Many of us start new projects or set goals with enthusiasm, only to find ourselves losing direction along the way.

This often happens when we lack a clear understanding of the deeper intentions that should guide our actions. Without aligning our goals with our intentions, we risk moving forward without purpose, leading to frustration and burnout.

In this episode, we dive into the distinction between goals and intentions, exploring how these concepts play out in both Zen practice and our everyday lives. I discuss the importance of setting intentions that are aligned with our values, and how this alignment can help us navigate the challenges that arise when pursuing our goals. By combining mindful intentions with clear goals, we can create a more balanced and fulfilling approach to productivity.

Join me as we explore how integrating the principles of Zen into our goal-setting can transform the way we approach our work and our lives, helping us to stay grounded, present, and purposeful in all that we do.

Topics Covered

• The distinction between goals and intentions.
• The role of intentions in Zen practice.
• How to set meaningful and mindful goals.
• Balancing attachment and detachment in goal-setting.
• The importance of presence and compassion in productivity.
• Integrating Zen principles into daily work.
• Overcoming obstacles with intention and mindfulness.
• The impact of aligning goals with deeper values.

» TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to the new season
01:07 Setting intentions for the season
03:01 The role of intentions in Zen practice
10:15 Differentiating between goals and intentions
14:02 Setting meaningful and mindful goals
21:34 Balancing attachment to goals
26:26 Engage and participate

Transcript

Welcome to the Zen Habits podcast, where we dive into how to work with uncertainty, resistance, and fear around our meaningful work. This is for anyone who wants to create an impact in the world and cares deeply enough to do the work. I'm your host, Leo Babauta, creator of the Zen Habits blog.

Okay, here we are in episode one of the new season. The Zen of Productivity is our theme, and in this episode, we're going to talk about goals and intentions, which is something that we always want to discuss at the beginning of a project, a task, taking on a habit, or anything big and meaningful.

We don't want to just start off down the path without having some idea of where we're headed. So, we're going to talk about that in general. I'm also going to bring in the role of Zen in this discussion. I talked about the Zen of productivity, but this is going to be about the role of intentions in Zen practice.

And how to work with attachment—also being too unattached. We're going to talk about productivity versus happiness, differentiating between goals and intentions, and how to set meaningful and mindful goals. So, these are some of the things we're discussing in this episode. But before we do that, let's talk about intentions for this season.

The Zen of productivity. I mentioned that in the intro episode, episode zero—go watch or listen to it if you haven't yet. But in this episode, I want to talk a little bit about what our intentions are. Why call it the Zen of productivity? Is it just like, "Let me just be zenned out and chill, dude"?

That's not what we're shooting for here. What we're shooting for is to bring this intentional, mindful approach to our meaningful work—to what we are trying to take on in this world, to the impact that we're trying to have. So it's intentional and mindful. This is the intention of this season: we are trying to be intentional and mindful about the season itself, about each episode.

That's my intention. And I'd love for you to check in with yourself. How does that sound—to bring intentionality and mindfulness? Now, that doesn't really encompass all of what Zen means, but those are some of the key aspects of Zen that we are bringing into productivity. This discussion about productivity doesn't mean we're not going to try and talk about some of the best tactics for productivity, like how to get super disciplined and focused, how to create good habits, and all of that stuff.

So, the tactical side of it—the tools and systems—we will talk about that. But we're not just going to talk about tactics for the sake of tactics. We're going to do it with intention, to serve the place that we are trying to get to. And so, as I talk about that for the season, let's talk about that in this episode.

The first thing I want to talk about is the role of intentions in Zen practice. You might think, "Oh, Zen is a goalless practice." In some aspects, it is. There's no goal in Zen meditation. Your word for Zen meditation in general is "just sit." Just sitting. So, the idea is a goalless meditation. I'm not trying to stick to my breath. It's objectless in some ways, and it's not about trying to get somewhere. So, in some ways, Zen meditation is goalless. But that said, it's not without intention. We sit with intention. We have an intention in our practice, in the world, and in the study that we have.

Zen is actually very intentional, even though the meditation itself can often be (not always, but often) a goalless meditation. There is still intention in the practice and study of Zen. Let me talk a little bit about that. You don't have to be a Zen student, but I think there are some interesting things about that as we talk about intentions and goals here at the beginning of the season.

