#76: Creating Your Own Intention-setting Ritual

You've heard me talk about setting intentions as a key step in being able to flow with life, but what does that actually look like and why does it even matter?

It was a New Moon yesterday, and the days surrounding a New Moon are ideal for setting intentions.  Intentions are not so much things you want to add to your to-do list, but rather,  a choice to move consciously towards doing something or creating a particular way of being in life; choosing how to approach or live out something.

They're about aligning with your highest good and choosing intentional actions to do so.

In today's episode, I'm going tell you:

🗸 What an Intention-setting Ritual is
🗸 Why you need it to flow with life
🗸 How to create your own intention-setting ritual


Grab the full show notes and resources at www.cairnyogawellness.com/podcast76 and subscribe and listen wherever you catch your podcasts: 

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Resources:

Intention-setting Worksheet

Daily Rhythms Tracker

More Episodes Like This:

Episode #40: Energetic Rhythms and You
Episode #52: Intention-setting for Focus in Life, Energetic Rhythms Phase 1
Episode #73: Habits vs. Rituals

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Transcript

Cathy: 0:00

You've heard me talk about setting intentions as a key step in being able to flow with life. But what does that actually look like? And really why does it even matter. In today's episode. I'm going to tell you what an intention setting ritual is, why you need it to flow with life and how to create your own intention- setting ritual. Hey friends. Welcome to episode 76 of the show. Today is all about setting intentions because just yesterday. We had a new moon and new moons are a beautiful time to set intentions along with the start of your menstrual cycle. If you use that as your energetic rhythms guide. But today I'm going to talk you through the details of an intention setting ritual so that you can craft your own. Now before we get started. You might want to pause this podcast right now and look in the show notes, click on the link for the intention setting worksheet. If you don't already have a copy of it, click on that link, download it, print it out, and maybe use it to follow along as you listen to this podcast episode. You can either get that from the link in the show notes, or you can go to cairnyogawellness.co/intentions, and that will bring you to the page so that you can download your own intention setting worksheet and use that as a reference or as a guide, as you are listening to the show. Now, this is a worksheet that you can certainly use. One or two times, or you can use every time. I pretty much use it almost every month to set my intentions. Or you can use. Your journal or something else, but for now, if you haven't already pause the episode, Click on the link to download the intention, setting worksheet, download it and grab it. Then meet me back here. And we'll walk through it and I'll tell you exactly what you need to know about creating your own intention, setting ritual. Okay, first of all, let's break down intentions and what they are. Remember from episode 52, when I first talked about the first phase of your energetic rhythm cycle and how it's all about setting intentions. I also gave you the definition of intention, but just in case you haven't listened to that one. And remember you can go back and listen to that one. After you've listened to this one, it's totally fine. And intention is a choice to move consciously towards doing something or creating a particular way of being in life. It's choosing how to approach or live out something. So it's not just something that you're putting on your to-do list to check off. It is. A choice to move consciously towards doing something or creating a particular way of being in life. Choosing how to approach or live out something. Okay. When we put that together in terms of intention setting, It's a conscious effort to move in the direction you want to go. It's claiming your power to flow with life. Even when life feels like it's pushing against you. It's a way of claiming your power and stepping into your power. Now that you know, a little bit more about what I mean, when I'm talking about intention and setting intentions, let's talk about ritual. I just did an episode on this, not too many back, I believe it's episode 73. So just a few back on habits versus rituals and what makes a ritual, a ritual. So refer back to that episode again, after you've listened to this episode. A ritual gives meaning and purpose. It creates a meaningful space to do something. And it's actually a sacred way of putting your spirit and authenticity into a habit to give it more meaning in your life. It's an intentional act, that results from an increase in the amount of attention or energy that you put into something. So what differentiates it from a habit is that a habit is kind of mindless. You generally can do it without too much thinking or intention. But when you shift into that ritual mode, You are putting meaning behind whatever you do. So, when we call intention, setting a ritual. It means that we're basically just doing it on purpose because we want to create a particular feeling. And maybe even anchor in that feeling into our being or into who we are so that we are more likely to get a specific outcome. It's creating this sacred feeling. Around what we're doing. And that's why I call it an intention setting ritual. Now I've also in the past called it an intention setting meditation. And