How to Set Meaningful Intentions in the New Year Instead of Just Resolutions
Since we’ve all spent some time alone because of the pandemic, we’re coming to an overall consensus: intentions are more impactful than resolutions. What do we mean when we talk about setting intentions for the new year instead of New Year’s resolutions? Aren’t they the same thing?
Resolutions are goals. These can set you up for failure because we rarely have a wide enough scope to plan how to achieve our goals throughout an entire year. Intentions are more similar to how you can improve your life. It focuses on accountability and the process as a whole, instead of focusing only on results.
Setting Intentions Inspires Agency
The next question is: what do we mean when we talk about agency? Agency lets you cut through the noise and find a balance in your emotional and physical life. Taking agency means feeling in control of your life and destiny. It means establishing what you want, need, and how you can get those things. A few ways you can create agency in your life are:
Control your environment: Think about how much information you let into your mind daily. Research shows that having your phone next to you while you work is a distraction and is a detriment to productivity. Declutter your home, office, and set some limits on your phone time to control how much stimuli you’re subjected to each day.
Be picky about your friends: Surround yourself with friends, family members, and communities which encourage you. You can control how much toxicity enters your life through socialization.
Move every day: Your physical body needs movement to keep your body and mind balanced. If you have too much pent-up energy, focusing becomes difficult. If a lack of movement causes you to feel sleepy, like after a big lunch, your work becomes sluggish.
Take a student mentality: We often find ourselves feeling bored in situations when we feel we know what we need to know. Taking on a student mentality means using mindfulness to rethink the situation. If you’re in training for the fourth year in a row, what questions can you ask this year that no one thought to ask last year? What can you learn about the process, yourself, etc. that is not necessarily related to content?
Learn emotion management: How you feel at any point is valid. Understanding how to control and even channel those emotions will give you a sense of agency like nothing else. When you control your emotional self, you create a greater balance between your mind and body.
How to Set Intentions
Now that you understand what you’re looking for while you’re developing your agency, let’s look at how to set intentions.
Find your joy
You may have heard of The Law of Attraction. This law states that focusing on something that brings joy brings more positive experiences to your life. Get a pen and paper, or your favorite note-taking app, and jot down what you’re passionate about.
What’s something you think about and immediately smile? Even if you’ve never tried it before and just think it would bring you joy, write it down!
Use affirmations
Affirmations, sometimes called mantras, are short phrases to incorporate into your daily life. Instead of creating a new year’s resolution to use weight, set an intention with a mantra.
An example might be, “I intend to eat one nutrient-dense meal every day.” Or, “I intend to take a walk three times a week.” This plays into the law of attraction, too. The more you say these things to yourself, the closer you bring it to reality.
Find a buddy
Whether it’s your best friend, your mom, or a therapist, find someone who can help you stay accountable. This is someone you can check in with periodically. It’s as simple as asking open-ended questions like, “Hey, how is your writing coming along?” or “How’s therapy going?”
Therapy can help you set intentions and most importantly, develop a sense of agency in your life. We’re confident in the positive transformation we bring into our clients’ lives. If you would like to learn more about how therapy can help you, please call (786) 644-5392 for your free, 15-minute consultation. Or to get started follow these simple steps: Filling out this form . Then Ashley, our intake coordinator will call you to answer all your questions and get you set up with the right therapist.
