Setting Goals and Intentions with Lisa Messenger

Every year between Christmas and New Year we spend a day mapping out our vision for the following year. We (my fiancé and I) do this away from home over a beautiful lunch at a nice location (this year we’ll be at one of our locals in Bangalow).

We use an A4 blank notepad and draw a mind-map on the front with areas important to us (individually and together) - friends, family, health, fitness, travel, wedding, finance, community, charity, home and all other key topics. We then give each a full page and do a brain dump of all the values and goals on each. We then shortlist the top three of each area. We then get really specific about actions, timeframes and resources needed to make each a reality. Finally, on a completely separate day with a clear mind, we have some fun! We rip up magazines, choosing words and pics that represent the overarching vision. It’s a super fun way to get crystal clear on our visions for the year. 

I don’t really believe in short term New Year's resolutions as I tend to break them and then feel guilty. I do however love a good vision with some solid action.

A lot of people fear failure. But I’ve long been of the belief that making failure our friend (fail fast, fail often) is a great way to learn. It’s only a defeat if we believe it to be so. Fail. Learn. Iterate. Try again. And be able to laugh at yourself. And then start over with experience. On criticism. A good reminder - only listen to those you would seek advice from. Those you trust the opinion of and those who have specific experience in that area. And lastly, definitely don’t expect growth to be linear. It rarely is. Stay true to your purpose, your vision and be open to how it manifests and plays out.

Throughout it all, always practice gratitude. Keep yourself accountable. A great way to do this is by using a journal I created just for this exact purpose. The Daily Gratitudes Journal has been created as a daily tool to keep you accountable. Not just to be more grateful, but to transform your entire mindset around getting the very best from your life, in every area. Only you can keep yourself accountable. It’s up to you to carry this journal with you everywhere, to take the time to fill it out and to action mindfulness into your everyday life – schedule it in if you have to! It’s time to turn little actions into habits and habits into routines. 

Within the questions on each Daily Gratitudes page, you’ll notice a question prompting ‘Today’s vision’. This is an important one and ties back to what I was saying at the start of this piece.  What you visualise often eventuates. Write out what you’d love to happen each day and visualise it, manifest it and make it happen. 

Let’s go 2023! You’ve got this! 

SHOP