So, what is the intention of Zen meditation, study, and practice? Well, there can be any intention that you want it to be, but in general, one of the usual intentions of Zen practice is to be mindful and present in the present moment. So, we're not necessarily thinking about, "What's my day going to be like today or tomorrow or in the future?"

We're not stuck in the past. As much as I can, I'm fully present here in this moment. So that's an intention. That doesn't mean you're always going to be fully present in the present moment. That's not a reality. We're human. Our minds will wander to what we need to do later in that meeting coming up, or what so-and-so said to me yesterday.

Our minds will wander, but we have an intention to be as present as we can, to practice showing up and being present in the present moment. The intention doesn't mean that we are definitely going to do that all the time. We're practicing showing up in the present moment. And as we practice showing up, we're starting to change our default state.

It's a habit that we're creating. Although we don't want to get stuck in a rut, Zen actually lets go of old predetermined habits. But to keep things simple, we are practicing showing up as present in meditation and in our lives. And so that's an intention, and we are practicing with that intention. We are practicing with that intention.

It's not the only intention. Zen isn't just about being present. I say "just" in quotes because being present is a freaking amazing intention. But that's one of the intentions. Another is compassion—learning to feel compassion for all beings—is one of the key intentions in Zen meditation and practice.

You might not be practicing that in every single moment: "I'm compassionate for all beings" or even compassionate for myself or this person in front of me who's being obnoxious, right? We have an intention, but we might not be practicing it at every moment. But that's an intention—to access our natural, open compassion.

And that's a natural state for all of us—that we are naturally compassionate if we don't get triggered into our reactive state. So, we are just returning to that state. Another intention for Zen practice (and this is not all-encompassing as in this discussion) is to let go of our idea of ourselves—who we think we are, our identity.

As we do so, it actually allows us to be more present, fully in this moment, and more compassionate. So, these are some intentions in Zen meditation, practice, and study. Again, it's not about being perfect. It's not that we're going to do that all the time, but we set these intentions and then remind ourselves of these intentions.

Part of the reminder in Zen practice is that we make some vows in front of others, and we ask them to hold us to those vows. Not that we're going to be perfect, but they are reminding us of the vows. So, the other people who we are practicing with—what they call the sangha, the community of practitioners—they're there to remind us.

These are important things about reminding ourselves of our intentions. So that's the role of intentions in Zen practice. Now, there is a much longer discussion that we could have about that, but I wanted to at least touch on that here as we talk about the Zen of productivity. And I think that those elements that I just described in terms of intentions are important. Now, you don't have to have those exact intentions.

Be present, be compassionate, let go of the idea of ourselves. You don't have to. But you might think, "What is my intention for the work that I'm doing, for the productivity that I'm trying to create, the discipline, the practice, the habits, the impact that I want to have? What do I want?"

It's not that you have to be perfect.

We often shut down what we want because we're worried we're not going to be able to do it. That's an obstacle that we have to work with. "Ah, I'm not going to actually do it. So, I'm just not going to set myself any intentions." That is shutting down our deepest desires of our heart. And I think it's understandable.

I've done it many, many times. Like, "Ah, I'm just not going to want anything," but it isn't actually how we operate as human beings. We want things to happen. And if we really want to access our hearts, our deepest intentions, and desires that come from the heart, we have to be willing to let ourselves want it and then be willing to have some heartbreak when we don't get it.

And then practice being with that heartbreak. That's a part of setting intentions—"Oh, I'm going to actually fall on my face and feel embarrassed." And then we just practice with that. That's where we can bring some compassion and some presence and letting go of our ideas of ourselves is just showing up and practicing with the heartbreak, with our disappointment, with our embarrassment—all of the things that come with setting intentions and goals, with having desires and listening to our hearts.

Okay, so let's differentiate between goals and intentions. And I'm not intending, in this distinction, to say this one is good, this one's bad. I actually think both are useful, but it's really good to differentiate and distinguish between them so that we have some ideas of how to work with them.

