The world is a fast-moving place full of tasks, chores, and work to get done. Blink and suddenly so much has passed that suddenly the goals on the backburner are starting to boil over. It can be hard to want to tackle any of that, even if everyone knows it would feel better to get it out of the way. That’s where setting daily intentions can help.
Setting daily intentions can break down tasks into smaller pieces to make them achievable or can help on the road to becoming a better person living the dream life. So turn down the heat, set the pot to a simmer, and keep reading to learn more about setting daily intentions in a way that will actually produce results.
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What Does it Mean to Set Your Intentions?
Setting daily intentions is setting aside to put forth goals and commitments to oneself. It is a positive and growth generating method to improving the overall quality of life, recenter, and to stay motivated. Not to mention, practicing your communication skills helps to put things into perspective or to break them down into bite-sized pieces.
2 Simple Examples of Setting Intentions
It’s easy enough to tell someone to just break things down into smaller pieces and tackle them a little at a time. However, what helps more is to provide some examples of what exactly is that might look like when it comes to setting daily intentions.
Pick a Task to Finish
In a world with a thousand and one things needing done, it can help to break it down and pick a specific task to ensure gets finished during the day. Something minuscule such as clearing clutter from a desk or sweeping the floor are perfect tiny tasks that helps to nurture a feeling of accomplishment knowing that it got done.
Remind Yourself to Do Something Positive
This could be as simple as trying to remember to greet people when coming into work, or to smile during the day. This is especially helpful if trying to learn new behaviors or get used to a new, scary situation. Joy is contagious after all, and smiles spread. Even adjusting thought processes to train your brain to be more positive can help change the outcome of the whole day.
7 Tips for Setting Daily Intentions That Work
People are just as wildly different as all of the problems they’re going through. What works for one person might not work for another. However, there are a few things that tend to help more people than not, so they are worth a try.
Follow the SMART Framework
SMART stands for Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic Timely. Following this framework ensures that the intentions are reasonable, doable, and not confusing. Instead of putting something like “clean” on the list, try instead “clean off the table” or “sweep the floor in the kitchen” so that it’s specific enough that it can’t be weaseled out of or questioned later on in the day.
Set Only a Few at a Time
It would be counterproductive to try and make a list of intentions that has so many things to do it either becomes difficult to remember or devolves into a list of chores. If they get finished, it can be a good time to rest and consider making another one. This allows for plenty of checking in with oneself and to keep moving with accomplishments no matter how small.
Keep them Personal
When it comes down to it, the only person really holding someone accountable is themselves. People can suggest what to do or how to act, but only they can decide how to act and think themselves. Make the list of intentions personal, fill it with things that are relevant to you, not necessarily anyone else.
Stay Simple
Setting intentions isn’t a race. It’s more of a marathon. Cutting things down to simple pieces throughout the day helps to show that things are getting done. Make sure to keep the list simple so that it is actually doable in a positive way rather than feeling like climbing a mountain.
Create Routines
There is nothing like setting a routine to make sure that things get done. Set aside time consistently to decide intentions, whether that be daily or to check in at certain days to adjust the list if it includes lifestyle and behavioral changes. Habits are an easy thing to make and a hard thing to break, so use that to its fullest advantage.
Maintain Records
It’s easy to get overwhelmed and to feel like nothing is ever getting done, no progress is being made, and everything is all for naught. Keeping a record of all the things helps to prove that progress is still happening. Things are in fact getting done, and those that aren’t are still being worked on. This also helps to keep it tangible and grounded in reality.
Reflect at the End of the Day
Take some time at the end of the day to reflect. Ask questions to decide if the intentions were reasonable, see where the strengths and weaknesses are, and decide what worked and what didn’t. Allow yourself to feel proud of anything that was finished and forgive yourself for anything that wasn’t. Remember that any progress is still progress, even if that progress is just one tiny step in the right direction.
Conclusion
Setting daily intentions helps ground oneself and make tasks more manageable. It’s a fabulous way to better oneself and to constantly grant feelings of accomplishment, self-worth, and pride when these sorts of feelings are scarce. While every person is different complete with their own unique trials at hand, many people can benefit from taking a few moments to check in and hold themselves accountable for their goals, mood, and accomplishments.
