Here’s How A Vision Board Helped Me to Quit My Job

Once you tap into your intuition you can change your life

Recently, during a period of illness, I decided to put my hand to a slow, calming, creative activity. Making a vision board.

The idea was to create something that represented how I wanted my life to feel, and to bring positive feelings when looking at it.

I flipped through my backlog of Breathe Magazines (my favorite!) and tore out anything that spoke to me.

Lovely pictures, single words, inspiring quotes, or small passages that really resonated or that I believed held some important truths.

The Impact

Making the vision board for my life coincided with some serious thinking about big changes I wanted and needed to make.

In some ways I believe it encouraged me to take action and to bring the ideal values of the vision I’d created into reality, to live my life according to the ideas and feelings I’d been drawn to enough to add to my board.

A mere week or so after creating the board during my period of illness, I had taken the plunge and decided to quit my job.

It was something I’d been thinking about for a long time but, due to the hugely unusual state of the whole world over the last few months, I’d sort of put to the background of my life and convinced myself I didn’t need to do after all.

But some serious soul-searching, mixed up with a lot of raw emotion, gave me the courage to finally be wholly honest with both myself and my employer, and to commit to the decision to quit, giving myself a good chance to create a new lifestyle for myself, with my dreams and vision for my most honest life at the forefront.

So call it coincidence if you will, or believe that the board was created when my mind was already set on quitting my job, but I’m going to believe that taking the time to sit and discover what ideals and values my inner self was attempting to bring to my attention allowed me to tap into what feels true for me, which led to finding the courage to do what felt right and let go of what felt wrong, in search of a new, more true path.

Creating a vision board that works for you

If you want to give yourself the time to connect to your own intuition and discover what you actually want for your life, you might be surprised at how effective this process can be.

I’ve outlined the steps to take, as well as some things to consider when creating your own vision board for your most honest life.

Find your source of inspiration

I created my board solely from Breathe Magazines, but you could use a combination of magazines, books, and newspapers, or you could print images from the internet.

Let your intuition guide you

Don’t go searching for something in particular when flicking through your image source. Instead, see what words, phrases or images jump out at you, or stir up particular emotions.

You’ll know when you find something you feel drawn to.

There were a few images and headings that jumped right out at me and I knew I definitely wanted for my board.

Don’t overthink it.

If something speaks to you, intrigues you, or simply makes you feel good, tear it out. You don’t need to make any commitments at this stage. Enjoy the catharsis that tearing paper provides!

Images or words?

This is a very individual thing, and can only be decided by you.

Some people like to create vision boards of purely images and know what meaning the images hold for them.

I personally chose to include a combination of both. I’m a writer and a lover of words, so it only felt right that I have some text to convey the messages and ideas I wanted to remind myself.

Follow your gut

Now comes the decision-making. Gather the images and words you’ve torn out and start looking through them again.

There will be some things you can immediately discard because they will no longer stir any emotion. If they are easy to let go of, they are not made for your board. Release and move on.

Likewise, there will be some pieces you feel very strongly that you want on your board, or that simply feel good to look at. Put these into your ‘to keep’ pile.

For all the bits in between, keep to one side in a maybe pile and return to them a little later. The maybe pile can come in handy when you begin to place images on your board. Once your favorite pieces have been laid and your board has begun to take shape, you can see which bits from your maybe pile might fit the theme best, or even simply fit the spaces left on the board!

Placing the pieces

Have a play! It’s as simple as that. Try your images and words in different places. Test out different layouts. See what feels most intuitive and visually appealing to you.

You may like to place things beside one another to connect them and create a deeper meaning; this is certainly something I chose to do. But you may want to simply throw things on the page and go for a freer, more messy style. It’s entirely up to you.

Have fun working it out, and once you’ve settled on your composition, get sticking!

Instant benefits

For me, the whole process felt like one huge act of self-care.

The slow and mindful cutting, sticking, and careful thought about what was most meaningful and how best to place things was very calming.

It felt like I was putting myself and my needs first.

Particularly since the themes of my board were strongly focussed on keeping things simple, slow, and meaningful. On living a life that feels true to me, that is nourishing and kind to myself as well as others.

It felt like I was making a promise to honor my desires and the things I wanted to attract and bring into my life.

Displaying your board

When the making process is complete, take pride in your vision board and put it somewhere you will see it a lot. If it feels too personal for a common space in your home, keep it in your bedroom.

Just make sure it is somewhere your eyes will travel past without too much effort. You want to be subconsciously absorbing the messages you’ve chosen to display to yourself.

You can make entirely digital vision boards if that feels right for you, but it may be more difficult to commit to looking at your board enough for it to feel really embedded into your day-to-day life.

Enjoy the revelations

You might be surprised at the ways in which your life changes after creating a vision board that speaks to your inner self and your honest desires.

You might notice yourself more frequently choosing to prioritize your own well-being or making choices more true to your values. You may even feel inclined to make some bigger changes in your life, just like I did.

Or perhaps you’ll just enjoy having something that reminds you of some simple truths, with some visually pleasing images, to look at once in a while.

Why not give it a try and find out for yourself?

Have you ever made a vision board? If so, what was it based on? Did you feel your life changed in any way as a result of the process?

Danielle Godfrey is a British (late) twenty-something, who quit her job to spend more time writing about connecting to your most honest self, in order to live happily. Sign up for more inspiration on living a life that feels great for YOU.

Originally published at https://www.livinghonestly.co.uk/