How often have you set New Year’s resolutions, only to have forgotten them by the end of January? You aren’t alone. According to a recent study conducted in the UK and Australia, 64% of people break their New Year’s resolution within a month.

This year, let’s change it up and set some intentions! Intentions are positive; they are broad and encompass multiple areas of your life. They give us room to grow, whilst setting a direction for the year.

Intentions feel a lot less demanding than a specific goal and provide the opportunity to reflect and consciously decide what you can do to grow personally and professionally.

 

How to set intentions

 

1. Reflect

 

Take a moment to reflect on your year. Look through your calendar and list the positives and negatives for each month.

  

  • What were your standout moments?
  • What made you happiest?
  • What do you want to do more of, and what should you be saying no to?
  • What wasn’t working for you?

 

2. Visualise

 

Visualise yourself and your family this time next year and think about what you want for your career, your home life, your health and wellbeing. How do you want to feel at the end of the year?

You can set intentions for all aspects of your life, but for the purpose of this blog let’s focus on career intentions.

 

3. Create a list of intentions

 

It could just be that you want to make a big change or you could just want to make it through the year!  Either way, think about how the work you are doing is serving your career.

You could intend to:

  • Develop a new skill
  • Volunteer to lead a presentation
  • Mentor a new employee
  • Learn something new every month
  • Study for a qualification
  • Prioritise work/ life balance

 

4. Check your intentions

 

What is your instinctive feeling about the intentions you have chosen? Is this want you really want? Intentions are personal, so it’s important to listen to your intuition.

For each one, think about what you can do today to serve that overall intention. These small action steps will help you work in a positive way.

Thinking about these intentions might shift your way of thinking and in turn how you act. It could help you to feel clearer about how you approach each day. You could ask yourself, “does this serve my intention?”

5.  Celebrate your successes

 

This will help you keep your momentum going. Let’s face it – who doesn’t enjoy a little celebration?

 

So let’s ditch those resolutions that quickly make us feel like failures when we break them. Let’s set some positive intentions for a wonderful 2023!

December 2, 2022