Intentions are like, "This is what I want to do. This is my intention." And intention can be, "This is how I want to show up. I want to show up and be present and compassionate," would be an example. Or, "I want to bring my full devotion to everything that I do." Or, "I want to show up with power and stand in my power," or "be a freaking goddess," or whatever it is that you, you know—a leader.

"I want to show up in this way." That's an intention. It's how we want to show up, how we want to practice, how we want to do things. Like, "I want to bring creativity and magic into my writing sessions." The way we want to create the experience of what we're doing—these are some things that embody the idea of intention.

Intention encapsulates all the things I just said. Now, a goal is more of an outcome. It's a destination. And you might think, if you've read anything that I've written in the distant past on goals, or you might have listened to other things on Zen and goals, you might think that means it's a bad thing.

It's an outcome-based thing. It's a destination. For example, I might say, "I want to walk while feeling the earth fully beneath my feet." That's an intention. But then I might set a goal, like "I want to hike up that mountain." That's an outcome. I want to get to the top of that mountain. That's a goal.

The way I want to walk on the path is my intention. Now, we can use them interchangeably if we want. "My goal is to be fully present as I take every step up that mountain." And "My intention is to get to the top of that mountain." You can do that if you want to, but the distinction I'm making is that intention is how we're showing up and practicing in the experience, in the process.

So, it's a process-based thing, whereas a goal is an outcome or a destination. And I actually think both are important. In Zen, we often don't work with goals. It's like, "Ah, I want to be perfect in my meditation, show up and count to a thousand breaths." Like, that's not a thing that we do in Zen meditation.

But sometimes there are goals, like if I say, "I would like to take these vows as a Zen priest." That's a goal. And you might even just tell that to your teacher and be like, "I have a goal of taking vows as a Zen priest." It's a goal. There's nothing wrong with that goal. If you say, "I want to sit in this meditation retreat."

Sashin is what they will call it in Zen. "I want to sit in this week-long meditation retreat." That's a goal. Now, I might have intentions for when I'm there, but there's a goal of "I want to actually go to this retreat and sit through it." So, it isn't that it's absent from Zen practice. And even if it were, I still think it's useful.

So, how do we work with that here in your projects? I've gotten into a long discussion about goals and intentions in Zen practice, but let's take it to a practical level. How do we actually turn that into meaningful and mindful goals? What I encourage you to do is to set both an intention for how you want to show up and a goal.

Where do you want to end up? For example, let's say you take a project: "I want to make some videos for YouTube," or "I want to write a book," or "I want to make an app," you know, whatever it is that you want to do, right? So, "I want to make an app." Okay, great. That's a goal—to have this app done by the end of this year, December 31st.

Okay, that's a goal. It's an outcome. And I actually think there's something powerful about that because it calls you to show up. If you just said, "I want to show up every day and code, but with creativity and joy in my heart," that's an intention, right? "So, I'm going to show up every day and code with creativity and joy in my heart."

Well, who knows if and when that project will ever be done, right? Maybe you'll be done in 2050. Maybe you'll be done, you know, never. Maybe you'll quit after four days. Who cares, right? Because there's no goal as long as you're showing up and practicing. Well, that's great, but it doesn't actually create anything.

It doesn't really call you forward when you're facing fears, which we'll talk about later in the season. How do we actually face our resistance, our uncertainty, our fears? Well, if you're taking on a meaningful goal, a meaningful project, you are going to have resistance, uncertainty, and fears. And if you just say, "Oh, I just want to show up and code, and be super present when I do it," great, but you're not actually going to be called forward when you face those fears. When those fears show up and confront you, and you're like, "Oh," and, and so I actually think setting a goal—by the end of this year, by the end of October, by the end of June—I am going to have this outcome done. Set a stake in the ground and say, "That's where I'm going."

And that is a powerful way of showing up. So, I encourage you, as we start the season, to think about what is a meaningful goal. It's not just a goal to pick a number, pick a date, pick a thing, but something that will be meaningful for you, that will move your life forward, that will have an impact that you care about.

What's a goal that would actually be amazing? And you're going to be like, "Well, I don't know if I can do that." Of course, you don't. We will get to that when you get there. You know, if you fall on your face, but what if you could be willing to set a goal, even if you might fall on your face? That's my challenge to you.

