We have officially hit the halfway mark of 2018, and what better time to reflect on some of the financial goals you set for yourself at the start the year? As you know, life is so busy, making it easy to lose sight of the bigger picture you set for your financial goals and dreams. If you haven’t done so already, creating a vision board can be a great way to cut through the clutter, clarify your financial goals and keep yourself on track to achieving them.
So, what exactly is a vision board, and why should you introduce it into your financial planning?
Simply put, a vision board is an actual piece of board onto which you pin imagery and words that relate to your goals. So, if one of your goals is to buy a house by the end of the year, you might include images of your dream home and the features you would like it to have.
It’s widely known that making a list of your goals helps you to achieve them. A study from the Dominican University in California showed that people were far more likely to achieve their goals if they took the simple step of writing them down.
Vision boards take this notion a step further. Creating a vision board forces you to get specific about what you want to achieve. One picture might not do it, but an amalgamation of several pictures will include all the elements you are working towards. Having considered it to that level of detail makes your goal more concrete, rather than a vague idea that you might one day get around to.
A vision board gives you the boost of constantly seeing the best possible result. Placing your vision board in a place where you see it will remind you of the outcome that you’re working towards.
The psychology of how it works is fairly straightforward, but many people who use vision boards claim that they transcend science and work like magic.
Your vision board is a personal creation, so you can do it however you like. But here are some guidelines:
- A vision board is usually made as a collage on cardboard, but if you want to be a little more private about your goals, you can create your board in a flip file.
- Spend some time thinking about your goals. Let yourself dream!
- Find the images that inspire you. If you have artistic talent, you can draw the images yourself, or you can search online and print them, or cut them out of magazines.
- Be specific. Give the house you want a patio or a rose garden, if that’s what you are after.
- Include positive words associated with the goal. You can cut them out or write them yourself.
- Think about emotion, not just objects. How will you feel when you reach your dream of being debt free?
- Now arrange and stick them onto your board or flip file. Have fun – pull out the shiny paper, glitter glue and washi tape to give your vision board a bit of flare.
- If you want, you can include specific facts and figures like the actual financial cost of the goal, blocks to shade as you approach their target, and even a due date. You don’t have to go into this sort of detail - hopefully you have a financial plan for that - the real magic of a vision board lies in focusing on a visual outcome rather than getting bogged down in the process.
Vision boards are a great way to frame your financial goals and get you on the road to achieving them. So what are you waiting for? Grab some scissors and a stick of glue and get boarding!