Setting our intention is one of the most mindful and powerful activities we can perform. When we set our intention, we turn an energetic thought form into reality. We might even verbalize this intention and give it vibration. We might solidify this intention by writing it down and posting it somewhere so we will be reminded of how we are setting our course. Setting our intention means we are declaring to the universe what we intend to make manifest. Since intention setting occurs in the part of the brain located at the front of our skull, I like to say that we really are leading with our head.

At times of uncertainty, we might find some difficulty setting our intention since our world has been seemingly blown apart. It hasn’t really been blown apart but it probably feels like it – I know that sometimes it can feel that way for me. Our decision-making processes might be muddled by the presence of racing and intrusive thoughts, unanswered questions, the unrelenting pace of the world around us, global crises to name just a few.

I imagine most of us have the experience of having multiple things outside ourselves tugging at us – external factors we signed up for and some we didn’t. We have jobs, children, pets. We have friends and family members we regularly interact with or are expected to interact with, bills to pay, deadlines – the list goes on and on. There are often stressors present we didn’t ask for; bad news on the television, an ill or dying family member or friend bringing us a sense of worry and despair, our car breaks down, winter is coming and we have seasonal affective disorder – again, there is seemingly an endless list for many of us.

To Start…

If you are finding it difficult to determine where to begin and have not yet found the space you need to be with your intention setting, try carrying around a notepad or use the note taking feature on your phone and whenever you have a possible intention come to mind, jot it down. You can do this anytime throughout the day or if you are like me, ideas come to me in the middle of the night, in the shower, at the grocery store, at a red light – inopportune moments but nevertheless I am grateful for clarity when it arrives no matter when or where that happens. To the best of my ability I am sure to make note of them when they arrive. Otherwise, they often keep clattering away until they are deposited out of my brain. 

The intention you set does not need to be earth-shatteringly brilliant, exceedingly luminous or what we imagine to be life changing. The smallest action taken will create forward momentum not unlike the cliched “snowball effect.” Keep it simple. If you are preparing for a divorce, make your first step to seek information on how to go about it. If you are suffering psychologically, start by checking Psychology Today for local therapists. If you have stopped eating in a healthy way, set your intention to start the next day with a healthy breakfast. Trust that as you gain momentum, intentions holding a larger energy with regard to how you make the shifts you desire for an abundant life will show up – even if they need to arrive in the shower.

To Finish

Remind yourself that you are whole and complete and have all of the answers you need to find the clarity you desire right inside of you. That, courageous reader, is the absolute truth.

This article features an excerpt from When They Cheat: Recovering Your Power and Purpose in the Face of Loss and Uncertainty, Copyright © DW Long 2020, All Rights Reserved.

Author(s)

  • DW Long, LCSW

    Therapist | Human Performance Coach | Author | Joy Embracer

    Mindful Coaching Solutions

    DW's life purpose is to help others maximize their capacity for joy, abundance and embrace the beauty of their true nature. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, life coach and an avid podcaster, DW is the founder of Mindful Therapy Solutions and Mindful Coaching Solutions and is soon releasing a guidebook focused on recovering one's power and sense of purpose when facing loss and uncertainty as well as a children's book that teaches mindful breathing. Check out The Wanderer's Guide to Cosmic Fabulosity podcast.