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I used to wake up and feel as if I wanted my bedsheets to swallow me and just hold me prisoner until the day (and all its tortures) had passed. I’m sure you’ve been there too.
It feels as if there’s no point, that this day is just one more curse, and you simply can’t see your way forward. When your daily intentions aren’t clear and positive, you sit in limbo.
Like a robot without instructions, your brain and body idle, and you will struggle to get either of them moving. So you end up death scrolling on Facebook or Instagram because you lack a reason not to engage in more mind-numbing social media.
Perhaps you’ve even tried some positive affirmations, but you don’t really believe all that “I am courage, and I am going to conquer this day” nonsense, right? You just can’t see it, so you don’t believe it, and you sink further into seeing life as being a darker shade of gray.
Positive daily intentions are different. With a firm daily intention in place, you don’t have to believe some intangible phrase because you know exactly where you are going, what you want to achieve, and most importantly, how to do it.
You supercharge your brain, getting it ready to actually conquer the day. Here’s how.
What Are Daily Intentions?
Daily intentions are plans you make for the day ahead, goals you set, and directives you issue your brain.
It’s about deciding what direction your life will take on this day and at this time. I find that when I have a few positive daily intentions, my day just runs so much smoother, and I actually become more productive.
It’s so easy to look at a day and think, “Oh, God, not again.” But when you have positive daily intentions, you start each day with a mindset geared at “Thank you, God. What’s next?” This simple shift in how you think and what you plan for the day can make a world of difference as you move from grumpy to gratitude and from mental inertia to forward momentum.
Life works best when it’s lived; there are no free rides or simply cruising along events. With positive intentions, you create direction, channel energy, and determine where you end up.
How Positivity Empowers Your Daily Life
We all know what a negative day feels like. You wake up, feel like a bus hit you, drag your feet to the kitchen where you try to revive yourself with energy drinks (as your liver looks on in horror), and finally, you slump through your day.
Sounds like fun? Nope.
A positive day is about taking authority of your life, the minutes and hours you are given, and what you accomplish in your day.
When you step forward into a positive day, you wake up when you planned, get dressed, give your body what it needs to function optimally (a healthy breakfast or some green tea if you like intermittent fasting), and you have a list of things you are prepared to do.
You know where you are heading the minute your head leaves the pillow, and there’s no negativity and confusion about what you want today.
Intentions vs Affirmations
You may wonder if intentions and affirmations are the same, and they’re not. Where affirmations are positive statements that something is good or happening to you, an intention is the action of preparing the mind to do something in the nearby future.
It’s about setting the wheels in motion, not just stating you will, but actually seeing yourself doing it and planning the steps to get there.
Using affirmations helps you reprogram the brain, changing the words you use that set your motivational pathways. But using intentions is a promise you make to yourself. With an intention, you set goals, visualize, and generate forward momentum on a psychological level.
How to Use Positive Intentions
Positive intentions require that you lay the groundwork for what you want in life. You have to create a roadmap that guides you through each day. It’s very easy to slip back into grinding your wheels in place if you don’t have the right approach.
Therefore, I always start where I ended — the previous night. I love journaling, so this is where I plan my positive intentions for the next day. Each night, I sit and create the next day’s intentions.
Being somewhat ambitious, I’ve learned not to overwhelm myself. What seems like a great idea at 11.30 p.m. the previous night won’t seem so great when there are ten intentions waiting the next morning at 5.30 a.m. So pace yourself.
I started with just one intention. It wasn’t a “holy cow” kind of intention. Something simple can be as effective to change your day from negative to positive.
It’s important to think about that intention as often as you can during the day (or night), letting your brain percolate on the idea and begin to create the necessary neural energy and preparedness.
When you start achieving your intentions, keep track of the victories. I like to do so in my journal (and I record the setbacks too, so I can learn), which helps generate more energy to keep going when a day’s been tough.
Remember: A positive intention isn’t just saying you want to do something. It’s about saying you are doing something today, and knowing exactly how you will do that. You identify a goal, set the steps to achieve it, and track whether you are doing what you intended.
41 Positive Daily Intentions to Start Your Day
With the right positive intentions, all aspects of your life will thrive. By looking at different intentions for each part of your life, you can achieve all your goals and walk forward with positivity and gratitude.
However, not everyone’s day starts in the morning, and for someone who works shifts, their day may only start in the afternoon or evening. I also find that a day may need a restart (or reset of some sort), which is why I included positive intentions for the afternoon and evening.
Morning Intentions for the Week
How you start your day will say a lot about what happens for the rest of the day. Your morning intentions are most important as you have to use them in channeling your positive energy into the day in constructive ways.
This morning, my intention is to:
1. Check in with myself and acknowledge my feelings.
2. Tick off items on my to-do list so I can move on to great things.
3. Approach each challenge creatively and avoid panic responses.
4. Notice the beauty around me.
5. Engage in a random kindness act to make someone else’s day beautiful too.
6. Rest more, letting my eyes close for five minutes each hour, so I can invest in inner peace.
7. Drive to work peacefully, listening to positive talk shows or podcasts that help me embrace my power to be mindful and calm.
8. Be patient in my dealings with people around me.
9. Show myself kindness and gratitude.
10. Walk barefoot on the lawn for five minutes to feel closer to nature.
Afternoon Intentions for the Week
By midday, we often experience a fading of energy, and the day may start to turn south from where you were heading. Your sudden loss of energy may be because you are tired or simply because life is busy, and your positivity may have been leached away by events and people around you.
Using a positive intention or two is a great way to recharge, refocus, and redirect your course.
This afternoon, my intention is to:
11. Have a cup of tea and message my loved ones.
12. Work for only an extra hour before going home.
13. Go home early to watch my child’s soccer game.
14. Meditate for 10 minutes before I drive home so I can leave my stress at work.
15. Buy healthy food for a wholesome dinner.
16. Fix the door my wife has repeatedly asked me to fix.
17. Take some time for self-care and nap once I get home.
18. Call my parents for a long overdue chat.
19. Join or support a local youth club that performs at charity events in my area.
20. Walk my dog for at least an hour in the neighborhood.
Evening Intentions for the Week
When the day is almost done, it’s very easy to slip into low energy mode, which leads to bad sleep patterns and a general feeling of being tired and depressed.
Using positive intentions, you can create more energy for your night so you can head to bed without feeling quite as tired as you usually do.
This evening, my intention is to:
21. Spend quality time with my family.
22. Go out with an old friend and catch up.
23. Rearrange my closet so I can find all the lovely clothes I don’t get to wear.
24. Read a good book that I’ve been dying to get to.
25. Start doing yoga to take better care of my body and meditate for inner peace.
26. Take some time to apply a hair mask and just relax before bed.
27. Journal about my day and how I can tackle the challenges that have been weighing on my mind.
28. Simply relax with a bowl of popcorn and some Netflix.
29. Prepare my breakfast and lunch for tomorrow so I don’t have to rush in the morning.
30. Organize my email inbox so I feel less pressured by all the unanswered mail and spam that I still need to clear.
Weekend Intentions for You
Weekends are usually a time to relax and get to all the things you didn’t do in the week. It’s for family, friends, travel, and leisure time. Sadly, many of us let our work intrude on our weekends, which leaves us with resentment and drains our energy.
Positive intentions can help you carve out time for the things you always set aside.
This weekend, I intend to:
31. Go for a full-body massage to rest and unwind.
32. Play soccer with my kids and take them for ice cream.
33. Go hiking with my partner and leave work and worries behind.
34. Invite my neighbors over for a barbecue so we can catch up.
35. Curl up with a good book and a warm blanket on Sunday afternoon.
36. Plant the backyard garden that I’ve been planning.
37. Finish the online course that I’ve started.
38. Spend quality time with my partner.
39. Go see the show I’ve wanted to see all summer.
40. Attend my goddaughter’s christening.
41. Clear out the things from my home or garage that I no longer need so I can donate the unwanted items to charity.
Final Thoughts on Positive Daily Intentions
The daily intentions you set for yourself have power over you. These should be guideposts and not things you look upon as being “have to dos.”
With the right intentions, you can steer your life onto a positive path and create forward momentum, which will carry you through the rough patches.
Combine positive daily intentions with daily affirmations for an excellent dose of power and purpose each morning. Keep track of your progress, and hold yourself accountable to your intentions so they don’t turn into castles in the sky.
You have the power to move forward and overcome challenges by setting firm intentions that give meaning to your day. Even if your day has been terrible, you can still claim that you did what you intended, and this makes your day a victory.
For even better intention setting, explore the use of visualization techniques to create a better life. So, go on, conquer the day.
And if you're looking for articles about positivity, be sure to check out these blog posts:
- 45 Motivation Affirmations to Succeed and Stay Positive
- 103 Positive Daily Reminders to Increase Your Life Satisfaction
- 50 Quick Things to Do When You’re Feeling Down
