HOW TO SET DAILY INTENTION AND EXPERIENCE ITS POWER

When you start your day without intention you become like a dead leaf flowing with the wind.

Wandering aimlessly, reaching nowhere before it finally falls to the ground. The dead leaf has no locomotive power and is helpless, but you are not!

Daily intention is a powerful tool that directs your life in the direction you want to excel in.

Setting a clear intention and following it up with action will take you closer to whatever it is that you want to achieve.

You will have more control over the course of your life just by living each day with clear intention. Before dwelling on the how of setting intention let us be clear of the what first.

WHAT IS INTENTION?

An intention is like a guiding tool that helps you set the course of your day and life as well. It is more of an internal affair rather than an external one.

As you must know, We do not have control over what happens to us but what we do have is control over our response.

Some days may be as smooth as butter and some as rough as a crazy man’s beard.

What the day has to offer is not in our hands but what we do with it is all our will.

Intention is exactly that. It is how YOU choose to set your tone for the day.

What kind of person you want to show up as? Are you going to show up as a grumpy person who always has something or the other to complain about or as someone positive and kind?

Setting daily intentions puts more focus on YOUR INPUT rather than the OUTPUT. This lifts the pressure that a goal-oriented lifestyle inflicts upon you.

When your daily actions are goal-oriented, monotony can set in quickly. Focusing on the process rather than the result is also one of the major ways how you can break the monotony of life.

So, here are some ways that intention can be seen,

• A tool that will help you set the course of your day irrespective of what it has to offer.
• A mindfulness activity that will help you lead each day mindfully and with clarity in your head.
• A decision to show up as who you want to be rather than letting circumstances define you.

Now that we have discussed about what an intention is let us focus on how to set it.

HOW TO SET YOUR INTENTION FOR THE DAY

1. Wake up early to create time for setting your intention

The most important step in setting your daily intention is to wake up early. You don’t have to wake up at 5 or 4 if you are not a morning person. Wake up half an hour before your actual waking time.

When you wake up early you gift yourself the time and space to set the intention and tone for the day.

How often is it that you start your day late and have to jump into your day mindlessly and unprepared? This kind of lifestyle will make you weary of your life. You will start to despise your work and your life eventually.

To be able to enjoy your work and your day, you need to be mentally prepared for what is to come.

Waking up early gives you the extra time to be with yourself. It helps you embrace the new day bestowed on you mindfully.

On my way to work, I see a board that reads “Start early, drive slowly, and reach safely”

This clearly states the importance of starting early. If you don’t start early you will not be able to drive slowly and may not reach your destination safely that is if you ever will.

Steps you can take to wake up early

• Sleep early
• Set a soothing alarm rather than a shocking one
• When the alarm rings go straight to the bathroom and brush your teeth without letting any thoughts come to your mind which may lead to procrastination
• Make your bed so that you are not tempted to get back in

Waking up early is also one of the most effective self-care habits that can upgrade your life.

2. Set time aside to reflect on your goals

Setting mindless intentions is as good as setting no intention. You need to allot time for reflecting upon your goals so that your intentions for the day are the ones that take you closer to them.

For example, if you are a person who likes to read and your goal is to crack some exams, your intention for the day cannot be indulging in fiction but rather reading the books that will help you crack the exam.

If your goal is to improve your relationship with your partner, your intention should be to be kind and loving towards him rather than complaining about his lack of effort or feeling miserable about the state of your relationship.

You need to be clear on your goals so that you can set effective intentions.

Have clarity of your long-term as well as short-term goals to be able to set meaningful intentions.

Having just a vague idea about your goals will lead to vague results. To be able to hit the target you need to first have clarity about what your target is.

True satisfaction and fulfillment can be achieved when your intentions are aligned with your goals. That is why it is so important for you to set aside some time to reflect on your goals before setting your intentions. If you don’t set aside the time to reflect on your goals, you will never end up reflecting upon them.

3. Make an action plan with your intention embedded in it

Once you are clear on your goals, make an action plan.

Make a list of things that you want to get done.

Now, setting your intention for the day is a bit more than just setting your goals and to-do list.

When you write your action plan also decide on what should be your attitude when you tackle the tasks. How do you intend to do those tasks?

For example, if my goal is to learn to swim, my task for the day is to attend class. Once my task is ready, that is when my intention sets in. What attitude should I have when I learn the lessons?

“I intend on learning my lessons with patience and kindness towards myself. I intend to allow myself to be a beginner and not give into shyness or awkwardness when I am in the process of learning.”

4. Have flexibility in your intentions

The most common mistake that people make when setting their intention is that they make it rigid.

Have you witnessed the trees swinging in stormy weather? It is the rigid ones that break. The flexible ones bend with the flow of the wind and dance away even in the storm.

Always have some flexibility not only in your routine but also in your life.

Nobody has seen the future, so it is a wise decision to have some flexibility for the unforeseen.

Things may not always go as planned. Let this not be a reason for you to spoil your entire day. When we leave no room for flexibility in our routine or intention, a slight inconvenience or extra work that you were not prepared for can make you grumpy.

It can change your entire vibration and mood from high to low.

So, when setting intentions, you need to be flexible to changes or obstacles.

Taking the example of my swimming classes again, though I may have set my intention to give my all and learn my lessons patiently, things may not go as planned. It may rain that day or I may get hurt etc.

I may feel disheartened or grumpy in such a situation if I have not made my intentions flexible.

For such scenarios, I always focus on TRYING TO MINIMISE THE DAMAGE and accept what I can’t change gracefully. Do what you can in such situations and don’t fret over perfectionism.

Sometimes you need to just let things be and allow the universe to work its magic. Trust the universe with your whole heart especially when things don’t go as your plan.

5. Visualize

Visualization is very effective in making you into the person you want to be.

I often visualize myself doing the things that I want to do or living the life that I want to live and I can guarantee one thing, that it sets me in a happy and positive mindset.

And when you are positive, you attract all the positive things in your life.

Visualizing yourself navigating the waves of the day before the actual navigation can help you be calmer and more composed throughout the day.

This exercise will make your intention stronger. When you visualize yourself spending the day how you intend to, it becomes easy for your mind and body to follow that plan

You can perform visualization anywhere. Just sit in a comfortable spot, close your eyes and start visualizing yourself doing things that you want to and how you want to.

6. Surrender your goals and focus on your actions for the day

Finally, when you are done with your visualization, surrender the need to meet the result. Once you have decided on your intent for the day according to your goals let go of the pressure of reaching the goal.

Put your focus on the process and action plan and enjoy it to the fullest.

As it is stated in the holy book of the Hindu Bhagwat Geeta

“your right is to work only, but never with its fruits;

Let not the fruits of action be your motive, nor let your attachment be to inaction.”

So, focus on your actions and let the universe take care of the result.

I end my post here with much love and gratitude in my heart. I hope you will find this post helpful in setting your intentions correctly and that it may help you lead your life more intentionally and mindfully.

Wishing the best for you.

Thank you and have a nice day ahead!