Contributing to Thrive’s “Learning and Development” theme for the month of October, I thought I’d dive a little deeper into the concept of intention setting.

We all know the benefits of intention setting, though many are confused that it doesn’t always work. There are a few factors that come into play, but the main one is clarity.

Recently, I had a conversation with an associate, regarding on ongoing situation, that I thought would be beneficial. I thought that a mindful conversation was just what was needed to clear things up. My intention was to state the facts as I had interpreted them and to have a discussion around moving forward.

After all, what could possibly go wrong when you are just stating facts?

Apparently, A LOT!

To say it blew up would be an understatement. So, what happened? Or should I say, what didn’t happen? First and foremost, my intention wasn’t clear. I did not have it set past stating a few facts. Because of this, my energy wasn’t anchored and the response was enough to throw me out of my flow. And, since I had nothing to anchor back to, I felt my self scrambling – what in the hell do I do now? Not anticipating the overwhelming response and not having a clear anchor point sent me sailing on stormy waters.

When it comes to getting clear on your intentions, I recommend a few simple steps. They’re what I call anchor points so when you get swirly, you have that stability to come back to. It’s the connectionto that peace within you (even in storms).​​​​​​​

1. Establish the essence of what it is you would like to feel during the experience.
2. Establish the energy you would like to come from during the experience – love, acceptance, and/or appreciation vs. fear, frustration, and/or resentment.
3. Determine the objective of the intention:
   1. What is the purpose or what am I trying to achieve by setting this intention?
   2. What would I like the outcome to be/look like (without being too attached to it)? With intention setting it’s good to have a clear vision to get you to a better understanding of the essence of what you want.

Putting these steps into practice will help you on your journey to setting clear and effective intentions.