This is often the time where we are all fired up with good intentions and decide to make drastic and sweeping changes to our lives that last for a couple of weeks and then fade away.
The new year, new me idea is not great for our wellbeing as its usually unsustainable so all we are really doing is setting us up to fail.
Long lasting and effective change requires layering. That's to say, lots of small, manageable tweaks to our mindset and behaviours that when layered up result in big changes to our lives.
This is not to say that we shouldn't have goals and aspirational targets. I'm not saying that at all. In fact I'm a huge believer in goal and intention setting but I think the goals we set ourselves need to be practical, achievable and sustainable.
What is an intention? It's a statement of something that you want to bring into your life. That you intend to do.
I don't think we should wait for a particular time of the year to start them (although it can be useful to be aware of when in the seasons you are most motivated and proactive) and I most definitely don't think that we should attach our self worth to the outcome of these goals. What I mean by that is the ideas that I will be successful when I achieve this or I will be happy when I have that . We need to learn to be happy now regardless of what we have.
So to answer the question when and how should I set Intentions? For me the first step is to get an idea of how I want my life to look and where at the moment, I'm not meeting that vision.
I then work to identify what it is I need to think, do or have to achieve it.
I then break down what are usually vague ideas into actual tasks, I then break those tasks down into manageable steps and start doing something everyday towards achieving them.
So,say for example you wanted to move to France. That is a huge goal and may not be attainable in the near future but you can break it down like this, find out residency rules, what area you want to live in, what kind of property you can afford, how can you earn money, take French lessons, join social media groups ,find Dr, dentist, vet etc, sell or rent current property, get house ready for market, the list goes on but they are still quite big tasks which can be broken down into smaller jobs.
If you just take learning to speak French, you can get phrase books from the library, listen to French radio, watch French films, do an online course, find a real word class, go to France and practise while you are checking out the region and accommodation that you want to live in.
So you see each of these little jobs can be achieved quite simply and it's the preparation and repetition that make them stick and enable you to achieve the bigger goals. The small things layer up until you have achieved the change that you want to make.
I would also urge you to be open to possibility.
Don't become so fixated on moving to France that you become closed to other avenues. It may be that you get offered a job in Spain or an opportunity to travel elsewhere and that will ultimately lead you to living in France if you take the chance.
To help you make a start, make a list or a spider diagram and then make another one and so on until you have a clear idea of the small steps that need to be taken.
To support you in moving on with your goals, tick things off the list as you finish them and celebrate it. Be grateful that you have a plan and are moving towards its completion.
You can make a vision board or use affirmations to keep you focused and your mindset positive.
If you are interested to know more and start manifesting the life that you want to create, please get in touch.
Take care.
Chris x
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