New Year's Resolution VS Intention Setting- Which One is For You?

How do you set yourself up in the new year?

Imagine, you are two days till the end of the year. The last few weeks have been spent rushing around. You have been prepping for the holidays, celebrating, indulging and, getting ready for the new year, among your usual stuff.

The amount of energy and the potential for stress, anxiety, and burnout is high. Do you give yourself time to slow down at the end of the year? Do you reflect on how the year went? Do you prepare for the opportunity to start fresh? Do you have new years resolutions or set intentions for the new year?

New Years Resolutions are common or more traditional goals set at the end of the year.

What is a resolution? Dictionary.com states resolution is a firm decision to do or not to do something.

They are set to inspire a year better than the current one. You want next year to be fantastic or at least better, so you set a goal to make it so. You look at how you want it better and decide to change something specific and often measurable. 

Typically resolutions are specific and measurable.

Something like,

I will not have any(Fill in the blank, Sugar, Alcohol, Carbs) for the whole month of January.

I will get outside every day for three months.

I will do yoga once a week(insert plug for live online yoga classes ☺️ ).

The thing you want is specific, and the time makes it measurable.

In my opinion, resolutions can set us up for failure. Imagine you are a week in, you slip up and have that slice of cake, that cocktail, or whatever, and now you are a FAILURE!! 😩. You messed up, and what's the point? Now you can just go back to whatever it is that you were trying not to. 

Resolutions to me imply a sense of guilt or shame if it is not executed perfectly.

Resolutions also often do not commit to the why.

This is where intention setting can feel more supportive and more soothing.

Intention setting is also focused on what you want, but there is more emphasis on why you want it.

It is often broader than the all-or-nothing approach of resolutions.

Instead of having a resolution of, "Not eating cake, or bread or alcohol," setting an intention can look like something like this. 

"I feel crummy when I put ________ in my body. Since I want to feel better in my body, I will do my best to fuel my body with things that help me feel great." 

The why supports you better because it is more than just "do _______," or "do not _______." Knowing and having the WHY in your intention offers an emotional or physical connection to what you want. 

An intention also is a little softer. You do your best, and sometimes, you will slip up, and that is okay. You are human, and sometimes humans just need a piece of cake. So enjoy the cake, really taste the cake, and then come back to the intention of mindfully putting into your body what feels good. Just because you had cake once does not mean you need cake every day. Tomorrow is a new day, and you get to pick up where you left off. 

At the end of it all, do whatever feels right to you. If resolutions are more your thing and you feel more committed when the goal is more specific, go for it. If connecting on an emotional level is more your style, that is cool too. If neither float your boat, no judgment here.

Basically, as always, it's all about what works for you. That's the point- to feel a deeper connection to yourself.

The end of my year was busy, fun, and full of celebration, but I did not get the opportunity to slow down. I did not evaluate the year and mentally prepare for a new start. 

On the first day of the new year, I woke up sick with a bug which, thankfully, was not covid, but still no fun at all. I spent a fair amount of time sitting with my thoughts which, to be honest, besides the sick part, was a great way to start my year. I got the time to slow down. To think of how the year went. To think of the opportunities the new year can bring.

I began to set my intentions of how I want to feel in the new year. Setting my intention feels so good, and right, and inspiring.  

I'd love to know what you do! Did you make a resolution? Set an intention? Do you feel called to one over the other? 

Let me know in the comments below how you set yourself up for the new year.