Some of you are possibly thinking, what have Vision Boards got to do with marketing? And I’d have to say, that’s kind of a valid question…
However I’d ask that you stick with me as I take you on a little journey…
The essence of marketing is to grow your business and vision boards are created around something you want to achieve…
…so if growing your business is something you want to achieve (and I’m hoping it is), then Vision Boards can help you achieve that.
Lets Look at Why
I’m going to assume you know what a Vision Board is (if you don’t in one sentence it’s a board you create with pictures and words based on your dreams and goals).
This is an example of a Vision Board
A vision board is well…something visual. It’s something you create and place in a prominent position so you see it every single day.
When you see something, it creates a thought, when you think of something it creates a feeling. A feeling creates an action and action produces results. This is what is commonly referred to as The Process of Manifestation.
Let’s backtrack a little.
For your Vision Board to work you must be clear about your dreams and goals. You can check out 2 recent articles I’ve written if you need help with this.
Make Next Year Your Best Year Yet
How to Achieve Your Goals
These will help you get really clear on your goals, and also put this into some perspective.
X Marks The Spot
Knowing your goals is like finding the X on a treasure map. Once you know where you are going, you can decide on what path to take. Your dreams and goals are your destination, they are the X for your internal GPS. They are what will draw you to your desired outcome and that’s why having a Vision Board helps.
A Constant Reminder
With so many distractions and bright shiny objects around to tempt you, it’s extremely easy to forget where you’re headed. Life is hectic these days – and demand for your time is at an all time high.
The kids need dropping off, the dog needs feeding, clients are booked in for appointments, it’s your mum’s birthday, the car needs a service, your quarterly accounts are due, the washing needs doing or the lawn needs mowing, your partner wants some together time… there are a gazillion different things pulling on your time each and every day.
The only way to ENSURE you achieve YOUR goals is to have them prioritised and right in front of you as a reminder that EVERY DAY you need to do something that will move you closer to achieving them.
This is what your vision board is for – it’s your daily reminder of YOUR dreams and goals.
When you are working towards YOUR goals your days won’t feel full of busy, drudgery and frustration. Sure there are things that need to be done every day, that’s called life but there are a whole lot of things that don’t need to be done either (think TV, Facebook, You-Tube, spring-cleaning the kitchen…).
When you’re doing stuff that matters to you, you will feel fulfilled, energised, successful and this creates more of the same.
A Real Life Business Example
So let’s look at this in a more practical way, with a case study from a client I’m currently working with. She’s a relationship coach who wants to add another $100,000 to her business income in the next 12 months, which will see her mortgage free. In the last 12 months she worked on average 15 hours a week face to face with clients and made $117,000 – this was made possible by her committing extra time to her marketing and follow-up communication with contacts. How did she stay focussed, she had a clearly defined outcome and she used a vision board.
We discussed a few ways she could achieve this increase:
- Double to number of hours she works a week,
- Double her current fees and work the same hours,
- Offer group courses as well as continuing her 1 : 1 work.
- A combination of all of the above.
She doesn’t want to work 30 hours a week with clients, but she’d be happy to increase her client hours to 20; she thinks doubling her fees will negatively affect her client numbers – but she is confident she can increase them by 20%, and she’s been toying with the idea of groups for a while.
Based on these figures the extra 20% and 5 hours a week will generate $70K so she needs to create an additional $30K from group work, which is completely do-able.
Knowing Your Outcome is Paramount to Business Growth
So she’s now got a course to put together and some extra marketing to do. Right now she’s putting her vision board together, and I’ll be really interested to see it when we next connect.
See how easy it is when you know where you’re starting and where you want to get to.
Focus is Important
How you focus is critical to your outcome. A vision board gives you something positive to focus on, something that you are drawn towards. It also gives you a point of reference to refer back to when things aren’t going so well, when your focus gets stuck on the problems and the overwhelm. It’s during these tougher times Vision Boards really come to the fore, they become that twinkle of light at the end of what seems like a never-ending tunnel. Focusing on the light makes it brighter by the minute.
More Than Just Pretty Pictures
Done correctly and with motive, Vision Boards are more than just a bunch of pretty pictures and words. Each and every image or word has a significant meaning to you, if creates a feeling of desire, want and hope, and when you open your mind completely it allows you to imagine your life as if you’ve achieved it.
That leaves just one question…
What is it that you want?
Don’t play small and don’t make it so outlandish that it’s out of your current reach. Make it yours, not your partners, your kids or your parents – what is it that you want to achieve in the next 3, 6, 12 months?
You’ve got the answers within…
be brave enough to admit them and allow them to become your reality!
PS – If you need some help and guidance finding your direction and answers click here and reach out and ask. These things are often so much easier to achieve with someone in the navigators seat.
