Resource CenterVision Boards Reimagined: How to Create an Intention Board

Vision Boards Reimagined: How to Create an Intention Board

By Courtney Knowles

You’ve probably seen a vision board before — a collage of dream homes, vacation spots, job titles, or a desired appearance and style. Visualizing goals can be exciting, but getting too specific can sometimes be limiting. Life doesn’t always follow a set script, and you may feel stuck and frustrated when things don’t go as planned — and miss out on unexpected opportunities.

That’s why it can be helpful to change your approach when thinking about the future. Instead of creating a vision board of must-haves, making an intention board can help you focus on the emotions and experiences you want to cultivate, while leaving room for possibilities you may not have considered yet.

A vision board usually includes words and images to represent a particular goal or aspiration (such as “I want to meet the love of my life this year”), while an intention board is broader and, instead, represents feelings, experiences, and areas for personal growth (“I want to feel connected and be in a space where I can give and receive love”). It’s about shaping your future with openness rather than limiting yourself to one specific path.

Why Focus on Intentions Instead of Goals?

Setting intentions involves self-reflection, where you identify your aspirations and values and consider how you want to live your life. Intentions are more about the journey than the outcome, and reviewing and updating intentions often is a good way to focus on your personal growth.

Goals often act as rigid success markers, and it can feel like failure when we don’t meet them. Intentions, on the other hand, can help us stay open minded to different paths, allowing meaningful opportunities to emerge in ways we may not have planned.

Steps to Creating an Intention Board

1. Define Your Intentions

First things first: Think about what you want to feel rather than just what you want to get. If your first instinct is something like, “I want this exact job at this salary,” try shifting it to, “I want to feel secure and have a sense of purpose in my work.” In doing that, you stay open to all the ways those feelings can manifest in your life.

2. Pick Your Canvas and Materials

Choose a format that excites you, whether it’s a classic poster board, a spread in your notebook, cardboard, or even a digital collage. Gather materials that can help you represent your intentions, such as magazine cutouts, paint, markers, glue sticks, fabric swatches, and printed or clipped text. Think about textures and colors that match your moods and intentions. There’s no wrong way to do this. Just go with what feels right.

3. Create Your Board

Now comes the fun part: bringing your intentions to life. Your board can be as literal or abstract as you want. Maybe you use actual images of places and things, or maybe you create something more symbolic. What matters is that you take your time and focus on your intentions. It may be helpful — and calming — to do some deep breathing while you craft your intention board or visualize the emotions and experiences you are putting on it.

This is your space to set the tone for your future, so relax and move through it at a pace that works for you.

4. Keep It Visible and Check in Often

Hang your intention board somewhere you’ll see it regularly — your bedroom, workspace, or even as your phone wallpaper. Whenever you feel uncertain or overwhelmed, take a moment to look at it and remember what’s important to you. Remember: This isn’t about getting caught up in specific goals. It’s about staying grounded in what you want to feel and experience.

Bringing Your Intentions to Life

At its core, an intention board is a project that supports your emotional well-being, simply through the act of creating. But it goes a step further by offering a concrete strategy to reinforce focus on meaningful experiences and foster motivation, mental clarity, and a deeper connection to personal growth.

Feeling inspired? Share your board with friends or post it online. It will build a supportive community and inspire others to reflect on their own path and purpose. So go ahead and set the tone for your future, creating intentions that actually feel good to you.