My birthday is shortly after the New Year’s festivities, so every new year as celebrated by the Western world pretty much matches another year of my life. I set my intentions for the coming year in the weeks between the beginning of the new year and my birthday.
Over the past couple of weeks, I wrote many things down in my journal. I think, that this is what most people get wrong when they set intentions: they make a long to-do list for the year ahead, rather than select individual areas of focus. The problem is that if we set out to accomplish too many things at once, we might not have enough energy to focus on any one of them seriously.
I realized that my long list consisted of things that were rather trivial. For example, I no longer need to set out to run two major races a year, since this is what I have done successfully for the past 4 years. This is not a challenging area for me anymore. Writing this goal down even feels like cheating, where I am putting it down only so that I can cross it off the list at the end of the year. The truth is–it’s gonna get done even if I don’t write it down. And so will my staying active, eating healthy, getting enough sleep, and traveling.
I encourage you to approach your goal- and intention-setting in a similar way. Check in with yourself to see if you are writing things down that can get done without any special effort from you. Things that come effortlessly are no longer areas of personal growth that need your special attention, so keep them off your list.
Put down projects that will ask more of you. These are the projects that, as you complete them, require you to develop more skills, try new things, connect with different people, change your habits, in short, transform who you are. Pick projects that you can look back on at the end of the year and think “wow, I did that!” This helpful article on Oprah.com suggests you ask yourself these 5 questions when setting intentions and making resolutions for the year ahead.
My Goals and Intentions for 2017
Here are the areas of my life I want to focus on this year:
Start saving
I am to work out a system that works best for me and makes sense in the long-run
Write 100 words every day
I am experimenting with the different ways in which I can bring more writing into my life. The goal is to find a solution that requires a consistent commitment, yet is achievable. I was initially going to try this as a 100 Day Project but then decided to go for the whole year. 100 words a day works because I can do it anywhere: on my phone while commuting, during a short break at work, really, pretty much anywhere.
Read challenging books
I will not buy any new books for the entire year and will focus on reading books I already have at home or borrow books from the library. The aim here is to stop trying to read every latest bestseller or self-help book and reach for the titles I have been meaning to read for years.
You know those books you wish you have read and that you keep saying you will read one day? This year my goal is to read as many of those books as possible.
Figure our this small business/side-gig/freelancing life
To me, this means starting to work with my Mom on her creative business and doing more with my coaching practice.
Learn Russian with D
D is the one learning, but I commit to being a proactive tutor. We are to have weekly lessons together and do extracurricular activities.
Get more mindfulness and yoga into your life
This goal open-ended as I am still figuring out the best solution for myself.
Start a small garden
Our current apartment boasts a large balcony where I am determined to grow edible things this summer.
Have you set any personal goals for yourself for the coming year? How do you make sure you reach for intentions that are meaningful to you?
