This Is Why You Should Make a Monthly Mood Board in 2025

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Mood boards and vision boards have long been a creative way to align with your goals and visualize your future. Most people make one in December or January to set intentions for the coming year — and then leave it at that. But what if you could make a monthly mood board instead? Could that revolutionize your goal progress? Here’s why a monthly board works better than an annual board, and why it’s never too late to get started!

Why Make a Monthly Mood Board?

A mood board — or vision board, the terms are often used interchangeably — is a collection of images, quotes collected on a board, representing your wishes and goals. It’s intended to be an inspiration and a motivation to get you from where you are now to where you truly want to be. Typically, people might make a vision board just once a year, in December or January, setting intentions for the year ahead. 

However, more and more people are realizing that a once-yearly vision board isn’t enough. With the topic still trending on TikTok many months into 2025, vision boards and mood boards are no longer just a new year thing. Why is that?

Well, sometimes with yearly vision boards, it’s easy to sit back and wait for success to drop into your lap. After all, you’re manifesting it, right? You’re visualizing it, you’ve made the board, so now the universe will provide, so the theory goes. Of course, in reality, manifestation isn’t magic and nor is it a one-time deal — you have to consistently do the emotional work to get yourself into a position to make these things happen. 

So, it’s better to make a monthly mood board, because it allows you to check in on your progress every month — and because your focus and emotions will naturally shift through the year as you deal with what life throws at you. Monthly vision boards also enable you to reflect on your progress and successes so far during the year, and they encourage regular monthly, mindful intention setting. It’s also a lovely way to practice self-care at the start of a new month — and a lot of creative fun too. 

The Science Behind Mood Boards

Even if you’re not into manifestation, mainstream psychology provides plenty of evidence that vision boards work. 

A 2025 study found that vision boards were especially effective at increasing optimism, and that optimism was more positively correlated to achievement than mere hope alone. Another study from 2023 confirmed that visualization is an evidence-based mental skill. It is widely used in high-performance settings, that helps individuals achieve their goals by mentally preparing for success.   

There are several theories about why vision boards seem to work so well, including:

• Self-concordance: This is when your goals closely align with your authentic emotions — as is typical in a mood or vision board. Studies have shown that self-concordant visualization strengthens positive emotions and motivation, leading to real progress toward goals.
• Reticular Activating System: This neural pathway in your brain regulates your sensory intake, awareness and focus, filtering what enters your consciousness. Vision boards, by repeatedly exposing you to certain goals and emotions, can activate the RAS, effectively programming it to help you find success.
• Reduced Fear: Repeatedly visualizing something in your mind can reduce the physiological fear of new situations, lowering and reducing the barriers that stand between you and your goals.    

So, the science suggests that creating a monthly vision board can indeed propel you toward your goals. But how should you get started?

How to Create Your Own Monthly Mood Board

The ways to make a monthly mood board vary and can be as quick or as time-consuming as you like. You can do this the old-fashioned way, with scissors, glue and collage images cut from magazines, or you can go digital. 

There are many vision board apps to choose from. You could also use platforms like Canva, which offers free vision board templates with thousands of available images. If you go for a digital option, you can set your vision board as your desktop background, maximizing its exposure. 

Whichever method you choose, here are some steps to start your own monthly mood board:

1. Take 15 minutes to reflect on your yearly goals and your progress toward them. What have you achieved so far that you can celebrate? Where do you need to step things up a notch?
2. Brainstorm colors or themes that help evoke the emotions you need for maximum success this month. If you are facing a stressful month, choose orange for courage, joy and hope, or red for passion. In a really busy work month, greens and outdoor images help you reconnect with nature. If it’s an emotionally difficult time, shades or rose, lavender or pale blue will help inspire self-care and self-love. 
3. Gather your materials. If you’re doing this the traditional way, you might want to include clippings, printed images, postcards, posters, photos, handwritten quotes, scrapbooking paper, souvenirs such as tickets or programs, favorite fabrics or sketches you have made. If you’re working online, spend time browsing and collecting what speaks to you.
4. Arrange your materials creatively — there is no right or wrong way to do this! It’s your board, so do what works for you. You’ll know when you’ve crafted it perfectly. 

Tips for Fitting Monthly Mood Boards Into Your Life

You may be reading this thinking, “Sounds great — but I’m busy. Isn’t this going to turn into just one more chore?” Not if you don’t let it! Make a monthly mood board in half an hour if you’re feeling speedy — or you could make a day of it. The key is to be flexible and to accept that some months you’ll have more time for this than others. If you’re short of time, here are some ideas to try:

• Set a timer: Limit yourself to 30 minutes and go with what you have. A quick board is better than no board!
• Don’t overthink it: There don’t have to be a million images on your vision board. If time is short, you only need two or three carefully chosen images or quotes.  
• Involve friends: A meetup with friends can do double time if you agree to have a mood board session once a month — and it’s extra fun to chat and share your goals as you create together. 
• Pick one area: If you’re in a hurry, choose just one area of your life to create a board for this month. That might be your relationship, your health, your career — whatever feels right. You do not have to cover everything at once. 

Manifest Your Month — Small Steps, Big Shifts

Creating a monthly mood board is a simple, powerful and creative way to align your intentions, emotions and actions. By focusing on how you want to feel and what you want to embody, you invite success into your life — one month at a time.