Updated January 2020

I’ve mentioned before how much I was dreading turning 30. Well, I found the perfect way to ring in a new decade, with a new vision board! Start Your 30’s The Right Way and learn how to host a vision board party! Not sure just how to make a vision board? Read this post first to learn how to make a vision board that WORKS!

A vision board (also known as a dream board) is a tool used to help you achieve your goals by having them displayed in front of you daily.

Vision Board Party

I made my first one years ago, in my early 20s. My husband and I printed out goals of ours: To buy a house, pay off our car, him to finish college and start a new job, have two kids, get a new computer, a new bed, living room furniture etc etc:

We had the board set on our dresser to look at every day. The idea is the more you see and visualize your goals, the more likely they are to become a reality because you’re focused on them more often.

Our first dream board is basically complete. Everything except the Lexus came to fruition. So I decided I’d kickoff my 30s with a new vision board and making some memories with friends and loved ones.

I asked my mom if we could use her house so I could have a night out without the kiddos, and she went ALL out with the party planning: Balloons, decor, food, everything! I just planned to bring a few magazines and some glue! So remember this lady right here is responsible as you look at all of these photos! haha.

So in this post I’ll explain how to plan a vision board party and how to make a vision board.

How to host a vision board party:

Make a guest list

It’s a good idea to keep the group relatively small. You’re going to be working on piecing together your dreams and you’ll want to make sure you’re with people you’re close enough to feel comfortable sharing that with. Whether it’s just family members, your spouse, or your closest friends.

Plan some snacks

It can take a while to piece together a work of art from the heart and you’ll want some brain fuel. We ordered some catered food from our local grocer and had more than enough food to last us through the evening (That went close to 5 hours). We had sparkling cider in champagne glasses, which I thought was a nice touch.

Gather supplies

Of course you’ll want to remember foam boards, scissors, glue sticks, and lots and lots of magazines. I went to Savers and got magazines for $.29 each (buy 4 get 1 free). You can also ask your guests to bring magazines to share. Also consider having a vision board example out on a display for people to look at to grasp the concept. I forgot my first one at home but I brought it up on an iPad and had my sister’s on display.

Set up a printing station

Not all of our dreams are printed in that magazine we’re thumbing through. Have a laptop or tablet setup for guests to browse and print from. You may also want to stock up on an extra ink cartridge, just to be safe! Don’t have a printer? Here’s a cheap and simple one I like*. 

Now that you have all of the details for how to host a vision board party that’s totally awesome, let’s talk about how to actually make a vision board.

Let’s talk about how to make a vision board!

I go in to more details about this in this post, but to keep it quick here, you’ll want to list out your goals. Either mentally, or written down someplace, then search for images that speak to these for you. These are your big items. Then flip through the magazines and find words, images, quotes, whatever, that go along, or add on to your goals.

Line up all of your images the way you want them to be. Keep in mind that we naturally read from left to right. So your eye will most likely be drawn to the top left corner most often. Put some of your biggest dreams there!

My first one had everything randomly attached all over, but this time I tried to make room for lots of dreams and thoughts so I lined quite a bit up to fit it all in. It’s worth noting that if you overlap too much some of your images may get lost.

A lot of people have asked me what the timeframe should be for this board. I say whatever you want! Think both short-term, and long-term. My first board I thought would take a lifetime to complete, but we achieved most of it in under a decade. My new board is focused specifically on my 30s.

Easy enough right? The first time our board was very specific with the “things/items” we wanted. Now it’s more of experiences I want and skills I’d like to develop.

I’ll just show it to you!

I love these because they’re a way to keep track of dreams you’ve had and see all that you’ve accomplished. Lil’ J even made her own vision board and I’m so proud of her! The party is a great way to make some fun memories, but the board is a great keepsake in and of itself, even if you just take a picture of it before you begin to work on another.

UPDATE: I’m 33 now and have actually crossed many of these things off. Read here how I actually met Oprah after putting this on my vision board!

Have you ever made a vision board? What would be on it?

More on this topic: How to Make a Vision Board with Kids, How to Make a Vision Board that Works, Proof Vision Boards Work. 

*This post contains referral links. It cost nothing for you to use and I may get a small commission if you do. 

Tags: Birthday party, dream big, dreams, goals, vision board