setting intentions

Setting Intentions: Essence

Julia Ng · May 23, 2013 · Leave a Comment

Here’s Part 3 in the 6-part “Setting Intentions” series. (Start here.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Identify the energy behind the intention

Why: Having clarity about the energy you want in your life means you can start creating that energy immediately.

Whatever the intention you are setting, there is always a core quality underlying it. Dig deeper to find out what the essence of the quality is.

You’d want to start bringing elements of that into your life through action, in whatever way you are comfortable with at the moment. It doesn’t necessarily have to be big, or intimidating.

Personally, I like starting small and simple.

Small → I don’t get scared.
Simple → I will actually get it done. (And bringing the energy in through ACTION is *super* important!!!)

For a long time, I wanted to live in Japan, but couldn’t figure out how. I applied to join a programme to teach English in local schools, but was disappointed both times. Finally, I decided I wanted live there at least for 6 months no matter what.

I didn’t know exactly how I was going to make it happen, but I started filling up my life with more and more Japanese-related activities, e.g. watching more Japanese TV. Super easy starting point, right? 😉 I also started going for Japanese classes again.

Then, I changed all my passwords to things like: ‘iLOVEjapan’, ‘japanhereicome’, ‘heretodayjapantomorrow’.

The core energy behind all that: loving Japan, going to Japan, being in Japan. Even now as I write this, I remember that feeling.

Take note: Avoid using ‘want’ when setting intentions. It shifts the focus to the energy of ‘wanting’, which doesn’t really get anyone anywhere.

Try this:
If it feels challenging to figure out the essence of the quality you are looking for, break down your intention into some kind of activity, e.g. “If I were (doing X), I would be (doing this).” So in my case, it would have been: “If I were in Japan, I would be speaking Japanese every day.”

Give it a shot and let me know how it goes in the comments!

Setting Intentions: Surprise!~

Julia Ng · May 18, 2013 · Leave a Comment

Surprise Tiger Card by drawnbylucysmith

This is Part 2 in the 6-part “Setting Intentions” series. (Start here.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When you feel really stuck figuring out exactly what you want, consider leaving it to the Universe. This means…

Be open to surprises

Why: What we ask for, doesn’t necessarily come in the form we expect it to.

It’s a little like going to a restaurant you like, and saying, “I want to eat healthily but I don’t know what’s good and healthy here, I’ll leave it to you to pick something”, and deciding to accept whatever the chef serves. You may or may not like it, but you’ll have a better idea of which healthy dish you enjoy the next time.

So, if you have certain expectations of what your wish looks like, release those expectations. You could be pleasantly surprised.

There are also times when you actually want to to leave your request a bit more open-ended (Yes, a complete contradiction of #1). When you really have no idea what you truly want, are open to new things, and are willing to take small risks, try setting your intentions in terms of “opportunities”.

For example, if you’re looking for a new job, “Please send me opportunities for a new job, in the highest good of all.”

“Opportunities” because it gives options (you’ve never met anyone so afraid of not having options). Some people might just want to outright ask for a new job. It’s totally up to you, your preferences and the situation you’re in.

“In the highest good of all” – it’s like a safety net for me – it lets me feel I have permission, and that I’m not being selfish.

Over time, you will gain clarity around what you truly want, and be able to set clear and specific intentions.

Take note: There’s no guarantee of a pleasant experience when you set your intentions. Life lessons and challenges can surface as part of fulfilling your intentions. It is only *after* the experience, and you have reflected on it, that you’ll be in a better place.

Try this: To get comfortable setting this kind of intentions, practice using it in small ways in daily life situations where you feel safe to experiment, e.g. set an intention for learning/enjoyment/awareness, then go to the cinema and watch whatever is available next. Or set an intention to have new perspectives, then go to the bus-stop and take whatever bus arrives next. Be open, and be observant.

