Are you looking for direction, your life purpose, or how to bring about a desired change? Like Sisyfus, have you been repeatedly pushing a boulder uphill only to fall back again? Maybe your dream is not unachievable, but rather your process is ineffective. An important first step in making a change is setting intentions that work. They will guide you toward personal fulfillment.

Affirmations and Resolutions Verses Intentions

If you’re like lots of people, you use affirmations or resolutions to help you make a change and attain personal fulfillment in some area of your life.

You might adopt appealing affirmations from the internet, write them down on reminder notes, incorporate them into your vision board, or sometimes speak them aloud.

If this sounds like you, have you had success?

If not, follow this guide to setting intentions that work.

What’s An Intention?

An Intention as discussed here is more holistic and has more direction and power than a typical resolution or affirmation.

The question “What’s an intention?” isn’t trivial. While most people can define the word, it’s much harder to give concrete examples or accurately articulate them.

This is in part because of limiting beliefs about what’s within their control. And, the resultant range of possibilities holds them back, preventing them from taking more daring steps to get what they really want.

Also, underlying many intentions is a felt sense, feeling, or desire: all of which are hard to articulate. The full content of an intention therefore can be wide-ranging. It can entail physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, or energetic issues. In some instances, it can just be a liminal impression or knowing. In these cases, they have difficulty to clearly stating in their mind or out loud what is wanted.

As an example, when people come for an energy healing session with me, they often have only a vague idea of what an intention is in practical real-life terms or what type of aspiration can be turned into a suitable intention for energy healing. They frequently need some direction and an opportunity to contemplate it.

Similarly, coaching clients who seek greater personal fulfillment tend to have many ideas about what’s wrong and what they’d like to change, but only a vague notion about what they want or what’s within reason from their current point of view or mindset.

While intentions are always self-referential because you can only really change yourself and your circumstances, they can address your role in a relationship, which, in turn, can affect someone else.

The Benefits of Setting Intentions

There are many benefits to setting intentions. However, the primary benefits can be summarized into a few key points:

• Regularly defining what is your purpose and thus leading your life with more meaning, personal fulfillment, and contentment;
• Grounding and centering your energy and actions throughout the day for greater agency, efficacy, and ease;
• Being more present and mindful and experiencing the associated physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual benefits
• Establishing benchmarks to monitor your progress toward fulfillment of important personal goals;
• Honing your focus and attention on priorities; and
• Feeling more in control, confident, and empowered

7 Principles For Setting Intentions That Work

The touchstone of this guide to setting intentions that work is how you express your intentions because it reveals a lot about your clarity and commitment.

Additionally, how you form an intention invariably influences the energy you bring to it and the energy you attract. Both are critical for personal fulfillment.

The reason for this is obvious. If you don’t know what you want, you can’t articulate what you want, or don’t think you deserve what you want, how will you ever get what you want?

Fortunately, if you adhere to these seven principles for creating intentions, you’ll harness the right energy for the highest and best outcome.

1. Say what you want, not what you don’t want

Word your intentions such that you orient yourself to where you want to go rather than move from where you are without any specific direction and destination in mind.

Using positive rather than negative language is an effective way to express this principle. For instance, say: “I get a good night’s rest every night,” instead of: “I want to stop waking up during the night and feeling tired all day.”

The former phrasing specifies what you want the outcome to be: adequate rest. In contrast, the latter phrase leaves you open to many different interpretations and outcomes. Some of those outcomes could even be detrimental. For example, you could stop waking up at night but continue to feel tired throughout the day.

2. Be bold

Go for the fullest expression of what you want, not just a portion of what you really want. For example, “I’m pain-free” rather than “I feel less pain.” Or, “I ace my exam,” as opposed to “I pass it.”

3. Be Clear

To be clear, be explicit and avoid vague or complicated language.

To illustrate, don’t say “I intend to meet a ‘nice’ guy” because everyone’s version of nice is different. If you don’t specify what you mean by nice, you may find that you manifest lots of guys who someone else thinks are nice, but you definitely don’t.

