Do you set goals for yourself, either in your personal life or for your business? If not, how do you know you’re growing or making progress? When was the last time you allowed yourself to daydream about the type of life that you want? What is your WHY, the reason behind all the long hours you spend on your business?
Many business owners (yes, even left-brained ones like financial advisors!) use a creative, yet practical tool to set goals and reach them.
It’s called by many names: Vision Board, Dream Board, Action Board, Treasure Board, or Inspiration Board. The bottom line is that it can help you reach your goals more quickly.
I know this is true from personal experience. Back when I started my first career on Wall Street, I created vision boards on a sheet of paper. The result was that I reached my five-year goals in half the time. How? I carried that document everywhere. I did my best to make a small or large step towards a goal each day.
Creating a vision board has become a popular yearly activity, especially when the New Year approaches. A vision board is simply one tool that helps you visualize your dreams and your goals. How so, you ask? Let’s explore the ways…
1. Vision boards make you focus on what’s important to you.
Whether you combine a personal vision board with a professional one or keep them separate, thinking about what you want in life or business forces you to prioritize what’s important. Do you want to buy your first house or move to a warmer climate? Putting a photo of your dream location by the beach will inspire you to work harder and not undercut your prices. If you want to move, you alone can make that happen, and you’ll make better business decisions based on that desire to move.
2. Visualization stimulates the creative side of your brain.
Placing your vision board in sight of your desk or computer serves as a daily reminder of what you want to achieve. Some believe keeping it open by your nightstand helps stimulate your subconscious before you go to bed, which makes you motivated upon waking. With your creativity soaring, keep a notebook handy to jot down any ideas you have.
3. Focusing on goals makes you recognize new resources or opportunities.
Visualizing yourself living in a warmer climate (or whatever your primary goal is) will motivate you to work towards that goal, but you’ll also notice new opportunities or resources which can lead you to achieving your goal. These resources may have always been present, but now that you’re focused on your goal, you will see them in a new light: to help you reach that intended goal.
4. Break out of your comfort zone by stating a big, audacious, scary goal.
Are you stuck in a rut because you’re afraid to break out of your comfort zone? Acknowledging big goals – as scary and outrageous as they may be – will help you step out and take on new challenges, all in the name of reaching that scary goal. For example, if your goal is to write a book, then you’d take on a smaller challenge, like writing a monthly blog article. This would help you develop a habit of writing, build your name recognition with readers, and garner feedback. Ultimately, it will give you confidence in your writing ability, help shape your “voice,” and eventually lead you to your first book’s topic!
5. Seeing a big goal forces you out of the daydream and into action.
Nothing happens without some action on your part. Vision boards are not magic tricks; they are tools that spur us into action because we finally know what we want out of life. Visualize your ideal life, then approach each day with action steps that will lead you toward that ideal life.
Aside from these reasons, creating vision boards can be very relaxing and a fun family activity. So, grab some glue and some old magazines and start daydreaming!
Related: Dream It, Design It, Live It