Why I believe setting an intention is better than a resolution 👇🏻

According to the dictionary, an intention is a thing intended; an aim, or a plan. Compare that to a resolution, which is a firm decision to do or not to do something.

You can see a resolution is more rigid, which can lead to that all-or-nothing mentality that many of us, especially those who struggle with substances, already have. So that thinking of...

"oh well, I slipped up, so I might as well drink the rest of the week or the month."

"I failed, so I might as well wait until 2023."

All these statements allow you the easy way out and a way to give up. Part of this is because when we set resolutions that are well-intended to improve our lives, we don't have a plan.

Intentions involve planning. So let's take alcohol, for instance. Maybe you say you want to do #dryjanuary. That's all well-intended, but do you have a plan of how you're going to do it?

So often, we say I'm not going to drink, but there are no action steps behind it, leading us to give in more easily. And another big problem is there's no WHY. In any program of mine, we first discuss your why. This is the foundation for every goal you have in life; if you don't have a strong enough reason, you're less likely to commit and follow through.

So if or when you stumble or have a slip-up, you see what you can learn from the lesson. You don't beat yourself up, call yourself a failure, and throw in the towel. You let that slip-up be just that and get back on track the next day because your why is more important than continuing that destructive spiral.

Did you set a New Year's Resolution not to drink but have no plan behind it?

I hate to break it to you, but you're already setting yourself up for failure. Think about it: when you plan and execute the steps in that plan, things actually happen.

If you need a plan to help you with your goal of not drinking, join the Ditch The Drink - 31 Day Challenge starting January 1st!

Click here to set yourself up for success for 2022!