Balance is B.S.

CHAPTER 6Vision Boards Are Bullshit: How to set effective goals

I love vision boards. I'm an artist, so of course I'm a really visual person.

But so often the way we do vision boards is bullshit. We make it about this car or that house at the beach. What happens if we don't get that particular thing? Or what if things change and that thing won't bring us happiness anymore? Did we fail?

It's the concreteness of the pictures on vision boards that I have a problem with. Often it's about assets or material things. We cut pictures out of magazines of things that we want and then it's like, we have to get that thing in order to be happy. To achieve our “vision.”

I know somebody who has on their vision board a baby boy. What the fuck? Does that mean if you have a girl you'll be disappointed? Visual images like that are so definite.

I'm not saying don't have a vision board (like I said, I love them); I'm just saying make your vision board based on your values, not just ideas of things you want to have or achieve. Make your board a mix of words as well as pictures. Include reminders of things that are important to you—photos of people who inspire you, or quotes, or books. A blend of values, assets, and things you want to share with other people as well as things you want to have for yourself. A list of the things that fill your soul. Not a particular address or an exact model of car.

Then anything that comes along—like a new car or whatever—if it excites you, get it. If it ticks the ...