That's courage. That's a willingness to step into the unknown. So, that's a meaningful goal. Now, what about the intention? Well, as I do this, I want to show up with adventure in my heart. Or maybe curiosity. I want to bring compassion or love. I want to bring play into this.

Okay, great. So, you have this goal to finish it by this date, and you're going to bring play into it, or whatever it is. Divinity. I want to bring spirit. I want to be power, a leader, brilliance. So, some kind of way of showing up or practicing. I want to be super freaking disciplined, whatever it is that you want.

So, an intention for how you're going to show up. And that intention will empower you to get to that goal. If you show up with adventure, you're much more likely to get to that goal. And not with a sense of burden and should, but actually like, "Ah, this is freaking amazing." So, I encourage you to set both a goal and an intention.

I'm going to talk about a couple of other things here that I think are important before we finish this discussion. One thing is a "should, I have to, I must"—like, "This is what I should be doing." This is actually how most people take on goals. And this is actually why people get turned off by goals, accountability, and structure, because the way that we've done it in the past is saying, "Oh, here's the goal."

That means every day there's this thing that I should be doing. I need to be, or I should be, or I have to be doing my writing from this time to this time. Right. So, I've set a goal, and I'm setting some structure, and now that's something that I have to do, or I should be doing.

It's another way that I'm going to fail myself and should myself and force myself, coerce myself. And that is not fun. That's a boring way to do stuff, but that's actually how we do everything in general, for most people. So, shoulds and have-tos are not what I recommend for goals and intentions.

What I encourage is for you to show up in a way that feels amazing. "I want to be creative as I face my fear and resistance." So, I'm not doing the fear and resistance because I should, but because I want to bring my creativity into the world, into this particular session. We're bringing our heart into this—our joy, our caring into this.

The reason why I'm doing this, the intention behind all of this, is to actually have a meaningful impact. So, I actually encourage you to think about, like, "What's the intention that you have behind the impact—not just how you show up in the sessions, but why do you want to have this goal come out in the first place?"

What lights you up about this? What would be an amazing thing for you to do for others, or for yourself, or for the world? And that's an intention behind the goal. There's a reason why that comes from the heart, that makes us feel like this is meaningful. It's not just productivity for productivity's sake, but because I actually care about the impact that I want to have. This goal is meaningful not just because it's another thing to check off so that I can be a good person or feel adequate in the world, but because I actually want to make a difference. I actually want to have an impact that's positive in my life, in this person's life, in five people's lives, in the community, in the world, something.

It's going to matter in some way that you care about. So, that's what I really encourage you to do. And that's where I encourage you to come from as you do that daily session or whatever it is that you're going to do. Find not a should or a have-to, but a "I want to, I care about this. This is from my heart."

That's my assignment for you. If you want to take on an assignment—not a should assignment, but like, "Ooh, do I feel lit up by that idea?" So, set a goal that has a meaningful impact that you care about, and then set an intention that aligns with that impact. "I want to have this impact on people. I want to do this because it would be compassionate for them."

So, show up every day, every session with that same compassion. Align the intention with the meaning behind the goal. Okay, I'm going to share one last set of ideas before we close this podcast episode. And this is about attachment when it comes to goals. So, people usually have some kind of level of attachment when it comes to working with a goal.

And it's either too tight or too loose. So, too attached or too unattached. And what we're looking for is a middle path. So, let's talk about too attached. This is one that you're probably familiar with. It's like, "Oh, I need to do this goal, and I have to force myself, and I'm going to do this no matter what."

So, you're super committed, and you will run yourself into the ground to make this happen. That's an attachment to a goal. It's not just like, "I feel committed to it," but "I feel anxious that it's not going to happen." This is the thing that leads to burnout for a lot of people. If you're doing a physical goal, like, "I want to run a marathon,"

Too strong an attachment to a goal will have you injure yourself because you're like, "I have to do this training every single day, and I'm not listening to my body. I'm overdoing it because I'm attached to making this goal, even though my body is saying, 'Hey, slow down a bit. You've got a little bit of tenderness in your tendon there.'"

Maybe slow down and give yourself a little bit of a rest. "No, I need to—I'm attached to this goal. I need to do my training session," and then you get injured. Well, that's with a physical goal. But what about other goals, like a writing goal or making a video course, or an app, or starting a nonprofit, or whatever it is that you want to do?

Well, if you're too attached, you will burn yourself out because you're not actually working with resistance. You're forcing yourself from a place of shoulds. So, this is a tight attachment. And you can tell that because you're not prioritized. You're not giving yourself rest. You're not having fun. You have a sense of burden and coercion in doing this.

That's a tight attachment. A loose attachment is like, "Yeah, I want to do it, but I don't really care that much about it. Why should I? You can hear it in my voice, right? It's like, 'We'll see.' And, 'Not today.' 'Why am I making myself suffer?' And, 'Yeah, I can do it later.'"

So, that's too loose. It's like there's no attachment, and we become unattached when we shut down our hearts from caring. What happens is we just don't show up when there's any kind of resistance. "Yeah, I know I should be doing that writing, but eh, I'm going to go out and play video games, play with my kids, do whatever."

But what I'm not going to do is show up for this commitment and face my resistance. So, that's too unattached. What we're looking for (and we can work on this more as we go into the season) is a middle ground where I'm not tightly attached and I'm not too loose. How can I work with my goals, my structures, my commitment, my intentions, so that I'm showing up but not forcing myself?

It's not like "I have to." I'm not burning myself into the ground. I'm actually caring about how I show up. I'm paying attention to, like, "Does my body need some rest?" but I'm also working with the commitment. And I'll give you an example with my own Zen teacher. And so, she said with meditation, we can get to the point where we don't want to meditate right now.

It's just like, "Oh, it's uncomfortable. And I want to just get up from the meditation seat and go do something else." So, if we just let ourselves get up, that's too loose. You're just letting yourself give in to any urge. But if you force yourself to meditate for an hour, and the whole time you're suffering, and you're sweating bullets, and you're like, "I'm going to be hardcore about this," that is not healthy.

That's too attached. And so, what she said (and this is something that I've taken to heart in various ways in my life), she said a middle way is: The first time you want to get up, don't get up. Just notice it. It's an urge to get up, but don't do it. The second time that you want to get up, notice the urge, but don't get up.

The third time that you want to get up from the meditation seat, notice the urge and then let yourself get up. So, that's a balance, and I really love that because you worked with it a couple of times. You were committed, you were working with this intention. But you didn't force yourself too long. You gave yourself a little bit of commitment, but it wasn't like, "Ah, I'm going to run myself into the ground."

That's the kind of middle ground we're looking for. So, I encourage you to find your middle path as you work with your goals and intentions. That's all I've got for you today. My homework for you, if you decide to take this on before we talk about how to actually put all of this into action, is to set a meaningful goal for yourself that actually matters to your heart.

Something that you can work on in the next three or four months as we do this podcast season and set an intention for how you want to show up that is aligned with the meaning of that goal. The impact that you'd like to have is like, "Oh, I really want to do this so I can inspire people." Okay, show up with inspiration.

"I want to do this to bring adventure to kids' lives." Okay, great. Thank you. Bring adventure to every session as you create this for them. So, our intention lines up with the meaningful goal, the impact that we want to have in the world. So, find that for yourself. Do some journaling, share that in the comments here.

If you're watching the YouTube version of this, if you're not, go watch the YouTube version because I've got a beautiful freaking face. And then, if you're listening to the audio version, you can also just send me an email at . I love getting emails from you. If you have questions, send them to me. I can answer them in future episodes or videos on YouTube.

I love hearing from you. So, put a comment below the YouTube video or send me an email at . I read every single one. I reply to most, maybe not all. And I love everyone that I get. So, thank you, my friends. I will talk to you in the next episode.

If you haven't already, please subscribe to this podcast in your favorite podcast app. If you found this episode useful, please share this podcast with someone you know, who cares deeply. That would be really meaningful to me. And, if you'd like to dive deeper with me into this work, please check out the blog at zenhabits.net or get in touch at .

Thanks for listening, and I hope you'll join me every Wednesday for more episodes of the Zen Habits podcast.

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