sometimes I do that when I am leading a group through the intention setting process, I'll call it a meditation because we do do some more visualization within that. But for your own purposes. And when you're doing this intention setting practice at home, it's a ritual. Intentions have a tendency to be more sensed than consciously chosen. So in order to sense your intention, you do have to take the opportunity to get quiet, to move inward and to tune into your inner guidance and where you feel you're being led. It's not just a sense of, I want to do this, this and this and check these things off my list. Those are maybe steps on your way to your intentions. But the intention is much broader than that usually. It's not about doing and checking things off your list necessarily. It might be in some instances, like if you've got a big project you're working on and you want to really embody that project, then maybe that's the thing that you're putting on your list as that's your intention, so that all of your energy flows towards getting that one project done. And living that whole heartedly. But overall intentions are generally a way of being, a way of living. And they come from sensing what your inner guidance is calling you to do. We need the intention setting part of the energetic rhythms, because that's what sets the tone for the rest of the cycle. Setting your intentions at the beginning, at the start is what sets the tone and the mood for how you're going to move through the next three weeks of the cycle, three to four weeks of the cycle. And that's how you begin to flow with life. There's this energy behind the time that we set intentions. It's this time when you are. Really very able to tune into what your inner guidance is calling for. And that's why you do it at the beginning of whatever cycle you're at, whether it's the moon cycle or your menstrual cycle. We set it at the beginning because we can tap into our inner guidance and hear that inner voice inside of us a little bit more than later on. We set those intentions, we call on that and then we use that to begin to flow, to move as our energy grows into the next cycle, and then to put stuff out there into the next cycle and then to wrap things up. And we're just letting that be the guide. So intention setting is crucial so that you can step into your power and actually live out how you want to live. Instead of feeling like life is running you, you can flow with life. I mentioned at the beginning of the episode, that this is an ideal time to do your intention setting ritual, because we just had a new moon. That's one time to do intention setting. Now, if you use the moon as your guide for your energetic rhythms, which if you're not sure which to use, whether you use the moon or your menstrual cycle, if you're a woman go back and check out some of the earlier episodes of learning about your energetic rhythms, and that'll tell you exactly what to use. I'll link to some of those in the show notes as well. But whether you're using the moon or your menstrual cycle, at the start of it at the start of each of those cycles is the ideal time to do your intention setting. So with the new moon, it's generally within the first three days of that new moon. The new moon kind of lasts one to three days when the moon is dark and that's a beautiful time to set those intentions. And if you're using your menstrual cycle, Then within the first three days of your menstrual cycle is an ideal time. It's not going to hurt you if you do it further into the week. So maybe the first seven days, but the first three days of your menstrual cycle is ideal. In my opinion, your menstrual cycle is a stronger indicator of working with your own energy because it's your innate or internal energy versus the moon's energy. And the moon is nature's rhythm, right? The moon and the seasons. Those are all of nature's rhythms and we feel that energy. We feel all of that energy around us. But the energy that we feel from within our innate energy, from our hormones, from the vibration of our body, that's what's closest to us. So I always cue people that if you have a natural, organic menstrual cycle, not altered by birth control or hormones. Then use your menstrual cycle. Otherwise use the moon's energy. And when you set intentions you're going to set them for the upcoming four to five weeks, however long your cycle is, or however long that cycle is now, the moon cycle is generally about 29 and a half days. Menstrual cycle is on average 28 ish days. Intentions are being set for the upcoming four to five weeks. Lets Walk through how I guide people through an intention, setting ritual for the most part. Now, keep in mind that often, if I'm leading this as a group, I go off script and I do what feels right in the moment because I'm listening to my inner guidance and I'm feeling and playing off of the energy in the room and what might be needed in that moment. But. If I were going to systematize it, this is what I would do. And that's why I put it on a worksheet. So just a reminder that there is no right or wrong way to actually do this. The worksheet is just a loose format. Do what feels best for you and what your inner guidance is speaking to. Create your own ritual to keep your interest. Because if this what's on the paper, doesn't exactly work for you, then do something that will work for you. It's just like any habit you might have to play around with it a little bit to figure out what's gonna work best and keep you coming back to doing it regularly, because this is something that you want to