Written by: Eva Gruber, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Once a client got promoted to a team-leading position in a fast-paced consulting agency. She felt stressed and restless even before! Why? She tends to have too many hats on and pressures herself the most by setting the bar for success very high.
One day she shared that she wants to take a 15-minute lunch break every day. That’s a great goal you might say as too many of us leaders or change-maker take too little breaks.
Still, by setting this goal only, my client would have missed out on this:
Within deep conversations, she realized for once that she needs more than a lunch break. I guided her to get curious and discover this intention instead, the intention that she wants to stop running through her packed days.
As I invited her to go even deeper, she discovered her final intention, the intention that she wants to learn how to say NO with clarity and without feeling guilty.
Let’s recap on this story:
Many of us - maybe also you - learned to set smart goals only, and by that you miss out on needed intentions. Goals that are specific and can be measured are too little in dimension. It’s your intentions that initiate your change!
Your intentions paint you the bigger picture of the behavior you want. They are the WHY and your crutch you can lean on when behavior change feels hard. They enable you to discover many new behaviors to achieve your intentions, and turn the right ones into habits.
Hence, let’s look at 3 intentions for any leader or change-maker for the year 2022:
Building our first venture 10 years ago, I restlessly ran from A to B. I had 100 items on my mental agenda, and believed that the next idea is the better one or that no invite can be declined as I might miss out on something. I also put the bar for success high, as my client. Doing so, I chased one summit after the other, being nourished by external recognition. If you see yourself in this, this if for you:
Instead of setting a goal like “I need to achieve x-figure numbers in sales in the first quarter.”, how about an intention like “I want to pace myself and focus more on my team and family”.
When I got stressed, angry or insecure as a first-time founder, thoughts like “I’m not good enough.” easily dominated me. Today, I know that this belief is common with too many of us as we have learned this mental self-sabotage from a young age. I also had other, harsh responses like “I should have known this.” that made me down at times where I actually should have cherished myself the most. If you see yourself in this, this if for you:
Instead of setting a goal like “I need to become the expert on X in 2022, no matter its costs.”, how about an intention like “I want to judge myself less, and put on the oxygen-mask of empathy when I feel stressed, angry or insecure.”.
When I got asked to deliver on something, I used to run for it - as fast and perfectly as I could! Doing so, I always put myself last. I didn’t take care of my priorities, needs, and wants. Due to my people-pleasing and perfectionism, I felt out of energy many times. I got frustrated too as my tasks remained undone at the end of a long day. If you see yourself in this, this if for you:
Instead of setting a goal like “I need to get all requests done by the end of a day.”, how about an intention like “I want to set healthy boundaries, instead of feeling lonely and overwhelmed”.
These intentions might not be ready made for you. Hence, let’s start your journey to set your wanted intentions together - to feel well, live healthier relationships, and perform better and especially at peak-times like stress, anger or insecurity.
Yes, finding your intention is a journey but it’s your door-opener for lasting change!
Share your intention for 2022 with me, and receive a hint! Email it to hi@evagruber.org.
Look out for my next BRAINZ article on “Why We Need To Change Our Bad Mental Habits First”.
Follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram. Learn more about my support for Good Habits and Mental Fitness on my webpage.
Eva Gruber, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Eva Gruber is a Habit Coach, Mental Fitness Expert, and International Best-Seller Author. She supports entrepreneurs, managers, and teams who “have too much on their plate” to improve their wellbeing, relationships, and peak-performance. How? Through unmasking their mental self-sabotage and establishing good habits.
As only 1 in 5 people use their (mental) potential, and 6+ hours of your day are based on mostly unconscious habits, this is a game-changer! By training 3 brain muscles and good habits, you establish your mental fitness (positive intelligence) and supportive behavior. Doing so, you feel happier, live healthier relationships with your team, clients, and family, and improve peak-performance especially when e.g. stressed, angry, or insecure.
Eva Gruber founded 2 ventures, and supported hundreds of challenged people. She is trained by and collaborates with leading researchers and experts, like Professor BJ Fogg PhD (Stanford University) or neuroscientist Shirzad Chamine (Positive Intelligence). She has been featured as a speaker at events like TEDx and podcasts, as a best-seller author, and an executive contributor for BRAINZ. She lives in Vienna/Austria with her French fiance, her yoga mat, and an adventurer’s mind.
