A whimsical classroom decorated with multicolored posters and handmade crafts surrounds your perspective. Paper chains and sparkling stars hang from the ceiling. A cardstock alphabet lines the walls, along with vibrant educational posters and paper plates with scribbled faces. A bean bag lounges in the book nook corner, tucked between the shelves of children's novels. The class hamster spins on his wheel on the teacher’s desk. A quilt-styled rug overtakes the forefront of the room, displaying a variety of numbers and objects. Groups of children are assembled at tables with an assortment of artisan materials. It’s craft time.

Today, we’re going to be visiting our roots from pre-K and elementary school for this popular manifestation method. Channel those memories of cutting, gluing, and coloring endless craft projects your teachers assigned instead of worksheets. For my hands-on, artistic individuals who learn more visually, this manifestation activity is perfect for you. If you don’t consider yourself an artist, however, this strategy is still effective considering that you can make this as simple as you’d like. I knew a guy who was a routine gym bro, money motivated, and not artistic in the least, yet he had fashioned his own vision board and kept it tucked away in his closet. As long as you know how to use scissors and a glue stick, anyone is able to partake in this creative project.

A vision board is a type of manifestation technique that involves you collageing together (in a traditional sense) a poster made up of images, quotes, and affirmations that align with future goals, plans, and aspirations for yourself. Having a visual representation of your objectives helps organize and keep track of that mental finish line as well as your progress towards those goals. Designing a vision board also serves as a wonderful motivator whenever you sneak a look at it, reminding you of your passions and values. A survey done by TD Bank suggests that individuals who visualize their goals this way feel more accomplished and happy (75%) as opposed to those who don’t use this technique (50%).(1) This same survey goes on to say that, “An overwhelming 82 percent of small business owners who used a vision board from the start reported that they have accomplished more than half of their goals thus far.”(1) Especially if you are dreaming big, a vision board is a great way to view the “big picture” and keep an eye on the prize. 

Besides inspiration, vision boards are shown to have manifestation benefits. Similar to when you visualize your goals, as spoken about in How to Bring Your Vision to Life, the existence of a vision board that expresses your dreams can bring those same dreams closer to reality. If you effectively view your goals in a visual manner, you’re actively priming your brain to look out for your goals, increasing your focus towards opportunities or actions that lead you to those desires coming to life.(2) Seeing is believing, and believing is accepting something as true.

This “recipe” for creating your vision board can vary depending on your taste and preferences, but I do highly suggest that your board is created through a physical medium. Using the internet as inspiration or as a tool is completely acceptable, but to gain all these positive effects, it’s best that your vision board is something you can physically touch and display somewhere without the need for technology. We all need a break from our screens, anyways!

If you would feel more productive using digital programs, such as Adobe, to create your vision board, then by all means, please do so! For some, collaging photos and affirmations in a digital sense is much easier and more accessible. However, I still suggest that once this technological board is complete, visit your local print shop and have it copied on a poster board. That way, you have this project in a physical manner and can place it in a fitting location for yourself (will be discussed in a few steps).

Step One: Pick a Medium

There are many different ways to craft a vision board, but it all depends on your preference. The most common material people use for the foundation is poster board or a large piece of cardstock paper. Both of these are recommended; they are sturdy and can handle layers of glue and collage material without crumbling. To spice it up, some people even explore this method using a cork board and patchwork their aspirations and pictures with pushpins. If these mediums feel too overwhelming or large for you, pick a standard-sized journal and stitch your vision montage over a few pages. My most previous vision board was done in my manifestation journal—I collaged over ten pages with related images and terminology to my goals, then laminated over each page with clear packing tape. Whichever product you pick, make sure it's something you will be able to refer to easily and often. 

Step Two: Visualize Your Future

A crystal clear vision of your aspirations is required before you begin fastening together your board. Start by evaluating exactly where you are in your life currently. Sort your personage into six categories for easy assessment: career, personal growth, friends and family, love/partnership, health/wellbeing, and home/location. Ask yourself questions within these categories: 

Career

• What is your job like? 

• Do you enjoy your job occupation? 

Personal Growth

• What do you currently do to improve yourself? 

• How are you spending your time? 

• Do you have a healthy routine you enjoy? 

Friends and Family

• Do you partake in learning experiences and activities? 

• How are your relationships with your friends? Your family members? 

• How often do you communicate with them? 

Love/Partnership

• Are you seeing anyone romantically? 

• Are you looking for the next steps of companionship? 

• Are you being treated how you deserve? 

Health/Wellbeing

• How is your health? 

• How content do you currently feel?

• What are you doing to stay healthy and active, mentally and physically? 

Home/Location

• Where do you live? 

• What’s your home situation like? 

Questions that make you consider your present are important to determine your future. 

Now that you’ve thought about your current state in these categories, you can contemplate what you would like to improve upon. It's best to set a timeline for your goals when assembling your vision board. However far you decide to think ahead, create a board for this specific time length. Think about the person you would like to be six months, a year, or even five years from now. It makes it easier to pick aspirations when you have a cohesive timespan, too. Asking yourself a question such as, “Where do I want to live six months from now?” may have a very different answer than if you asked “Where do I want to live five years from now?”

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

With a designated time frame in mind, envision yourself at the end of that period. Ask yourself the same questions as before, but answer in an anticipating manner, as if you were currently living as this dream version of yourself. This vision must be clear, but also what you can truly expect from yourself. From here, you should be able to determine what goals you would like to focus on and include for your vision board. If you’re having trouble envisioning your future, check out our article How to Bring Your Vision to Life.

