Vision Board Guides
How Often Should You Look at Your Vision Board?
How frequently to engage with a vision board, and why passive glancing is not the same as productive review.
Evidence-based guide · All claims cited to published research · Vision Weave
Daily passive contact, weekly active review
Two different activities are involved. Passive contact keeps goals attentionally live [1]; active review is where planning happens.
Aim for daily line of sight, plus a short deliberate review weekly.
What the weekly review should contain
Not admiration. Ask: what is the obstacle this week, and what is the if-then plan? That is mental contrasting plus implementation intention, the combination with meta-analytic support for improving attainment [2][4].
A caution about pure gazing
Extended dreamy contemplation of outcomes is precisely the behaviour associated with reduced attainment in Oettingen's research [3]. Look often; fantasise sparingly; plan weekly.
Accountability makes review stick
Reporting progress to another person was associated with higher achievement in Matthews' study [5]. Attach your weekly review to a message to a friend.
References
- Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705–717. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ654871
- Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 69–119. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/chapter/bookseries/abs/pii/S0065260106380021
- Oettingen, G., & Mayer, D. (2002). The motivating function of thinking about the future: Expectations versus fantasies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(5), 1198–1212. Summarised in Oettingen’s mental-contrasting programme. https://positivepsychology.com/mental-contrasting/
- Wang, G., Wang, Y., & Gai, X. (2021). A meta-analysis of the effects of mental contrasting with implementation intentions on goal attainment. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 565202. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8149892/
- Matthews, G. (2015). The impact of commitment, accountability, and written goals on goal achievement [Conference presentation]. Dominican University of California. https://scholar.dominican.edu/psychology-faculty-conference-presentations/3/ (Note: presented at a professional conference; not a peer-reviewed journal article.)
Continue reading
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