Starting a new year and quarter

We have two days before the start of a new year. I won’t go into 2020 as no one could have predicted this year. What I do know is I want to make the most out of the coming year. I don’t expect any major changes i.e. restrictions lifted or life back to normal for at least the first half of the year.

The past few weeks I have been thinking of what my intention for the first four months of the year would be. I had a word pop into my head and I dismissed it. Seriously no that won’t work was my take. Check this post on how to set an intention. 

I looked around at projects started and my to do list. Also how did I want to feel heading into a new year? Did I want to feel more playful? Joyful? Of course I did, but those intentions didn’t resonate with me. Or to be more clear they weren’t what I felt I wanted to focus on. I kept coming back to that word I started with.

Intentional. Something done with a plan or deliberate. On purpose. It seemed to broad to me. It wasn’t a project, feeling or something I could get my head around initially. I dismissed it until I realized it was staying with me for a reason. It was pushing out everything else I tried to focus on. Intentional.

So decision is I’m not going to fight it. It is appearing for a reason. So my intention for the next four months is “intentional”. I’m going to consider every project, invitation, experience, whatever intentionally. I am not going to say yes or start a project that I have not carefully or intentionally thought about. Is this moving me forward? Will this take time away from something else that I should be working on? Am I procrastinating? What is the plan for this project – write it down.

Intentional is staying with me for a reason. I want to explore it for the next four months. If I consider everything intentionally what am I  moving towards or moving away from? Now that I’ve decided to work with intentional I’m excited. Next is to make a card with the word on it so I can see it every day.

Do you have an intention for the next four months? Check out the above post on how to go about setting one. Also there are other posts on meditation and journaling intentions that might spark some ideas.

Deep breath as we head into a new chapter intentionally for me!

 

Setting an intention

Figuring out our intention is half the fun.  Do we want a feeling or to focus in on a project for the next four month?  

If you want a feeling say joyful or playful write that in the middle of a page.  Around it (or a list) write down everything that gives you that feeling.  Make sure you use all your senses.  Is there a certain smell?  A food?  Activity? This is a brain dump of ideas.  Write down everything – even if you think it can’t be done. No judging or eliminating. It all goes down.

Sit with it for a bit.  You might add more items to your page or not. All okay. We have set our intention to bring more X into our lives. We have four months to focus on this. Grab a cup of tea or coffee and start on your list. What can you start to schedule into your day? If reading brings you joy could you schedule in time at lunch to read? Making a reading hour at home with family (set a timer).  I think it is a good idea to give yourself a bit of a deadline say finish one book a month. Remember be flexible. Life happens.

If you have projects half finished or want to start something new pick one.  Remember to pick the one that excites you the most. Again we have to break this down.  We have four months so schedule time into your day or week to work on your project.  Break it down into pieces you can easily do.

If you want to write a novel break it down into an outline, scenes and character profiles.  Small writing jobs that are important. Also smaller pieces allow us to finish something. To check that box of two scenes written.  Scheduling and breaking down your project are crucial.  

You want to start journaling.  Break it down into 1) purchasing a pretty journal 2) looking for journaling prompts on the internet  3) picking a few out to do.  We gather momentum when we complete tasks. So purchasing a journal is a completed task. Check.

I think the biggest thing is to not set unreal expectations for ourselves. Four months might not be enough time to write a novel.  To go through every closet in the house and organize.  To learn a language. I hope you get the idea.  I’m not saying you can’t get this stuff done but we don’t want to feel overwhelmed.

So we are going to decide if it is a feeling we want to experience or a project we want to finish or start in the next four months.  Next brainstorm ideas of how to go about it.  Creating a schedule, being flexible and giving our self grace if we fall behind.  Re-examine what is happening. Maybe your project is too large – could it be broken down further? 

Remember intentions are determining an action or result. Intentions are organic and we can adjust them as we gather more information.  They are to help focus us on what we want to accomplish in four months (or your time frame).

Here is a download I hope lets you stay on tract.  Let the intentions begin!

my-intentionDownload