Every year I say I’m going to do it and I never do but this year is different. I actually took the time to think about where I wanted to be in my business and in life and I created a vision board. A stylized and coordinating vision board, but a vision board, nonetheless.

I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t do it before because I was lazy but more so because I didn’t get the purpose of making one. Why take the time to cut out a bunch of pictures from a magazine and glue them to a poster board? If you know your goals, what good is an arts and craft project going to do?

Well, being more serious about growing my brand and fashion design and illustration business, I cut the BS and made one for myself. First I created a business plan (which was hard in itself, but that’s a story for another day), and when I figured out my vision of where I wanted to be and how I wanted my business to grow, I started pulling pictures that represented those goals.

Now that all is said and done and I’ve finished my board, I’m glad that I did it. Firstly because it’s a nice addition to my home studio and a cute piece of wall art. Secondly, because I now see the value in having a physical representation of your goals and aspirations.

Benefits of Having a Vision Board

1. Think about what you want.

Before writing my business plan and doing this vision board, I didn’t really think about what I wanted but I didn’t realize it until I had to finish these exercises. It was a real struggle for me to come up with success goals or where I wanted to travel or what I wanted for my personal growth. I ran my business and self as two separate entities, when they aren’t. I am my business and we both need to grow and flourish.

Don’t limit yourself. This is where you reach for the stars and choose anything you want in the world. Do you want something like physical, like to go on a vacation? Or do you want to set your business up in a position to help others? Whatever it is, set it and represent it.

2. Keeps You Focused.

It’s very easy to get lost in the sauce with your business. You spend your time working on basically everything and in the end you feel like you’re getting nowhere. This was me for the longest time. I’m talking a couple of years. After figuring out my vision, I have a clear picture of what I’m working for and where I want to be. Now no matter what I do, I ask the question, “Will this get me to this point of vision?” If it doesn’t, I don’t spend my time working on it. A little inside info, this year, if it doesn’t make dollars, lead to growth or bring awareness to myself or my brand, then it don’t make sense.

If you think you you’re spinning your wheels to hard, just actually pay attention to what you’re doing and how you’re working. Decide if you’re just doing busy work, like redoing your website layout for the 5th time without creating any new content (I’ve done it!) or spending time on Facebook when you’re supposed to networking but you’ve gotten yourself trapped watching videos (I’ve done that too!)

3. Forces you to Create a Plan.

Now that I know where I want to go, how am I going to get there? Goals are nice and all, but they don’t come by sitting, wishing and dreaming. With my finish line in place, it’s only right for me to plan my course and to figure out a way to actually get there.

When you know what you want your vision to be, put a plan in action. Make deadlines - realistic deadlines - checkpoints and tasks that will get you to where you need to be.

4. It’s a Daily Reminder.

Ya know they say, “Out of sight, out mind,” right? Once my setup is complete, my vision board will rest right above my workstation. It’s visible from every point in my home and I will see it every day. I can’t hide from the success I see for myself and I’m quite sure it will only push me to achieve it.

Now, like I mentioned before, I’m lazy so I didn’t go through magazines and create a cut and paste collage. But, what I did do was scour Pinterest for some dope color coordinating images that could represent my vision for myself and my business. Then I made sense of it all and put it together using Photoshop. To see how I actually created it my 2018 vision board and what I put on it, you can watch this video!

As you can see (if you watched the video), creating a vision board isn’t hard. It took me a while because of semi-perfectionism, but most timely part is choosing the right images and then working with the end layout. I mean did you see my line up at the end? Any ways, if you have goals to reach, making a vision board is a dope idea!

Thinking about creating a vision board? What’s something that you have to have on it and let me know why in the comments below!