come back to every month or on a regular basis. In order to create your own ritual, you might involve music. There might be some other form of sound, maybe it's singing bowls or some other sort of brown noise. Maybe it's scents that you use. Different scents, bring different feelings and emotions, and maybe you have one that you specifically like to use with your intention setting, and then it always brings you into that same frame of mind. Maybe it's the setting that you do it in, perhaps it's a particular room or the lighting. Whatever it may be, create this ritualistic or sacred space, sacred container for you to begin to tune in more to your inner guidance. And when you do all those things, when you engage all of the senses, it only allows you to tune in more to your own inner voice because it's putting you in a place of comfort. So I encourage you to, like I said, create the space that is going to help you feel safe. That's going to help you feel the most connected with yourself. And the other thing is to schedule this intention, setting ritual, put it on your calendar as a reminder. It eventually becomes a habit and you eventually just know that, okay. Here's why I'm in my cycle. Here's where the moon is. Or you maybe have those reminders on your calendar too. And you'll know. And remember that you need to do your intention setting ritual. But in the beginning. Schedule it. Put it on your calendar so that you don't miss it. And so that it's also scheduling time with yourself to nurture yourself and to connect with yourself. Friends, this is so important and being a, do it all person being kind of the warrior over-functioner person means you frequently put yourself. At the bottom of the list. And that self care doesn't always come that self connection. Doesn't always come as a first priority. But all of the work that you're doing to connect with yourself is a way of understanding yourself better. And when you understand yourself better, you're better able to know what you need to do so that you can flow with life instead of feeling like there's chaos surrounding you and your it's pulling your energy in a bunch of different directions. So schedule the intention, setting ritual, put it on your calendar. Now the other invitation here is to write or draw your intentions. I know on the worksheet, there's not a ton of space to draw. You could always do it on the back, or you could always do it on a separate sheet of paper. But. If you are more of a person who is drawn to. Drawing, no pun intended. Then. Grab a journal. Grab your drawing pad and begin to draw and creatively. Put your intentions down on paper. I've done this praying in color workshop before led by someone else. And. It was all about doodling, your prayers and drawing and color. And it was beautiful and it was, it was wonderful. And I used words and doodles, and that's something that you could easily do with this intention setting too. So if that, if that speaks to you more than I would invite you to do that, On the worksheet it leaves space for up to three intentions. You don't have to do three intentions. You could do one. But I will recommend that you limit it to three, because any more than three, gets a little bit cumbersome and then it almost feels like a to do. And then you're getting in your head when you don't meet all of those intentions and intentions are not a thing to necessarily meet or check off your list. Right. You've heard me say that. They are a way of living, of being. And three is probably the max that's, that's the most manageable. So these are things that you want to move towards or to keep in your awareness. Remember quiet you're overachiever. It doesn't need to be more than three. It doesn't even need to be more than one. Maybe it's just one and it's a mantra or an affirmation that you want to continue living by or keeping in your awareness. That's okay. These are not action steps. They are a way of being. Once you've had a chance to sit quietly with your breath for awhile. You'll generally be able to sense some intention coming up. And you might have to prompt that by asking what is it that I need most at this time? And that's one way to prompt your inner guidance to speak to you. The first word or words that come to mind are generally. What your awareness is sensing that you need most. Those are strong intentions. Put those down. After you've sensed your intentions then you can take the opportunity to jot down specific milestone steps that you need to take in order to align with that intention and the worksheet leaves space for you to begin to write those steps. What are the things that, you know, you need to do in order to work towards that intention that you've listed down there. And of course, all of this can be done with doodling withdrawing with allowing your creative juices, to just flow onto the paper as your pen moves. After you have decided on what those steps are, that need to be taken in order to move towards that intention. Then I would encourage you to create an affirmation or a mantra to go with each intention for the month. This doesn't have to be done, but we do know science shows that the way that you talk to yourself, will be how you live out your life. So affirmations and mantras are beneficial in helping you believe and anchor in that intention. Once you've written all the things down with your intentions that you know you want to write down or feel called to write down, then you can begin to anchor in that intention. Now this is an optional step. It is useful, but if you haven't really worked with