New Year = Renewed Intentions

image via Pinterest

Last year I made some resolutions that I checked-in on each month.  This year, I'm approaching the next 364 days and beyond not with resolutions but with Intentions.  

Jess Lively, a business lady and blogger here in Chicago, is all about living with intention and I've taken inspiration from her.  This year I'm setting intentions that will guide my day-to-day decisions.  Intentions are not meant to be measurable but instead, guidelines for living that are demonstrated by actions.  

When I really boil it down I have two main intentions.  One focused on health and wellness and another related to my work both professionally and with the blogs.

Health and Wellness:
Be a role model to my family by eating clean and being active.

Danny and I both have agreed that we feel much better when we make our own food at home using a wide variety of whole ingredients.  We both enjoy cooking at home and trying new recipes.  It will be learning process and we won't be perfect (aka we won't be nutzo people about it either).  But I am looking forward to making a healthy diet part of my daily routine.

Secondly, for Christmas I got a Fitbit wearable fitness tracker and it has been interesting to wear for a few weeks now (Danny and I opened ours early).  The only days that I've been able to meet my step count is if I walk to work.  In the spring, summer, and fall that isn't as much of an issue but when it is A Degree, as in 1 degree) outside I must admit walking 45 minutes to work isn't really rewarding.  To promote daily activity we got Fitbits for our family members too.  It will be fun to see us all be more active and to build that extra movement into our routines!

Work and Writing:
To produce content and do work that reflects my creativity and my dedication to making things better.

When I think about my professional ambitions and what will bring me the most fulfillment I am consistently drawn to the notion of making things better.  Better can mean making tasks more efficient and easier, or building and contributing to make a project or a post better for my readers or my clients.  Creativity comes naturally and is very helpful when trying to improve the work I do.  I think this intention is flexible enough to apply to most professional roles I can take on but it also applies to blogging.  

These two intentions will influence how I approach each day and I believe they will help to foster success.  Each has some elements that could be molded into resolutions and specific goals but I'm going to try and table the urge to measure my success.  

So what are some of your resolutions this year?  Could any of them be formed into intentions?  Do you like that intentions are not specific and measurable?  Let me know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter.