Choose Goals That Make You Feel Calm, Strong, and Empowered

When you look at your 2026 Goals List, is it filled with next level intentions like financial success or a promotion? That’s a fine start, but don’t forget the F word: feelings. The way you’ll feel when you reach those milestones is the real reason to pursue them.

Don’t take my word for it—if you haven’t heard, “bodily maps of emotions” are a thing. Researchers discovered that feelings aren’t fleeting—they can settle in different parts of the body. That’s why your limbs feel heavy when you’re sad, or your chest seizes up when you are anxious. Those findings confirm that a Feel Wheel isn’t just for kids. Emotions are real and can affect whether you stick with an intention or let it slip.

So, your power move is to use your emotions as a checkpoint. As author Louisa May Alcott once summed it up, “Where the heart is, the mind works best.”

Make Standing on Business Your Normal

The impact of matching head and heart was an idea Audrey from Organized Chaos discovered. She wasn’t aspiring to a HGTV perfect house. Instead, she wanted her home to help her feel calm, clear, and empowered.

Getting there required changing her habits. However, it wasn’t a complex system or thousands of dollars spent on custom closets that made the difference. Audrey started by reaching for the right feeling.

For instance:

1. Friends who wanted to pop up used to give her a pit in her stomach. Now she’s solved the anxiety problem by creating a short list of daily tasks, such as clearing the counters.
2. Getting organized also ended overbuying. Audrey’s bank account and financial self-confidence are on the rise—no dense spreadsheets required.
3. And she retired superhero pressures, where she tried to accomplish everything in a single session. Changes like one laundry load a day have cut the overwhelm, giving her time back for fun.

Are you like the case study, where you’re ready to ditch complicated To Do apps and get back to basics? Standing on business may not seem as glamorous as the “excitement” of prior years, but that’s ok—leave commotion and chaos to your favorite Real Housewives. In its place, choose goals with an endpoint where you feel secure and sure-footed. Building stability in an unsteady world is the kind of “boring” that pays off—who knew?!

Try personalizing an approach that makes sense to you with this AI prompt: “I’m pursuing <goal>. Write a motivational pep talk from my Future Self, telling me how I’ll feel when I achieve success.”

4 Power Moves to Jumpstart Your Intentions Series Recap

The old way of bossing up was to create a Goals List and start chasing. However, the trouble with wishing or willpower is that they’re not much of a roadmap.

The alternative is to apply the same soft skills you use every day, such as your natural creativity, critical thinking, and driving smart partnerships. People competencies are much better tactics than forcing or pushing yourself or others.

Here’s a recap of possible blockers and the power move to turn them around:

1. Power move #1 is to Know Your Why: Knowing why a goal matters is insulation, protecting you when headwinds arise and motivation fades.
2. Power move #2 is Increasing Your People Flex: Mix up quick fixes like taking more steps with playing the long game. The results from understanding what makes people tick are lasting.
3. Power move #3 is Changing Your Mind: Changing course is never comfortable, but it’s figureoutable. So, have that heart-to-heart with your Future Self and fine-tune your Goals List.
4. Power move #4 is Choosing What Makes You Feel Calm, Strong, and Empowered: It’s simple: Take care of your inside person, and external results will follow. So, aim high, but keep checking in with yourself.

Setting intentions sounds easy, but there’s plenty that gets in the way. So, act like the creative, wise CEO of your life—a Soul Boss—and take charge of your goals.