anchoring much before, it might be something that you wait until there's a guided process for you to move through this so that you can anchor it. But whatever involves your senses is going to help you anchor not only the intentions, but also the ritual you create the intentions in and basically an anchor makes it stick. And anchor is a way of bringing your awareness back to something positive. An anchor is the opposite of a trigger. A trigger is an anchor in a negative aspect. An anchor is the positive. You can activate your sensory awareness while thinking of each individual intention and visualize yourself aligning with those intentions it's more likely to stick in your awareness. It's more likely to stay with you. The more clearly you can see yourself aligning with the intentions. The more likely you will actually align with them. So that might involve some sort of, visual auditory, kinesthetic, or felt experience, um, smell, taste, all of those things. That's where I say, when you create this ritual, maybe you have sound going. Maybe you have smells going or sense going. Maybe you have, um, certain, a certain look to the room that you're doing this in. Maybe you have a certain feel or, or a cushion or. Uh, chair and a desk that you sit at. Whatever it may be when you put all of the combination of those things together. It will essentially anchor you into the fact that you're doing intentions and these are the intentions that are going to be lived out. That's anchoring in your ritual. With each intention, if you can visualize yourself doing them and notice all the senses that come along with doing them. That's going to help anchor in the intention to you. And then the final step is to let go of attachment. Put it in God's hands and just do your best to create the best opportunity to live those intentions out. There's even an affirmation included for you on this worksheet that helps you align with releasing attachment to the outcome because friends, we can do all the things to set the intentions and. Do the work to align with those intentions, but ultimately it's in a higher powers hands. And we have to let go of the control or the attachment to actually controlling the outcome. That's how you create your own intention setting ritual. Now, there are a couple other steps that I want to visit with you about, because if you print it off the sheet, you've noticed that it is two pages or it's front and back. So on the backside of that intention setting seat sheet, or on the second page of it. There's space for reflections observations and celebrations, and then things to consider for the upcoming cycle. So you want to keep this sheet handy or the journal that you use for intention setting. Because you're going to revisit those intentions at the full moon and around the end of the cycle. You might even revisit it weekly, just so that it stays fresh in your mind. I like to keep my intention setting worksheets, sitting on my desk after I filled it out so that it is in front of me all month long. And I can remember the things that I'm working towards. In the top section of that worksheet there's space for you to reflect on what's going well, maybe what is not going as well and what you've had to maybe shift away from. Keep in mind that your intentions can change throughout the month. They don't have to remain the same. Because you might realize that you now need to go down a different path. You can write down any observations. And of course, any celebrations, because celebrating is a part of the energetic rhythm cycle. And it's another crucial phase that we often forget to do. It's the fourth phase of your energetic rhythm cycle. And it's one of those that sometimes we don't even do at all, and when you don't do that, you're not completing the cycle and it's not actually finishing anything. And in your mind, it's left, hanging open and there is no acknowledgement of ending and everything has an ending, and then we get to begin again. So the celebrations are crucial. So use that space on the back to actually jot down reflections and celebrations. And then at the bottom of that page, there's a place to write down things to consider for your next cycle. So maybe things come up and you realize, oh, I wanna remember this. I'm not working on it this month, but I want to do it next month. Then once you have reflected, celebrated, you can start all over again with the next month, because then another cycle begins and you will set intentions again, just as you did this month. This intention setting ritual that we talked about today is generally done monthly, but you can do the same ritual on a smaller scale, maybe weekly and maybe even a mini version daily to prep for the day. That's what I do. The productivity or energetic rhythm cycle can be zoomed out for longer periods of time or dialed in for shorter periods of time, like a day, or even for specific projects. So as we wrap up today, just remember that the new moon was yesterday. So use some time over the next few days to set intentions. Remember an intention is a choice to move consciously towards doing something or creating a particular way of being in life. It's choosing how to approach or live out something. It's being able to slow down enough to be intentional about how you move through life. And that's a big part of flowing with life Check out the show notes for all the links from today's show and cheers to cultivating your own version of health, harmony, and happiness in your life. I'm Cathy Struecker and you've been listening to health, harmony and happiness with Cathy.