How to Set an Intention for the Day
- Kidest OM
- Jun 9, 2022
- 7 min read
Updated: Nov 16
Intention setting is a skill and putting it to practice in different ways will help you learn how to set an intention that's coherent and effective. You can set annual intentions, quarterly intentions, and monthly intentions. You can also set an intention for the day.
Daily intentions are a great way to put your cocreative power to practice in deliberate creation. They help you develop focus and stay in vibrational alignment with what you want to attract and manifest. In this post about how to set an intention for the day, you will learn that like any other skill you develop, setting intentions and manifesting what you want improves with practice.
The more you engage in setting intentions and experiencing the effects of your conscious and deliberate intent, the more you can learn from and refine your process to manifest like a pro.
Plus, it can be really fun to experience your cocreative power at work in your daily life activities.
What does it mean to set an intention?
Setting an intention means consciously choosing a specific outcome you want to experience. Similar to setting a goal, you focus on a specific desired end you want to experience and then articulate it. Intention setting is a practice that’s rooted in various spiritual traditions so the context of setting intentions is different from goal setting. Instead of passively wishing for something to be different in your life, you set an intention articulating what the new and improved experience will be. That step begins the process of attracting and manifesting that intention into your life through the law of attraction.
The practice of setting intentions has been around for many years. From teachings on the law of assumption (assuming the state of your fulfilled wish) to popular teachings on deliberate creation, intention setting is a primary practice in many conscious creation frameworks.
One of the key benefits of intention setting is it shifts your perspective from passive reaction to your experiences to active participation through co-creating with the universe. It's a tool for mindfulness that helps you live more deliberately, making conscious choices rather than operating on autopilot. By regularly setting intentions, you develop greater self-awareness and create meaningful direction in your life.
How to set an intention to the universe?
Setting an intention to the universe involves communicating your desires in a way that the universe can respond to through synchronicity. The language of the universe is coherence, an orderly vibrational signal or broadcast that conveys a clear desire.
Begin by getting clear about what you want. Take time to reflect deeply—not just on surface desires, but on what would genuinely bring you fulfillment. Once you've identified your intention, find a quiet space where you can center yourself through meditation or deep breathing. Ground yourself in the present moment.
Express your intention clearly and positively, as if it's already unfolding. Instead of "I don't want to be stressed," say "I am now cultivating peace and calm." Speak it aloud, write it down, or hold it silently in your mind. Importantly, infuse your intention with genuine positive emotion and belief—this emotional activation is a key facet of energetic transmission to the universe.
You can enhance this practice through rituals that center you: lighting candles, creating vision boards, or incorporating it into moon or water ceremonies. After setting your intention, support the manifestation with aligned actions. Setting an intention is participatory, a partnership between you and Universal Intelligence.
Why Positive Emotions Help Your Intention
Anytime you set an intention for manifestation there are a few important steps to follow. For daily intentions to be effective, you’ll need to combine the thought (description of the desired outcome) with positive emotion in your final intention statement or phrase.
Positive emotions like love, joy, gratitude, and appreciation are what make your intention magnetic. When you combine thought and emotion, you engage both your mind and body in the process of setting and experiencing the intention.
Keep a list of positive emotions that you want to experience as a result of manifesting your intention and infuse them into your intention statements. If you don't already have an emotional guidance scale, that's a good resource to create for yourself for manifestation success.
Get more in-depth guidance on the science of intention setting and manifesting with my Manifestation Masterclass. You’ll learn how to set effective intentions that manifest with precision, supported by clear structure, energetic alignment, and real-world application. Enroll today—and begin co-creating with the universe.
Four Types of Manifestation Intention Examples
The four types of manifestation intention statement examples, as I explain in episode 022 of The Kidest OM Podcast, are Be (“I am” statements), Give (“I contribute” or “provide” statements), Do (active doing statements), and Have (I “get” statements). How you phrase your intention statements also contributes to the level of magnetism you infuse your intention with.
When people want to create something, they usually frame it in one of these four categories:
something they are being or becoming
something they want to contribute or provide
something they want to do or achieve
something they want to get or receive
Each one of these angles of looking at and articulating the desire has a resonance. When you couple “be” and/or “give” statements with positive *emotions* like gratitude or love (e.g., “I *love* being a phenomenal baker”) and use them as your container for your intentions, the level of harmonic coherence you achieve is more orderly than in “have” based statements. I go into a lot more detail on this in episode 022, so for more on this listen to that specific episode anywhere that you can stream podcasts.