Do some personal reflection first to identify what are the key attributes you associate with nice and explicitly include them in your intention. Make sure that what you seek will lead to personal fulfillment. And, avoid the temptation to include superfluous attributes.

4. Be specific

Being specific is declaring, when relevant, who, what, when, and where. A couple of examples will help clarify. Let’s assume you have two daughters, and you have difficulties communicating with the one named Debora.

Therefore, you’ll want to mention her specifically in your intention. Otherwise, you may find that you improve the good communication you already have with your other daughter, but that with Debora remains unaffected.

Similarly, if you want to land a new job within the next two weeks, say: “I get hired within the next two weeks.” Of course, this language doesn’t ensure you’ll start the new job within that timeframe. If you desire this, adjust the language accordingly: “I start my new job within two weeks from today.”

5. Don’t ask. Tell!

To bring the appropriate energy and commitment to your intention declare it. The words want, wish, hope, pray, and beg are not up to the task.

Instead, use declarative language: “I pass my exam,” “I weigh 120 lbs and maintain it,” and “I have a fulfilling job.” This helps you truly own and become the intention.

6. Leave an opening to fate

This attribute might seem counterintuitive or even contradictory at first. But, it isn’t. The idea here is to account for the possibility that you may not know what’s best for you or how your life will unfold.

In this way, the focus is on the state of being rather than a particular plan or rigidly detailed outcome.

To accomplish this you might alter your intention to meet a ‘nice’ guy to something like: “I meet a guy with whom I feel heard, respected, and loved and acts in my highest and best interest.”

In this way, you get your cognitive brain out of the way and open to more. In other words, you don’t try to strategize and plan your way to success, which hasn’t been successful for you thus far.

You can still take action and make decisions that align with the intention. But, feel into it and allow your sixth sense to guide you onward. You don’t want to force it or rationalize the steps.

7. Be committed to living the reality of what you say you want – manifest!

This principle of the guide to setting intentions that work is an extension of the preceding one, i.e., “living the reality of what you say you want.” It also requires patience and openness, even though you’ll be more proactive. But, do not obsess about it, try to control the process, or leave it completely “up to the universe.”

Instead, what you’ll be doing is encouraging the process of neuroplasticity. In practical terms, this means bringing more of the quality and attributes of your intention into your life and your being. That is, surrounding yourself with the possibility.

For example, imagine who you will be when the intention manifests. What does personal fulfillment feel like for you? Take on attributes of the person you will be. Sense into your choices and whether they bring more of that fulfilled quality into your experiences and life.

You might daydream, journal, or choose another means to express this vision. You could educate yourself on its different aspects. Also, take opportunities that seem to relate to it even if only marginally: be curious and explore.

Follow the breadcrumbs and stay open.

How to Apply the Guide to Setting Intentions that Work to Everyday Living

Setting Daily Intentions

Another powerful tool is to set a daily intention. Using the principles of this intentions guide, consider what you can do in the present moment. Additionally, select something that can be accomplished during the current day. You can create an intention that:

• feels good,
• helps you see yourself as you want to be,
• orients your actions and decisions for the day, and
• holds you accountable to bigger goals.

This practice will keep you attuned and focused on what matters to you most. They set the tone for your daily routine, infuse gentle reminders and easy benchmarks, and foster personal growth goals.

The idea here is to thoughtfully and compassionately nudge, not push, yourself forward and toward the fulfillment of your goal.

Apply this guide to setting intentions that work for all you intend throughout your day. Doing so, you’ll create a practice of being conscious, clear, articulate, and intentional with all you do.

Now, that’s not a bad intention in and of itself!

For Assistance With Setting Intentions That Work, See:

• My Mind Body Spirit Blog, in particular:
• How to Set Your Intentions to Get What You Want
• 6 Powerful Ways Healing Energy Helps Manifest Intentions
• Smudging Using Diffuser Oils for Energy Work Clearing
• Spiritual Life Coaching and Energy Healing Sessions
• Personal Growth, Natural Healing, and Wellness Workshops

Updated December 20, 2024