Using Intention to Manifest Your Dreams

By Mia Fox
By Mia Fox

Bestselling Manifestation Book Author of 'Become the CEO of Your Dream Life'

Intention is a powerful force that drives us through our lives every day, week, and month. It is the mental and emotional state we employ along the journey to achieve our most desired goals. Using intention to manifest your dreams will make things work easier and faster for you.

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You know what your goals are. You’ve written them down, planned them out, and started taking step-by-step actions to get you closer to your dreams. Now the only thing you need to know is how to use intention to manifest your dreams.

Intention setting can be a key element in your manifestation process because manifesting is all about emotions. So knowing how you want to feel, once you reached a certain dream, is crucial.

What is an Intention

Manifesting your dreams becomes a lot easier when you use powerful emotional tools at your disposal to keep going. An intention is a state in which you live that allows you to stay connected and grounded to your purpose.

Setting intention is deciding how you are going to act, think, or feel in any given situation before it occurs. Having the right intention can help keep you in the right emotional states so that you are in line with your deepest desires.

It can also help you become more attentive, relaxed, focused, present, and loving, depending on what intention you set.

Anytime you ask yourself, how do I want to (…) and then finish the sentence with how you are going to feel, act, or think, you are asking yourself what intention you want to set.

For example, as you are working on your daily practices, you may set the intention that you are going to remain relaxed and calm as you interact with people. Or, you could set the intention of being grateful for everything you already have while simultaneously working towards creating something even better.

How to Set Intentions

Your intention is your primary focus or awareness of your state while you are working through your day.

When you are setting your intention, you want to ask yourself what the most important emotions, thoughts, or actions are that you need to take to facilitate your manifestation.

It is helpful to have a daily journal where you can write your action steps and intention down right in the morning so that you can pinpoint your focus for the day.

For example, if you are going to reach out to three new potential clients today, you may set the intention to feel gratitude and enthusiasm on every call no matter what the outcome is.

That will help you stay in a positive state, and allow you to see things from a positive perspective.

Goals Vs. Intentions

Your goals are your desired outcome. Your intention is the way you are going about achievement. If your goal is to lose 10 pounds, your intention could be to eat less sugar-based foods.

Or, if your goal is to make five new friends with whom you can spend time every month, your intention may be to be more open and vibrant when engaging with strangers.

Why Are Intentions Important for Manifesting

Intention setting is essential because regulating your emotional state is crucial to making sure you’re not thrown off course when unexpected obstacles come your way. It allows you to experience things the way you want to experience them instead of being subject to the ebb and flow of various circumstances.

When you set an intention, it allows you to go through your everyday life with certain expectations and focus on how you are going to act.

That could include the things you are going to pay attention to, the way you are going to speak, the reason for doing things a certain way, and many more.

And as we know, what we pay attention to, grows. Without intention, we are subject to the turbulence of everyday life without a substantial post to grab onto.

Having a solid intention that you can focus on allows you to stay grounded and centered and helps you to keep your eye on what is most important.


Different Types of Intentions

The types of intentions you can set are limitless.

Here are some examples of intentions you can set before you begin your day:

  • To stay in a state of gratitude.
  • To be present with people you are interacting with.
  • To eat healthy foods that serve your body.
  • To try something new that scares you a little bit.
  • Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
  • To be patient with people who are on a different wavelength.
  • To allow yourself to rest when it is time to rest.


You can come up with so many types of intentions. They do not only have to be overarching themes for your day ether. You can break down intentions for various activities throughout the day.

You can, for example, have different intentions while you are driving to work, having coffee with a friend, or during your workout. All you are trying to do is pay attention to your focus and energy during any given situation.

Having different intentions for the various activities in your day lets you be excited when you need to be excited, calm when you need to be calm, and steady when you need to be determined.

When you actively decide and focus on your intention for different things during your day, you can bring yourself into the proper emotional and mental states that you need to be in, to thrive and flourish.

Intention Manifestation Theory

In the law of attraction, there is a theory that the intention you set within yourself is the energy that draws specific experiences to you.

That can also be described as the reticular activation system, which is the part of your subconscious mind that points essential things out to your conscious mind.

The theory is that as you go through your day and focus on various intentions, your frequency will match that of the emotional experience you are trying to have and draw it closer.

For example, if you want to have a peaceful and calm commute into work, you would focus on the intention “calm and peaceful commute.

Concentrating on this intention would kick your RAS into action to help you notice things that are calm and peaceful about your commute. It may even lead you to take a different route that would be more facilitating to your desired emotional state.

How to Write an Intention Statement

It is helpful to write down your intention on a piece of paper. That gives your intention more life, and it specifies it in a way that only keeping it in your mind cannot do.

When you are writing your intention statement, you want to focus on the positive aspects of the intention you are setting. You also want to state it in a way that is simple and repeatable easily and quickly.

For example, if you wanted to focus on being more accepting of yourself today, you could write the statement, “today I will experience and focus on acceptance of the things that are out of my control so that I can experience more peace and clarity.

That is powerful because it states your intention and gives you the WHY behind your intended focus. When are you finished writing your intention statement, you will want to pick a single word or phrase that you can focus on primarily.

That could work like an anchor you set for this specific intention statement.

In the above example, you would not want to have to repeat this lengthy mantra over and over. Instead, you would want to focus on “acceptance of things out of my control” or simply “acceptance.” Whatever would be enough to keep your intention at the forefront of your mind so your subconscious can continue to lead you towards experiences with your desired outcome.

Quick Intention Setting

Writing down your intention statements is a good way to reinforce them, but another method you can test is a kind of speed intention setting.

You always consciously go into a new situation and directly set your intention for this new situation. For example, you get into your car, and before you start the motor, you set the intention for this particular trip.

Or you enter a new environment and take the time to set your intention for the new situation, the people you will meet, or the conversations you are about to have. It’s all about living more consciously.

Conclusion About Setting Intentions and Manifesting Your Dream Life

It was my intention with this article to help you understand how to keep your focus on the things you want as you go about your day, instead of the things you don’t want.

Using intention setting to manifest your goals will help you get to your outcome with more ease and enjoyment.

Now you have the understanding you need to make it work for you. And in case you are looking for more hands-on manifesting tips, my book “Become the CEO of Your Dream Life” is exactly the right starting point.

In this book, I go through the manifesting process, step by step, show you why the universal laws work, and, more important, how they work together.

But that’s not, I give you many advanced strategies on how to manifest your dreams, including my signature goal-setting method that made all the difference for my manifesting success.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mia Fox is a bestselling author, founder & CEO of the SelfMadeLadies Community. After a decade as an NLP coach, helping women to overcome their abundance blocks and turning big dreams into reality, she started her manifestation blog in 2018. Since then, she has helped millions of readers with her practical manifesting tips, and wrote her bestselling manifestation book “Become the CEO of Your Dream Life,” which turned into an award-winning transformational program, teaching students in over 222 countries worldwide how they can transform their lives with self-coaching. Read more about Mia Fox here.

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