🧭 Goals Are Just Intentions in a Fancy Outfit

Let’s talk about goals for a second.

Not the cute, Pinterest-board kind.
The heavy ones.
The ones that start off optimistic and somehow end up feeling like a personal failure by mid-month.

You know the ones:

• “I will do this every single day.”

• “I must finish this by Friday.”

• “If I don’t hit this goal, what am I even doing with my life?”

Ma’am.
Sir.
Calm down.

Here’s the thing I’ve been learning (and slowly accepting):
Goals feel heavy because we treat them like contracts instead of conversations.

Enter: Intentions

Intentions are goals that went to therapy.

They still have direction, but they don’t come with shame, guilt, or a tiny internal drill sergeant yelling,
“YOU SAID YOU WOULD.”

When you say:

• “My goal is to work out 5 days a week,”
  and life says,

• “Cool story, here’s exhaustion, weather, and a random emotional spiral,”

a goal makes you feel like you failed.

But an intention says:

“I intended to move my body more — and today that looked like rest.”

Same direction.
Very different energy.

Why Intentions Feel Lighter (and Smarter)

Intentions allow room for:

• real life

• bad days

• unexpected stuff

• being human

They don’t ask, “Did you accomplish this perfectly?”
They ask, “Did you show up honestly?”

And sometimes showing up honestly looks like:

• doing less

• changing your mind

• pausing

• saying, “Not today, Satan.”

Reframing Without Beating Yourself Up

This isn’t about lowering standards.
It’s about removing unnecessary suffering.

You can still want things.
You can still aim forward.
You can still try.

You just don’t have to carry the weight of disappointment every time the timeline shifts.

Because intentions say:

“I care about this — but I’m not dragging it around like emotional luggage.”

And honestly?
That feels a lot healthier.

Final Thought (Because I’m Always Like This)

If goals have been making you feel behind, stuck, or quietly annoyed at yourself…
try intentions instead.

Same dreams.
Less pressure.
Way more grace.

And if an intention doesn’t get met?
You didn’t fail.
You adjusted.

Which, last I checked, is a life skill — not a flaw. 😉