You made it through winter! Now that it is September, and officially Springtime in NZ, it's a great time to create new intentions.
An intention is a clear and positive statement of an outcome you want to experience. An intention is a goal, or vision, that guides your activities, thoughts, attitudes, and choices. Your intentions influence your actual experiences.
Setting intentions
You may think the idea of 'new intentions' sounds a bit 'woowoo' but there are endless accounts of this practice helping people from all walks of life. And really, what have you got to lose?
Setting a new intention might look like something you wish to achieve; it may be introspective, such as a personal affirmation. Perhaps it's to do with a big change in your life; a new job or relationship.
The Law of Attraction organisation (think 'The Secret') gives some good advice:
"An intention statement is essentially a written expression of your intention. When you write something down, it forces you to reflect on how to express it. Similarly, it gives you the ability to explore what you really mean. An intention statement can increase accountability, help you understand yourself on a deeper level, and (crucially) reinforce your belief in your own potential (...) good intention statements are typically brief, extremely clear and inspiring. They often make reference to a new way of being rather than just a specific goal. Once written down, they can be used as affirmations (i.e. spoken statements that you repeat to yourself or choose to display in prominent areas)."
Mind Body Green warns intentions shouldn't be forced.
"...It's a seed that you have to sow and then let reap on its own. You can't set an intention that you don't believe in. If it's done forcefully, the purpose of the intention is ruined."
If you are finding yourself wanting to give a new Spring intention a go, we have collated some of our favourite tips to get you started.
1. Keep it positive.
Make sure your intention has a positive tone. For example, if your intention is to reduce stress in your life, then say something like, "My intention is to invite peace and calm within myself during today's meditation."Try to avoid saying something like, "My intention is to fight this stupid stress."
Your chosen intention should always be positive, uplifting, and always in the present tense. You want to refrain from using any negative words.
2. Begin with gratitude
You can create an even more powerful statement by briefly acknowledging something that inspires gratitude. Try to keep it relevant to the intention statement. There is strong evidence to support the idea that when you focus your attention on gratitude, the resulting positivity helps you to create the kind of life you want (and helps you to feel better in the process).
For example, to take an intention statement that is designed to address concerns about loneliness, you might have come up with the intention statement: - “I am surrounded by people who care about me.”
A statement that begins with gratitude could be something like: - “I am grateful for the love of my friends, and I am surrounded by people who care about me."
3. Always state your intention in the affirmative, as if it is already happening.
If you speak and act as though you already have what you want, it’s easier for you to actually attain that thing. Applying this to intention statements, you will benefit from using words like “am”, “can” and “feel”, avoiding words like “will”. Using the future tense makes your goal seem far away, rather than inevitable.
4. Be specific!
When you create new intentions, try to be as specific as possible with what you want to accomplish. This will help you to remember what it is you are focussed on, and make it easier for you to repeat each day.
We hope that this inspires you, and we'd love to hear from anyone who has found this helpful!
Intention Tips and Tricks via: Mind Body Green, Sarah Prout, Law of Attraction and Very Smart Girls.
