Vision board 2019

We often hear about the importance of creating a vision board as a means of achieving our dreams, but what is a vision board really? Quite simply, it's a tool for manifestation. We live in an intention-dependent universe where thoughts become things. Instead of letting another year just happen, how can you best use your time on this planet? You’ll want to make sure you’re being clear and deliberate about what you want to create in your life.

Here are three steps to creating a top-notch vision board:

1. Get clear.

Can you imagine sitting down in a restaurant and asking the waitress for "some food?" You’re technically following directions. You’re pleasant, you’re in an establishment where food is served, and you’re willing to wait and pay for the service—but you’re not being specific. So you won't actually get what you want.

While we're still in the first month of 2019, if you haven't gotten clear on your goals for this year yet, trust me—there's still time! Think of the Universe as a cosmic restaurant full of endless possibilities, but you have one very important job: You must get clear on your order. I created an exercise specifically for this reason: Finish Strong, Start Stronger. In this powerful guided visualization, I will walk you through each step, from celebrating your successes from the year behind you all the way through full a visualization of all that you want to achieve in 2019.

I’m also going to challenge you to pull the lens back and set some goals this year that are a little more big-picture than how many zeros you want in your bank account. How can you contribute to the greater good? Maybe it’s a charity you want to devote some time to or an impact you want to make on your community. Whatever it is, it should feel charming, not like work.

2. Get creative.

A vision board is quite simply a visual representation of these desires, and now that you’re crystal clear on those, it’s time for the fun part. You will need:

Any kind of board—a pin board, cork board, or simple poster board from the drugstore. Double-sided tape or a glue stick.Scissors.3-5 magazines to cut images and quotes from. (I like a mix of travel, international, fashion, home, yoga.) Mementos and/or photos. Things that inspire you. Carve out an hour or more to spend creating your board and envisioning your year. Extra credit: Any art supplies that make you happy. Watercolors, stickers, or even crayons. Double extra credit: Get cozy. Pour yourself a cup of tea or a glass of wine. Light a candle if it makes you feel fancy. Relax and enjoy.

First you’re going to want to go through the magazines and cut out words, photos, and images that are inspiring to you, and then go through and get really specific about everything else. There are things you can’t find in magazines (maybe a podcast you want to be a guest on or a charity you want to raise money for), so you would need to find digital images of those, put it all in a document, and print it out.

You could do categories if it feels charming, or you could just do it in a way that feels visually inspiring. Make it a real art project, and let nature and creativity flow through you. Place it all first, and then, instead of using a glue stick, go ahead and use some double-sided tape. This is a little pro tip, because the double-sided tape lasts a little bit longer and the glue stick can wear off.

3. Get lost.

My favorite vision-boarding tip might go against everything you have ever heard on the subject, but what I recommend is that you hide it. Burn it up in your fire pit, or take a gentler approach and hide it under your bed or in your closet somewhere.

Hear me out: You don’t need it anymore because you have already placed the order. After you order your food in a restaurant, you don’t keep pointing at the menu every time the waitress walks by. You don’t keep telling her how hungry you are or asking to see the chef—you trust that your order has been placed and that it is on the way to you. The same thing applies here. Surrender and trust that it is on the way. Or something more beautiful that you could not even yet imagine is on the way to you.

Detachment is paramount to successfully manifesting things in your life. It is the realization that your happiness does not lie on the other side of any of these things on your vision board. This is one of the most fundamental concepts from the Vedas: Our happiness, our bliss, our fulfillment always exist in one place and that's inside of us, and they always exist in one time, and that is right now. We're not making these vision boards so that we can go and acquire all these things to acquire happiness—instead, we meditate to access our bliss and fulfillment internally, and then we use our desires; we use these inspirations as an indicator of where nature wants to use us to deliver our fulfillment.