Setting Intentions: Be Specific

Julia Ng · May 15, 2013 · Leave a Comment

be specific about your intentions — pin this if you like it! 🙂

There is absolutely a place and time for setting goals, but if/when you find setting goals a pain in the butt, digging a little deeper to find the intention behind the goal can help by bringing more meaning to it.

Think of the Universe as an amazing, powerful Delivery-Only Restaurant. It’s a restaurant that produces delicious, soul-nourishing food, and it can deliver whatever you order.

Here’s #1 in this 6-part series. (Catch up on the other tips here: Surprise!, Essence, Size Matters, It’s about YOU, Set it Free.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Be very specific with your order.

Why: The more you know what you want, the easier it is to deliver your order.

When you order food in a restaurant, you talk about the dishes you want, and if you have any specific instructions regarding how you want them prepared, you also mention it.

Imagine what a headache the staff and the kitchen would have if you told them all the things you didn’t want instead. Same concept for setting intentions.

Describe what that looks like to you – one person’s medium is another person’s medium rare – especially when it is something intangible.

What would your life look like if you had this in your life?
How would you feel when you have this in your life?

Talk about what it IS, rather than what it is not. This is not about positive affirmations, or the Law of Attraction. It is about FOCUS.

Take note: These questions are important because they help you clarify your intentions. Sometimes what we think we want, is not really what we want. Be honest with yourself. And be careful what you wish for 😉

Try this: Take 5 minutes or as much time as you like to consider those questions. Get yourself some quiet space and time to ponder. OR decide to think about those questions through your day and let your mind wander.

Come back in a couple of days for the next tip!

How to Ask For Signs

Julia Ng · Apr 16, 2013 · Leave a Comment

It's a sign by sharonismsbhaven — It’s a Sign by sharonismsbhaven

Since we’ve covered what’s not a sign, how signs show up, and wake up missives, we can now finally define what signs are, and how to ask for them.

Here’s my current definition:

“Signs are random happenings that carry obvious, deeper meanings which make sense only to me, in the context of my life experiences, or in relation to my questions / challenges / intentions at that particular point in time.”

What a mouthful, right? But this definition makes it easier for me to quickly decide if something was a sign. What would *your* definition be? Tweak this, or experiment and see what works for you.

Ask for A Sign

I used say, “I need a sign!”, then feel really disappointed (and silly) cos nothing would happen. Strangely, now that I’ve figured it out, I say it a lot less.

Two reasons – first, I decided to trust myself more, instead of waiting for some sign. Secondly, if I truly am in a dilemma, I get proactive and ask for the signs.

The important bit lies in HOW you ask for the signs.

By the way, before we get into it…

The point of learning how to recognise, and ask for signs, is not about focusing on signs, or waiting for them, or looking out for them anywhere and everywhere. This is simply another tool for us to use in our lives.

And even when you do get a sign, you have to do something about it! I don’t mean to be a wet blanket, but a sign is not a magic bullet 😉 Anyway, have fun experimenting with this!

1. What is the sign you want to see/hear/experience?

This is your event marker.

The more familiar you are with the specific symbols that show up in your life, the easier it is to decide. For me, it’s been the fox, the crow/raven and the moth. Even if you don’t have any in mind, just randomly decide on something you don’t usually come across in your daily life, and assign it.

2. When do you want to see it by?

This is your deadline.

The shorter the better. I usually give it 24 hours or till the end of the day, whichever feels right. Having a deadline gives you a cut-off point to stop looking out for the sign. And if you get the sign within that time, you get to feel completely awed by the Universe.

3. Use a statement like this:

If (action) is in the highest good of all, please let me see, hear, or somehow experience (event marker(s)) before (deadline).

Play with different permutations of your request. Go with what feels right.

4. Finally, release your request to the Universe / God / Source.

Go do something else, run errands, whatever, the main thing is to get on with your life. Not releasing your request is like deciding what you want to eat, but keeping it a secret from the waiter, and then wondering what happened to your order.

5. Release your expectations

The biggest thing that stops people from recognising signs, is when they hold certain expectations around it.

