One of the most popular and effective ways of visualizing your “new you” is by creating a mood board. But, what in the world is a mood board? <toptal.com> describes a mood board as, “physical or digital collages that arrange images, materials, text, and other design elements into a format that’s representative of the final design’s style.” 

What makes mood boards so fun is the creative liberty to be as intricate or simple as you’d like. But one important thing to remember is that you don’t have to create a masterpiece. It can be as simple as throwing together a few phrases, images, and goals that will continue to motivate you. 

If you’re planning on creating a physical mood board all you really need are some magazines, glue, and paper. If you have a color printer, you can even print out some pictures that are more personalized to what you like. 

When going about a digital mood board, there are several apps that are perfect for this type of project. Some of my favorites are Picsart, Canva, and Shuffles. You can google pictures if you’re using the first two or even import them directly from your Pinterest boards into Shuffles if you choose to use the third. Shuffles is specifically designed to work perfectly in creating projects like these. 

Some things that you can include on a mood board are places you’d like to travel, accomplishments you’re striving to achieve, or things you want to save up for. You don’t have to limit yourself to planning for just this year. You can also plan for colleges or careers you’re interested in or places you hope to live when you’re a little older. 

You can create mood boards such as a fun New Years’ Sleepover activity or you can work alone and take it as a self-care opportunity. The key to a great mood board is keeping it true to yourself- whether you’re creating yours with others or not. 

Ok, but how am I going to stick to my mood board? The beauty of it is that you don’t have to! It is not intended to be strict and stressful at all. However, if you’d like to continue visualizing throughout the year, you can make the image your phone/laptop’s screensaver or if it’s a physical creation- you can hang it up on your wall as a reminder of your aspirations throughout the year. 

All in all, remember that the point of the mood board is to inspire you (not at all to restrict your year by the pictures/phrases that you choose). By the end of the year, maybe it will serve as a reminder of everything that you’ve accomplished throughout the year. If it doesn’t, that’s perfectly fine! You still have an aesthetically pleasing creation that you can use/not use as you please.