Every new year offers the chance to set and realign goals. How do you inspire yourself? It can be as simple as a few pictures and impactful quotes hung together on your fridge. Vision boards can give direction, something I know firsthand — I’ve created my own for three years now.
My journey with vision boards began in fall 2022, while returning home to Evansville for winter break from my junior year at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. The weeks that follow Christmas are the dreadful cold days that I seek positive reinforcements to cope with, and creating a vision board seemed like a good idea. My original goal shifted from winter craft to intentional realignment in the young woman I wanted to become during my upperclassmen years as an undergraduate. The vision boards I’ve created since then display a sharper focus.
First things first: Mentally map out what you want in the coming year. Stay realistic and uplifting. Think about milestones you aim to hit that ultimately push you toward your overall life goals. View it as taking time to focus on yourself, your goals, and your passions as you grow.
Pinterest certainly plays a large part in my process; I search for “pins” that reflect my ideas. I also flip through magazines and cut out certain words or images that stand out. I gather printed pictures, cutouts, colored tape, themed stickers, poster board letters, and gems – really, anything! Collect colors you love, quotes you relate to, comfort characters, places you want to go, things you want to do, and things you want to keep doing. There is no need to limit the materials used; the variety of textures can be fun.
After gathering materials I plan to use, I categorize my piles. My canvas of choice is a classic poster board, but anyone can easily make a meaningful vision board on a simple piece of paper if they choose. When the moment comes — I fall in love with how the materials are laid out on the poster board — I glue all the larger pictures and cut-outs, then find places to add a little flair or final touches. I also keep any material from previous years to bring back into this year’s creative process. There is no right or wrong way to make a vision board; the most important part is being able to step back and reflect. I choose to spend days on the project, staying intentional throughout the process.
This annual creative process provides me with a lot of clarity and helps me close out the year and look forward to the next. My vision board serves as the north star durning times of hesitation, uncertainty, or when I need to laugh, at least enough for reassurance. It’s meant to be an underlying theme of my year, helping me stay focused on what I set out to do and achieve. Being able to look back and identify positive changes or goals met fuels my excitement in continuing this project. A change I sensed in myself was letting go of relationships and habits that did not spark personal growth. All of my vision boards hang together on my bedroom walls, and they’re likely to stay there for years to come.
Someday, I would love to display them together, like a huge collage. There are certainly things that recur on my vision board year after year, like traveling to new places. I always beam with pride when discerning the ways I have grown or surpassed previous goals. I hope that for the next few years, into my mid and late 20s, I still will want to create vision boards. When it starts to feel like a task or burden, I’ll explore new ways to find that enjoyment again. For now, crafting the large, colorful vision boards has become a sacred project that I am eager for every winter.
After a gap year spent traveling the world, Reitz Memorial High School and Louisiana State University graduate Elayna Zausch is using her 2026 vision board to prepare for a big move: taking up residence and starting her business career in Austin, Texas.
