I love this time of year. I use it as a time to reflect on how things have been going up to this point and to plan for the year ahead. As I continue to grow personally and professionally, waiting until January to plan and set goals for the new year feels too late. Early in the year I felt the fatigue of setting and going after so many goals during the previous year, so I decided to take it easy for the remainder of the year. Now that I’ve gotten some good mental rest and I’m feeling more refreshed, I want to reframe my goals in a way that feels more manageable and nourishing. An important component that we have been taught about goal setting is to make sure they are measurable. Often those measurements are numbers or some other concrete metrics. I’ve been playing around with the idea of shifting toward more abstract outcomes as a way to measure what matters most. Instead of goal setting, I think of this as intention indicators. We start by setting an intention for how we want to feel, and we use indicators of those feelings to measure our progress toward our desired outcomes. Here are a few strategies to consider as you create your intention indicators. Curative Chemistry. I love the way I feel after moving my body. My movement goals used to be about weight loss, but I’m tired of writing the number of pounds I want to lose as a goal year after year, especially as my body chemistry changes with age. Now my intention is to feel good mentally and physically, and my indicator is an increase in the release of my brain’s feel-good chemicals like serotonin and endorphins. Moving my body in ways that I enjoy such as walking, cycling, and dancing make this happen for me. Visceral Value. I love art in any form that evokes emotion. I was reminded of this when I read about how one of my favorite authors was impacted when he saw a popular original painting in person for the first time. So, I set an intention to experience art that moved me emotionally. The indicator occurred when my tears began to flow as I watched one of the powerful final scenes of the movie The Woman King last week. Inspired Intuition. When I make up my mind that I want to do something, I don’t force it. I allow my intuition to lead me organically to the next step. Today it occurred to me that at the end of this week, I will be accomplishing two major life-long intentions in one event. I will visit Africa for the first time, and I will lead my first international retreat. Following my intuition and taking this leap allowed space for the perfect partnership and participants to appear. Their belief and trust in my ability to lead this transformational journey are the indicators of my success. This week I challenge you to reframe your goals as intentions and replace your metrics and measures with indicators that represent how you want to feel. Manifestation Affirmations I am serotonin and endorphin wasted! I am engaging in experiences that evoke my desired emotions. I am allowing my intuition to lead me organically.
Master Your Mindset to Manifest a Life You Love. Most Sincerely, Monica Marie Jones Your Soul Journey Guide