How to Set Your Daily Intention for Manifestation
To set your daily intention, think of what you want to accomplish for the day. You can start by first writing it out as a list of things you want — what you want to feel, what you want to know, what you want to do, what you want to have.
Your daily intention can be a reflection of any specific goals you want to achieve in the immediate future, and it can also reflect things you want to experience in your day-to-day, from emotional balance to physical fitness, to financial success and everything else in between.
Once you have your general list, you can then frame and phrase it for maximum magnetic effect.
To that end, here are some basic guidelines for writing harmonic and coherent daily intentions:
Write it in the present tense
Include a positive emotion
Use the more magnetic “I am” or “I give” mental positions
Be specific. Specificity helps you create a clear vibrational broadcast, a clear message on what you’re intending to experience.
Keep it positive, use “move toward” language that focuses on your fulfillment. This will evoke both positive emotion and positive mental imagery.
Keep it about your own experience — intentions that focus on your own experiences and accomplishments are harmonic intentions (you can’t change other people’s behavior).
Keep reading to see some examples of intention statements that are formulated with these points in mind.
To get answers to some of the most frequently asked questions on the law of attraction and manifestation, grab a copy of my book Anything You Want. I cover a lot of different areas about the science of deliberate creation. Anything You Want is available at online book retailers worldwide in print and eBook. It's also available on audio on Audible US and Google Books.
Do You Have to Write Your Intention Daily?
You don’t have to write a daily intention every day. You can write a list of 3 to 5 daily intentions that you occasionally review until those intentions manifest. Then, you can create new intention statements to replace the ones that have been fulfilled.
Here are some examples of intention statements that include the guidelines listed above:
I now happily and consistently go to sleep at 10pm each night.
I’m filled with delight to now be the chief marketing officer at my company.
I’m so happy and grateful that I am now healthy, fit, toned, and at my ideal weight.
I love that I’m now waking up each day remembering my vision and purpose for my life.
Each of these examples reflects specificity, present tense phrasing, "be" mental position, positive emotion, and move-toward language.
21 Daily Intention Examples
Here are 21 common daily intention examples you can use to model the intentions you set for the day:
I am grateful to now cultivate a peaceful and organized home.
I am grateful that I now create order in my spaces with a sense of accomplishment and pride.
I intend to approach my day with grateful awareness for life's blessings.
Today, I intend to flow through my tasks with focused energy and satisfaction.
I am grateful I complete tasks efficiently while maintaining positive momentum.
I honor my commitments by arriving punctually with calm composure.
I now manage my time wisely while embracing flexibility and balance.
I intend to nourish my body with foods that energize and delight me.
I now prioritize my well-being with loving self-care throughout the day.
I am grateful to move my body with appreciation for its strength and vitality.
I intend to listen to others with genuine curiosity and compassion.
I intend to respond to challenges with patience and creative problem-solving.
I intend to communicate my ideas with confident clarity in all conversations.
I intend to speak my truth with courage and respectful authenticity today.
I intend to release perfectionism and celebrate my progress with compassion.
I stay present in each moment with mindful attention and peace.
I intend to set healthy boundaries with confidence and self-respect.
I intend to express appreciation to others with warmth and sincerity.
I embrace new experiences with enthusiasm and open-hearted curiosity.
I intend to let go of what I cannot control with trust and serenity.
I end my day with restful gratitude for all I've accomplished.
Summary
Daily intention setting is a simple yet transformative practice that connects you with your values, desires, and co-creative power. Whether you craft a new intention each morning or return to familiar ones that resonate with your journey, you're actively participating in co-creating your experience with the universe.
Remember that the power lies not in perfection, but in practice, consistency, and presence. Each mindful moment when you pause to declare how you want to show up in the world and what you want to attract into your life intentionally is a step into your co-creative power.
By combining clear intentions with positive emotion and aligned action, you create a partnership between your inner vision and the universe's infinite possibilities. Start wherever you are, trust the process, practice (practice, practice, practice) and watch your days unfold with greater purpose, meaning, and synchronicity.
Kidest OM is a manifestation author and teacher with indispensable personal development books and online courses designed to help you attract and manifest what you want. Her books include "Anything You Want" and "Nothing in the Way: Clearing the Paths to Success & Fulfilment" which are available globally in eBook, print, and audiobook through online book retailers.
