Dream Boards vs Vision Boards



Dream Boards vs Vision Boards
Dream Boards vs Vision Boards - ThatNewMommy
Notice where “Dream Boards” is? Now look at where “Vision Boards” is. 

Years ago I made (notice how I didn't use the word “created?) a dream board. I thought about what I would like to have. A car (not a new one, anything that had four wheels that I could sit in and drive was good enough), a dressform (I can make a flat pattern but ever since Project Runway started I wanted to learn draping), a trip back home (CT-native here), among other things. I knew some things were out of reach, actually I felt ALL things were out of reach, but I put up my board anyway….I don’t really remember where. My dream board was more of a decoration than anything else, though. This year, I decided I would CREATE a vision board. Isn't it the same thing? No, dear friend, it is not…at least not in my case. Let me tell you why.

Dream Boards

When I first started looking into dream boards (I think I heard about it on some TV show and looked into it), it said to put pictures of things you would like and post them up where you could see. No matter how big or how small. Seeing those images daily would (or it’s supposed to) help you achieve those dreams. Simple enough, isn't it? That’s what I thought.


I looked through pages of magazines and the internet for images of things I REALLY wanted. Not what I considered frivolous things but things that I could really use or would really enjoy (like going back home). A while later I started hitting obstacles. You know. Everyday life sort of things? Rain floods apartment, work hours get cut, bills fall behind. I ended up moving the board because as things got harder, it just became sort of depressing to look at. LOL (I laugh NOW).


A New Year (not necessarily THE new year)

THIS year, things were looking VERY different from years before. Since turning 16 I have held a job at least once every year. I had had my first baby after some years of trying and a miscarriage, happily returned to work to find it was unnecessary stress I was putting my child through, and with tears in my eyes I resigned and became a stay-at-home-mom. Back in January I knew, once my birthday rolled around it would mean I had just spent a whole year without a job. When I became a stay-at-home-mom, it was a decision that was NOT made lightly. As days went by and I was able to share every second with my new baby, I accepted it as an awesome job. Then at the beginning of this year, it hit me: “You’re not working anymore. That’s it. What are you going to do? What about what you wanted before?”

That’s when I found out about vision boards. Again, not dream boards. VISION BOARDS. Okay, lady, what’s the difference? Glad you asked.

Vision Boards

Extremely similar to a dream board, a vision board is a board where you’ll places images representing things you want. You put it up somewhere where you can see it all the time (or at least once a day) so that you’re constantly reminded of things you want to achieve (tangible or not). BUT, you don’t just place only things that you want on it though. Also put things and/or places that inspire you. (If a certain person inspires you, then go for it. Personally though, I think you should strive to be the best you that you can be instead of trying to be like someone else. BUT, if you do choose to use a person as inspiration, I recommend it's someone you know personally. Someone you REALLY know and not someone who you know just on the surface like a celebrity). On this vision board use things that are representative of the kind of life you want to live. You can go kind of extreme (I think: move to Hawaii) or you can go more realistic (I think: move to someplace with a yard).

Your vision board should have your dreams, inspiration, motivation, AND goals. Then, if you want, make it pretty to see. If you’re a glitter person, go for it. If Sharpie doodles are your thing, then doodle away. (I’m a glitter and color kind of person, but my board is very simple mostly because of everything that I have on it).

The whole point of this vision board is to help YOU with your dreams, to help you move yourself to achieve them, to motivate you to get closer to your life goals. Like I said, I created my board in January. I have had some stumbles since then, BUT when I see my vision board I know I have done work towards my goals. That is a lot more than I ever did when I had my dream board.

Stay tuned and I'll tell you the steps I took to create my vision board and hopefully they'll help you create yours.


NOTE: A version of this post first appeared on Writedge.




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