How to set
intentions
you can keep

The New Year is a time when many of us reflect on the past 12 months and consider what we’d like to do better on our next trip around the sun.

With that introspection comes the long-standing tradition of making New Year’s resolutions and setting out our stall for the year ahead.

Often though, by February, we find we’ve already fallen back into the same old habits.

Sound familiar? If so, here are some simple tips to help you make positive, lasting changes in 2025…

Set ‘intentions’ not ‘resolutions’

The big problem with New Year’s ‘resolutions’ is that, more often than not, the focus is on stopping ourselves from doing something. We ‘resolve’ to cut out a bad habit and call on ourselves to show ‘resolve’ not to fall down on our promise.

But none of us is perfect, there are bound to be slip-ups along the way, and when that happens it’s about how we react.

Breaking our ‘resolutions’ can feel like a failure, which can lead to us feeling bad about ourselves and, ultimately, giving up on our pledge.

‘Intentions’ are different. Rather than saying we must or must not do something, or having a fixed goal in mind (such as losing a certain amount of weight or running a marathon), it’s about setting a positive direction of travel and striving for progress, not perfection.

An intention could be something as simple as ‘make more time for movement’ or ‘choose more nourishing foods’. These intentions are more flexible and forgiving, so if you do happen to do something that doesn’t quite fit with them then it’s not the end of the world.

Start small and build up slowly

Don’t be too ambitious when setting your intentions. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and change doesn’t happen overnight, so begin with small, achievable steps and then gradually build up from there.

If you’re trying to be more active, for instance, start by simply taking a 10-minute walk every day. Once it’s part of your routine, expand that to 15 or 20 minutes, or look to work a second activity into your day.

Want to eat more healthily? Don’t go on a diet (word to the wise: they never work!). Instead, try working more veg into your meals, or plan one or two days a week where you don’t eat meat.

Whatever your intentions, it’s best to take things slowly and not dive in at the deep end.

Small changes can add up to make a big difference, especially when they are sustainable over a long period of time, and when you start to see progress, you’ll feel more motivated to keep going.

Be clear of your motivation

It’s amazing what you can achieve when you have the right motivation, so choose intentions that make a difference – whether to yourself, someone else, or to the world around you.

Say you want to eat a more healthy diet… why is that exactly? Is it so you have more energy to do your favourite activities? Are you concerned about your health and being able to be there for your loved ones? Do you want to reduce your carbon footprint by eating local produce or cutting down on meat and dairy?

Consider your core values and the type of person you want to be, and align your intentions to this thinking.

The more deeply rooted the motivation, the better chance you will have of success.

Write your intentions down

It can be helpful to reinforce our intentions by writing them down.

If you’re the kind of person that keeps a journal, perfect! If that’s not you, don’t worry… the notes app on your phone will do, or why not stick some post-its on your bedroom or bathroom mirror?

For some people, having intentions visible helps keep them at the forefront of our minds.

That being said, our intentions don’t need to be set in stone. Rather, they can change and evolve as we ourselves progress or as our circumstances change – adjusting so they remain relevant to our lives – so make sure to revisit them regularly and tweak them where necessary.

Pick and prioritise

There are probably lots of things you’d like to do better, but for sustainable change it’s important not to take on too much at once.

Instead, think about the areas of your life where you’d like to have the most impact with your intentions.

Really stressed at work right now? Maybe pick a few specific intentions focused on that area, rather than trying to address too many issues all at the same time.

Be kind to yourself

We are often our own harshest critic and can be far less compassionate towards ourselves than to others.

But as eager as you are to make progress with your intentions, don’t beat yourself up if things don’t go quite as planned.

We all have good and bad days, and sometimes circumstances conspire against us – so we don’t always manage to fit in the exercise we wanted, or eat as healthily as we’d intended.

When you slip up, don’t judge yourself too harshly. Instead, simply accept you are on a journey towards positive, lasting change and continue to strive to do better.

Being kind to yourself creates a healthier mindset, which makes it easier to maintain your intentions in the long term.

Celebrate your wins

Making and maintaining positive change can be hard, so don’t forget to give yourself credit when you succeed or make good progress.

Taking the time to look back on what you’ve achieved and how far you’ve come can lead to a real sense of pride, which in turn boosts your motivation to keep going and reinforces the positive habits you’ve been building.