2024 Intentions
Setting intentions for the year
In the past, I set specific goals that I wanted to achieve and would often beat myself up if I didn’t achieve them at year-end. I've done New Year resolutions a little differently since 2020. I started setting intentions for the year instead.
The first year I did this, I set a single intention: Joy. In all decisions I made that year, I would ensure that I found joy in them or the result of them.
Setting intentions encourages me to be conscious in my decision-making but also helps me not feel pressured to complete every single goal I set for myself and not feel bad about myself at the end of the year if I don’t.
I’ve found it difficult to stay motivated to do everything I want. This is why intentions work for me because my focus is on the way my actions make me feel vs. completing everything that I want to do.
Last year, I didn’t set any intentions or goals. Without the guidance that I set for myself, I often felt like I wasn’t doing enough and lacked focus. That said, I’ve learned to forgive myself more and be proud of myself for any accomplishments. In hindsight, my intentions for 2024 must’ve been self-forgiveness and self-love.
This year my intentions are stability, steadiness, and balance.
I am doing things a little differently this year. I was inspired by Jordan Cutler’s 2024 Guide to Goals for Software Engineers and Ali Abdaal’s How to Make 2024 The Best Year of Your Life. A few concepts I love:
The Wheel of Life concept, where you look at different focus areas in your life to get an idea of overall satisfaction in life and where you can focus on to feel more overall joy in life
Viewing goals as celebrations. Setting goals by asking yourself, “What do I want to be celebrating at the end of the year?”
Defining a “why” for every goal you set
Setting up an “ideal calendar” where you block out time for all the essentials (waking up, going to sleep, working) so you can visually understand how much time you have to set aside for achieving your goals.
For 2024, I devised several goals for different focus areas in my life all with the underlying intentions of achieving stability, steadiness, and balance.