SHARE
What is intention setting? Intention setting has been a ritual of mine for as long as I can remember. You could say that I’ve been intention setting my whole life, whether it be a note on my iPhone, goal setting with my friends or boyfriend, in a conversation at a party or with parents, or written down in scribbles in my journal. I’ve always loved the idea of making lists, writing goals and aspirations. When I was 15, I would cut out pictures from my favourite magazines and tape them all over my room. My walls were covered with images of beautiful, empowering, strong women working out, looking happy, eating delicious food, surrounded by friends or family. It was covered with feelings and emotions and colours that made me happy – it was my mood board and it manifested the incredibly happy life I live today.
New years resolutions were fun while they lasted, but I didn’t put enough effort into actually implementing them. I still write weekly to-do lists and goal setting for the year, which bring me joy and satisfaction when I cross off something on those lists. It makes me feel empowered and strong.
A few months ago, I was inspired by health and lifestyle bloggers like The Balanced Blonde and Lee From America to make structured monthly lists pretty and hang them in places I would constantly remember to check, like the refrigerator, a wall in the hallway or next to my bed. I am totally hooked!
Intention setting can really be whatever you want it to be – it can be therapeutic, empowering, eye-opening, satisfying, exciting or calming. For me, it’s all of those things. It’s taking time at the end of a month, at the beginning of a new month, to allow you to really be true to yourself. It’s an incredibly powerful practice.
Sara Paley Photography
My tips for intention setting:
- make it pretty
- use coloured crayons, markers or watercolours to make your intentions more visually appealing
- make it visible
- hang it somewhere where you will always see it, like in your bathroom, next to your bed, on the fridge. You will be more likely to remind yourself of each intention if you are constantly seeing it.
- keep them balanced
- Set both permanent changes like “drink 1 cup of lemon water every morning” and larger intentions like “become more in tune with my body” to keep things balanced
- I like to break each large intention into small, realistic steps you can take to get there. For example, under “become more in tune with my body”, write small goals you can make to get there, like “mix up my exercise routine by attending yoga, spin and weight lifting classes” and “say this affirmation every morning: I love my body”
- remember why you started
- always keep in mind the truth behind why you initially set the intention. You will be more likely to stick to it if you are true to yourself. Connect emotionally and use the law of attraction.
- act immediately. The day after you set your intentions, make sure to follow through with at least 1 of them – you’ll feel motivated and empowered from day 1. Once you set these intentions, and you follow through with them, they will eventually become habits!
- keep it positive
- want to stick to your intentions? Stay away from negative talk and focus on positive change like “do all things with love” or “drink 2L of water every day” instead of “stop being negative” or “stop eating junk food”. You are more likely follow through with positive intentions as they seem more tangible and realistic.
I hope these tips have helped you and that you are able to set some intentions of your own for 2018. Share your intentions with #thepurelife on Instagram so I can see them!
Love, always
Sisley
Photography by Jennifer Picard
