow or change your career, you could make a board dedicated to what that future career will look like. Brides-to-be could create a vision board for wedding planning ideas.

Hints for a successful vision board

Think about the areas of your life that you want to improve — relationships, career/finances, home, travel, personal growth (spirituality, education, etc.) or health/fitness. Decide on specific goals for these areas, write them on the board and illustrate them with your visual items.

Choose images that capture how you want to feel when you’ve achieved these goals, not just pictures of material objects. For example, instead of a photo of a pile of cash, find pictures of people happily enjoying what you would spend that cash on, such as a new luxury car.

You can use your board to define short-term or long-term goals. However, most people find that one-year goals are easier to attain and track progress.

Remember, your vision board is never finished, and there are no rules. Change, add or subtract from it as your life situation evolves.

At Integrity, our mission is to help people exceed their own expectations and achieve their career goals. We’re ready to help you create a successful 2021!