Why I’m setting intentions (and not making resolutions)

For years I made resolutions based on becoming the type of person I thought would make me happy: lose weight, save money, drink less etc.

They never worked, mainly because they were centred around giving something up. It just became another way to make me feel like I was failing as a person.

I’m pretty sure most people hate resolutions for same reasons as I do. Although for me, there is some benefit in using the turn of the new year to think about what I want to achieve in the forthcoming year and how best to make it happen. So for the last few years, I’ve been setting intentions. They are essentially a much kinder way of setting out what you aspire to achieve. Intentions might include travelling to a new country, learning a new skill and/or defining career goals.

My intentions include spending time fully engaged with my son (instead of taking a sneaky look at social media); living in a more sustainable way; and getting back into my yoga practice amongst others.

I’m looking forward to 2018.