It’s that time of year to evaluate how your past year went and find areas of improvement for the next year by laying down big, bold declarations for the coming year.
Making resolutions. Establishing goals. Setting intentions.
Wait, setting intentions? Absolutely. Setting intentions is the key to making new goals or resolutions stick past January and enabling stress-free living.
Setting intentions is the purpose behind the change. The mindset to take action. And setting intentions is usually the critical first part that people forget.[1]
Take those New Year’s resolutions, for example. While resolutions used to be as ubiquitous as a post-Thanksgiving nap, today only about 30% of Americans are still making resolutions, according to the Pew Research Center.[2] Why? The No. 1 reason was because respondents broke them way too easily, and way too soon.
So, what does effectively setting intentions truly entail? And how can it pave the way for a healthy, stress-free New Year — all year long?
Why Setting Intentions Is More Powerful than Making Resolutions
A New Year’s resolution is typically a couple of words on a list.[3] For example:
- Go to bed every night before 11 p.m.
- Practice yoga each morning for 15 min.
- Start using a Truvaga handheld vagus nerve stimulator. (Don’t worry, we’ll explain more later.)
These are all solid wellness goals on their own. Also, they’re actually united by a common purpose: you want to achieve balance in your life. You know, a sense of equilibrium. Ying and yang. A little bit country, a little bit rock and roll.
Now try this intention for size, “I will focus on creating balance in my life this year.” The “I will…” affirmation is a necessary, positive framing of your intention, but you can also use a single word to keep it simple.[4]
“Balance.”[5]
Easy, right? In this way, setting intentions becomes the critical first step in making resolutions or establishing goals designed to reduce stress. Without it, we simply have siloed, unrelated goals that aren’t tethered to what really matters to us.
Setting intentions is most effective when the stated purpose ties into your existing values.[6] For example, if your values include respect, gratitude, and discipline, then setting an intention of achieving balance makes sense, and its likelihood of being achieved is immediately boosted.
Likewise, an intention is more effective when it taps into what you’re already passionate about. If being outdoors is your natural state — whether it’s catching waves and rays at the beach or walking in the woods — weave it into how you’re setting intentions.
Your intention could look something like this: “I will achieve balance through nature.”
Finally, let’s look at those resolutions again through the lens of your newly established purpose or intention to see how you can play to your strengths:
- Getting to bed before 11 could mean you’re playing nature sounds, such as light rain or even the ocean’s soundtrack, to soothe you to sleep.
- Practicing yoga can happen in front of your home’s bay window against the backdrop of the sunrise.
- You can take Truvaga anywhere — on the deck or on the road. (As promised, more on this later…)
Following Through on Setting Intentions
You’ve checked the box beside setting intentions. Perhaps you’ve also created resolutions, goals, or other aspirational changes.
Now comes the next hard part: building an effective routine and support system (spoiler alert: they’re all hard parts, but the payoff is worth it).
Breaking away from bad habits while building healthy new habits is a critical first step to jump-starting change.[7] These baby steps — from extending your daily walk with the dog by 15 min. to drinking more water and getting off screens at least an hour before hitting the hay — can lay the healthy groundwork and build momentum for goal attainment.[8]
Plus, by setting intentions first, you won’t have to search long and hard for the little these incremental wins. They’ll be right there in plain sight. Remember that intention of achieving balance? Balance almost universally implies certain activities: self-care, a regular exercise regimen, a consistent sleep pattern, and the accountability to hold your own feet to the fire.[9]
Finally, there is “structure” – the thin but mighty candy shell holding intention, habits, goals, and resolutions together. Without structure, the best of intentions are nothing more than a warm, fuzzy, but ultimately fleeting feeling.
Tipping the Balance in Your Favor
We didn’t pick “balance” as an example of setting intentions by accident. Yes, balance can be everything, but it can also have very specific meanings for different people:
- Balancing work and play
- Eating a well-balanced diet
- Establishing mental and emotional balance, i.e., being happier
Beyond the strategies of setting intentions, creating goals, and building healthy habits for structure, there are additional tools that can help you start the year with less stress.
Some of these tools are behaviors or traits that are naturally imbued in us or require little work, such as a growth mindset. This mindset is both a belief that our current abilities are just a starting point and the insatiable drive to learn more and more.[10] In the context of setting intentions, a growth mindset can help us narrow in on the best compass point for our bodies and minds for the coming year.
Some of the most effective tools for creating a more intentional, stress-free life are actual physical devices. Take Truvaga’s handheld vagus nerve stimulators, for example. These portable, drug-free devices use clinically proven technology to deliver real-time vagus nerve stimulation, supporting essential functions like digestion, heart rate, and immunity. By reducing anxious thoughts, improving sleep, enhancing focus, and fostering calm, Truvaga makes it easier to set and stick to your intentions. (Curious to learn more about the science behind the vagus nerve? Feel free to dive in!)
New Year, Better You
Aspiring to improve your well-being in the coming year is a tough but noble pursuit. While we don’t want it to seem like an academic endeavor, there is a roadmap beginning with setting intentions that can prevent you from being one of those statistics: well-meaning New Year’s revelers who lose sight of their ambitious resolutions or goals in the mist of sparklers and champagne sprays. So, let us be the first to say, Happy New Year! May the year be full of positive change and free of stress.
Sources
[1] Shape, AnnaMarie Houlis, The Power of Setting Intentions — and How to Do It Correctly, https://www.shape.com/lifestyle/mind-and-body/mental-health/how-to-set-intentions
[2] Pew Research Center, SHANAY GRACIA, New Year’s resolutions: Who makes them and why, https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/01/29/new-years-resolutions-who-makes-them-and-why/
[3] Psychology Today, Robin Lanehurst M.Ed., Setting Intentions for the New Year, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/educate-advocate-empower/202201/setting-intentions-the-new-year
[4] Shape, AnnaMarie Houlis, The Power of Setting Intentions — and How to Do It Correctly, https://www.shape.com/lifestyle/mind-and-body/mental-health/how-to-set-intentions
[5] Forbes, Dede Henley, Setting An Intention To Guide You Through The Year Ahead, https://www.forbes.com/sites/dedehenley/2024/01/21/setting-an-intention-to-guide-you-through-the-year-ahead/
[6] Psychology Today, Robin Lanehurst M.Ed., Setting Intentions for the New Year, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/educate-advocate-empower/202201/setting-intentions-the-new-year
[7] Truvaga.com, Autumn Reset: Embrace Healthy Habits and Structure for a Strong Fall, https://www.truvaga.com/blog/autumn-reset-embrace-healthy-habits-and-structure-for-a-strong-fall/
[8] Sutter Health, Joanna A. Cooper, M.D., Screens and Your Sleep, https://www.sutterhealth.org/health/sleep/screens-and-your-sleep-the-impact-of-nighttime-use
[9] The University of Texas at Austin, Ashley Lawrence, Finding a Healthy Balance With Diet and Exercise, https://uthealthaustin.org/blog/finding-a-healthy-balance-with-diet-and-exercise
[10] Renaissance, What is growth mindset?, https://www.renaissance.com/edword/growth-mindset/
