Goal Setting, Journaling, and Intentions
With a new month approaching (well by the time this gets up on the blog, it WILL already be October), I always take the time to sit down and organize my thoughts, goals, and what I want to accomplish in the next month. I have always been a dreamer. I constantly sit and think about all of the things I want to do, all the places I want to see, and all of the people I want to meet. Journaling has always been one of my favorite ways to organize my thoughts. Here are some of my most useful tips when beginning to "organize" your life through journaling.
Breaking It Down
Like I mentioned in one of my first blog posts, the hardest part about succeeding is taking the first step to get there. So many people get overwhelmed by the big picture and they give up before even trying. What I have been doing for the past few months–and as helped me become more productive and less stressed–is looking at what I want to accomplish during that upcoming month and writing down small steps that will get be closer to that goal.Goal setting has been one of the most beneficial things for me. In my head, I can always see these big goals that I do want to accomplish but I find it harder to see the steps that it will take to get there. Even if you aren't breaking down these goals by each month, you can start by breaking down the short-term and long-term goals. How much will you need to accomplish before reaching these goals? What is feasible to work on in your life right now, and what might have to wait until you have more time/freedom in your schedule?Personally, I love using my Passion Planner, to plan out all of my goals. Their Passion Road Map exercise helps me to see what I need to prioritize and how I will accomplish each of the things that I want to do.
Setting Intentions
Something similar to goal setting, but on a much smaller scale, is setting intentions. At the top of each month, I write out my intentions for the month. While this can be closer to a goal (such as: do yoga at least 2 times a week), it can also be something like "embrace the love shown to me and reciprocate it just as much." Intentions can be what you want them to be.What do you intend to accomplish this month? What do you intend to feel this month? What did you do last month that you want to do more/less of?Setting intentions can be done yearly, monthly, weekly, or even daily. At times, when I am feeling like I am all over the place, I will sit down in the morning and just write my intentions for the day–like a sort of to-do list. By doing this, I not only feel more grounded but I feel accomplished when I come back to these intentions at the end of the day.What are your intentions for October? Sneak pumpkin in to every meal?! Stop at least once to acknowledge the colors changing on the trees? Let me know in the comments below.
Journaling
I have always been that person who gets a new journal with full intentions of finishing it but I somehow never do. While I don't journal everyday, I do always try and write when something memorable happens. Whether it be something amazing or something that makes me feel miserable–I want to remember those emotions.While I have yet to finish a journal, I still have journaled since middle school. One of my favorite things is to look at those old journals and get brought back to old those old memories. I got through some of my darkest times in my life by journaling. There is something so comforting about getting all of your thoughts, feelings, anxieties on to paper (which is exactly why I started this whole blogging journey).I like to think of my journal as a friend. A friend that knows everything about you and one that you tell everything to. This friend has no bias and no judgement–they just listen. This friend will listen to you for as long as you would like. While I have a plenty of good friends whom I trust and can talk to, this is always going to be at least some type of bias or judgement. And let's face it, there are just some things that we don't want to share with others.For this reason, my journal has become one of my best friends. For those of us who aren't keen on sharing our problems, a journey can be our safe haven. Journaling can be a way to decompress and let go of unwanted, unhealthy thoughts.
Happy October!
Happy October–a month filled with pumpkin, crisp air, red/orange/yellow crunchy leaves, and the best holiday (Halloween). The winter months are coming and that means a lot of disruption to your mental wellbeing. The cold and dreary weather, holidays, and realization that the year is ending can be overwhelming. I hope that some of my favorite tips for staying on top of my mental health and staying on top of my goals for the month will help you too.All my love,Nikki