Step Three: Gather Materials

Before starting, you want to make sure that you have everything you may need. The main materials needed will be your choice of “board”, a pair of scissors, a glue stick or bottle, pens/markers, and your collage images. 

Selecting the pictures to include may be difficult, especially if you aren’t sure where to source them from. A fun, crafty way to find vision board images is to look through old magazines and catalogues, then cut the pictures out directly. Another way, which is what I used for my own board, is using an inspiration website or app, like Pinterest or Cosmos, to collect images from. I personally compiled images onto a few document pages, then printed these at my local print shop (for example, places like FedEx have a “Print & Go” station that allows you to print colored images using nice ink and paper).

Step Four: Set the Mood

Since this activity is dedicated to your personal aspirations, why not take this time to make it a special moment? Although this step is entirely optional, setting the atmosphere for your crafting allows this time to have a more fun and memorable impact. Turn this activity into an event committed to reinvention by making it a day/night for yourself, or invite others to join you and host a “vision board party”.

Start by choosing a cozy location. If this place is your home, set some warm-toned lighting. Illuminating candles can help establish the mood and make this activity more intimate. Feel free to set out your favorite snacks (a charcuterie board is a wonderful addition with multiple people participating), grab your favorite beverage (I personally enjoy a good Rosé), and switch on some tunes. Don’t overwhelm yourself with these other elements, but do make the most of this personalized time. Let it be all about you!

Step Five: Craft Your Vision Together

Here comes the fun part. Now, you begin cutting out your images, pasting the collage together, and writing down goals and affirmations for yourself. You can assort your vision board however you like. Mix all your aspirations together or group them up in designated categories, any method works! Just as long as it makes sense to you, it doesn’t matter how you organize your board. 

To strengthen those affirmations, I suggest directly writing down your specific goals and placing them somewhere on the vision board. Continue to be distinct and precise with your aspirations. You don't want to get too vague with your vision board. How would you know what to manifest and work towards if you don’t know what it is that you want? Having your goals listed out or scattered with their respective images keeps your mind vigilant and the path towards success clear. 

If you want to go above and beyond with your board, feel free to customize it to represent you. Stickers, postcards, stamps, ticket stubs, cutouts, gems, washi tape, ribbon, doodles, dried flora, and so much more are all decorative details that can be added to characterize your vision board and make it feel more you. To keep everything secure, veneer the board using a lamination machine or clear packing tape. If you prefer the raw, collage look, or believe that you’ll revisit this board and add to it, then do without the protective lamination layer. Instead, level-up your board by framing and hanging it in a glass picture frame.

Step Six: Pick a Location

With your vision board complete, it’s important to choose a place to keep it. This entirely depends on how you prefer to approach your vision. Some people like to display their boards in active locations, such as posted on the bedroom wall or above a desk. This serves as a daily reminder and consistently refreshes the idea of these goals in your head. 

Other people prefer to tuck away the vision board, such as under the bed or in a closet. Keeping the vision board out of regular sight but viewing it occasionally helps your mind stay focused on your aspirations, though doesn’t completely consume your running thoughts and subconscious. “I personally love to [put it away],” says Roxie Nafousi in her book Manifestation: 7 Steps to Living Your Best Life, “because it helps me clarify what I want in all areas of my life, rather than focusing in on just one part.”(3)

Step Seven: Watch (and Make) the Magic Happen

As time creeps closer towards your goal end-dates, you’ll notice that your vision board has been fulfilling itself. Manifestation isn’t solely about wishing for a dream to come true, but putting in the effort to allow it to happen. Aspirations require dedication, work, and resilience. Once this is exercised, dreams will start coming true as your vision board’s existence gets older. With the help of your focus and subconscious attention, this manifestation technique should prove itself useful. 

Over the period of time you set for your board, you’ll age and grow, morphing into an evolved version of yourself. If you look at your vision board months or years from now and notice that it no longer aligns with your passions, this is completely normal. As we grow, so do our desires and aspirations. That’s part of being human and being capable of change. 

What if you complete your vision board by achieving every goal you initially wrote down? You held onto this vision board for the timespan you mentally set it at, and by then have had immense success. After feeling accomplished, the best part is thinking of what you want to achieve next. There is much life to live, so continuously set fresh goals for yourself. New goals means new vision boards. Bring your crafting materials back out and find some new dreams to chase after. 

Works Cited

1. TD Bank. PR Newswire [Internet]. Cision; [cited 2026 Jul 4]. Visualizing Goals Influences Financial Health and Happiness, Study Finds. Available from: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/visualizing-goals-influences-financial-health-and-happiness-study-finds-300207028.html 

2. Gauthier I. Visual priming: The ups and downs of familiarity. Current Biology. 2000 Oct;10(20):R753–6. doi:10.1016/S0960-9822(00)00738-7 

3. Nafousi R. Manifest: 7 steps to living your best life. UK: Michael Joseph; 2022. 

Credit

Editor: Piper Ruth

Research Consultant: Emmerson Borthwick

Illustrator: Adri Chavez

**The Beamish Club does not offer professional medical advice, treatments, nor diagnosis. Anything written and published by The Beamish Club is not a direct replacement for medical treatment. If you have health concerns, please seek advice from your local health and mental health professionals for treatment plans.**