If you remember the scene in The Matrix where a cat walks by. It kind of goes “bzzzzt”, and then a similar-looking one walks by again. Trinity says it’s “a glitch in the Matrix”.

The glitch in the Matrix, is exactly what you’re looking for. The little something that cuts through the noise, breaks into your consciousness, and grabs your attention.

It’s the thing that makes you go, “Hm, that was a little odd. What *was* that?”

Signs are subtle. They whisper. They brush pass you in the crowd. They tap you on the shoulder and run off. It’s UP TO YOU to be paying attention.

The movies have led us to expect that signs, our purpose, our calling, whatever, make their appearance in big, dramatic ways. But it’s the movies, and it’s called dramatization. Show business is about being larger than life. Entertain, or the audience snoozes.

In our lives, however, there is no big booming external voice, no swelling score, no giant red arrows, no spotlights pointing to the situation going, “THIS IS A SIGN!”

That comes from paying attention. To all your internal and external worlds.

Granted, there are sometimes big, dramatic signs, but those tend to be be Wake-Up Missives, and personally, I’d prefer not to let things get to that point 😉

So try asking for a sign and let me know how it goes. Do you have your own method for asking for signs?

P.S. A couple more posts in the Sign Series: It’s a Sign! (Not), Signs & Decisions, and Wake-up Missives.

Lunar Power

Julia Ng · Dec 8, 2012 · Leave a Comment

With 2013 around the corner, have you been thinking about your resolutions for next year? Or do you say, “New year resolutions?! Puh-leaaaase! They never work.”

I know it’s cheating but I’ve got a foot in each camp.

Part of me loves the Brand New, Shiny, Clean Slate Feeling. Don’t you? You know what it feels like. Pick up one of those schedule books when you pop by a stationery or book shop and flip through the pages. Ooh, the potential of a fresh start ♥ How exciting!~ Let’s think of some resolutions now! Right? Lol.

Another part of me is jaded by the whole idea of resolutions. I couldn’t tell you a single New Year resolution I saw through the year if you had a gun to my head.

Of course, when I think about it, the significant changes I had created in my life had absolutely nothing to do with the New Year. Because the truth is, we can get that Brand New Shiny Feeling any time. It’s always there. We just need to remember to tap into it.

And if you want to do something, is there really a need to wait till the start of a brand new year? Perhaps it’s a bonus to begin at the start of a new year, easier to keep count for one thing, but why be locked in by traditions and measures of time? Any time is a good time to start and it’s probably easiest and most natural to use the weeks and months for starting points.

New Moon Magic

My favourite time to start on something though, is at the New Moon. The lunar phases are a big thing in Astrology and each phase has different associations. I love them cos they make me feel so in sync with the rhythms and pulses of the Universe.

Stop and listen sometimes. Can you feel it? 🙂

Put simply, the New Moon is for starting things. For planting the seeds. For setting intentions*.

And isn’t that wonderful? Just think about it, every 28 days or so, the Universe gives us a chance to take out a New Slate and start something. Or re-start something.

So, decide on an intention for the month ahead, and think of 1-3 very simple actions that you can do that will help you with your intention. Or a few guidelines that will bring you into better alignment with your intention. Then start doing your actions/guidelines from the New Moon onwards.

Remember, setting intentions without follow-up actions don’t get you anywhere. You have to meet the Universe half way, know what I mean? 😉

So mark your calendars for this coming Thursday, 13 December. The last new moon of the year kicks in at 4:42pm (SG)#. Send out your intentions to the Universe then. No, you don’t have to get super exact with the timing.

Think about it, if you start something at this New Moon, what milestone could you be hitting by the next one? Get a head start now~

—
* ‘Intention’ instead of ‘resolution’ cos ‘intention’ feels more energetically aligned, and ‘resolution’ for me feels like a lot of Willpower, which I’m in short supply of. Go with whatever works for you.
# 12:42 am (LA), 3:42 am (NYC), 5:42 pm (Tokyo)