Setting Intentions Instead of Goals for 2025

This post may contain affiliate links. Disclosure here.

Happy new year! 

I’ve been slowing easing my way into the new year. Not really pushing myself hard into starting on big goals or focusing all of my energy into becoming a better version of myself. 

This year, I decided to do things a bit differently. I decided to set some intentions for myself, instead of setting goals. 

(Just a side note: I’m new to this and testing it out, I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’ve had success with intentions over goals! Or even a mix of both!)

So what exactly is the different between a goal and an intention? 

According to a quick Google search, goals are futuristic, measured, and specific achievements. Whereas intentions are centered more in the present and focus more on mindset and how you’d want to approach something. 

(This article by Life Skills That Matter writer Stephen Warley explains it more in depth than I do here and is another great read on the topic!)

And before we go further, please don’t think I am bashing goals! I have spent many new year’s resolutions on big goals for myself because I believed in myself. You should believe in yourself, too. 

The difference is that I set goals that were either too big to achieve within a year or set goals without having any sort of plan for actually achieving said goals. 

So if you’ve already set your goals for 2025, then please know I’m cheering you on from the sidelines!

But back to the whole intentions thing. 

I sat down and really thought about my life. I zoomed out quite a bit. Zoomed back in. Looked around at my current habits, what is making me unhappy, what I could feasibly change or begin to change. 

And then it hit me. I (for the most part) am the biggest obstacle in my life. 

I began to ask myself, what would the future Cynthia do? What would higher self Cynthia do? 

She’d be more mindful and more active. She’d be more honest with herself, and she’d love herself more. 

Finally, armed with my own honest thoughts about myself and my life, I decided to set some simple intentions. And small, everyday ways to maintain my intentions throughout the year. 

So what are they you ask?

• Everyday movement 
• Everyday mindfulness
• Going at my own pace
• Letting go of the past/looking towards the future

To make my intentions easy to maintain, I decided to go forth under the notion of “make it stupid easy” and “make it easier to do than avoid”.

Everyday Movement

I moved my clothing hamper into the hallway, so it no longer sat in front of my treadmill. 

I moved my workout clothes into my main dresser and placed slip on converse sneakers right next to my treadmill. 

Every morning I make sure to put my Fitbit on and get it done. And can have a more accurate idea of how many steps I get in per day.

Everyday Mindfulness

If you’re anything like me, it’s way too easy for your thoughts to get out of control. 

When I’m at work, knee deep in paperwork, my mind tends to go dark. My thoughts become super negative and I forget all the good in my life. 

So something I am doing every day is catching myself. When I feel negative, or anxious, or overwhelmed. I ask myself why and then I do my best to reassure myself.

This one isn’t always easy. It’s not like a clothes hamper I can move. But it’s worth it to regulate my thoughts even more. 

Going at my own pace

More often than not, I tend to bite off more than I can chew. I get very excited about upcoming projects or executing new ideas that I forget to come up for air. 

This year, I really want to slow down. Think things through. Stop measuring success based on how much output I gave in a week. 

Rather, allowing myself pockets of work, rest, study, recovery, etc. There will be times where this won’t be possible and I understand that my intention is rather to have more moments of giving myself what I need than denying myself. 

Letting go of the past/looking towards the future

I am a dweller. I blame the part of my brain that overthinks. 

Literally, I can dwell on anything. 

Something I have learned while getting older is that the past cannot be changed. But the future can. 

The decisions I make now have no effect on the past. But they can affect my future. 

And so I want to work on forgiving myself for my past errors, learn from the good, bad, and ugly, and really start planning ahead.

I’ve also learned that life can move incredibly fast if you don’t pay attention. So it’s better to pay attention to the present and make the better choice for your future self. 

Also, a little sidebar, if you will. I did pick a word of the year for 2025 and its balance. Sometimes my life feels super off kilter with everything happening, so I think balance is a simple but effective word to remember as we head into 2025. 

I’ve picked a word of the year for the last 5 or so years and while I sometimes forget my word by April, the intention is set and I like to think I subconsciously carry it with me all year. 

What about you? Have you picked a word for 2025? 

So what about you? Are you a goal setter, intention seeker, both, or neither? 

I always love seeing how other people approach the new year. Let me know how you’re heading into 2025!

You Might Also Like: Fave 2024 Hobbies // Fave Romantasy Books of 2024