Setting Intentions for 2026 with this Journaling Calendar

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Our setting intentions journaling gives you a great month-long activity to go into the new year with clarity and what you want to prioritize for the year.

The calendar is split into four weeks of journaling. The first is identifying what to leave behind in 2025. The second is about identifying what to prioritize next year. The third week focuses on your identity, and the last week, which includes the final three days of December, focuses on actionable steps.

Week One: Leave Behind

• Habits or routines to leave behind in 2025.
• Unrealistic expectations to release.
• Things that took up too much time (time better spent elsewhere).
• How you’re different from the person at the start of the year.
• Unfinished projects or goals you don’t feel you need to revisit.
• Setbacks you overcame you can leave behind in 2025.

Sunday, December 7th: Day to Reflect

Look back at last week’s ‘what to leave behind’ ideas and summarize your journaling and findings.

Monday, December 8th: What mattered most to you this year.

Start with specific and very vivid memories you have of the year that bring you joy. Often, these memories will mean something to you for some important reason.

Tuesday, December 9th: Three things you want to prioritize more in life.

These can be actions, like ‘being more compassionate’ or ‘prioritizing family time’, big goals you have, or very specific things, like ‘daily evening walks’.

Wednesday, December 10th: Three core values to align your actions to.

Examples of core values could be integrity (acting with honesty), compassion (showing understanding and kindness to others), or togetherness (building memories and doing as much as you can with family), for example.

Thursday, December 11th: How you can connect and spend time with people you care about most.

Think about weekly or monthly routines you could implement, like regular online calls or coffee catchups. If life is busy, start with regular texts and messages.

Friday, December 12th: Experiences you want to have next year.

For balance, choose something from your bucket list and a few ideas closer to home. That way, you can strive for a once-in-a-lifetime experience, like a vacation, but also be able to plan and explore more realistic ideas, like local events or visiting nearby places.

Saturday, December 13th: Three things you can make progress in and track that progress.

Get specific with these ideas. Rather than say ‘improve fitness’, say ‘go to a specific gym class every week’, for example. You can easily track the progress of that goal.

Week Three: Identity

• Three things you want to do for yourself, no one else.
• Things that make you feel confident.
• One part of your personality you want to embrace more.
• What next year’s version of you says ‘yes’ to.
• At the end of next year, how would you want to feel about the year.
• What motivates next year’s version of you.

Week Four+: Action

• Goals you’ve made progress on you can continue into the new year.
• Goals you didn’t make progress on and want to revisit.
• Identify 1-3 key goals for the year.
• 5-minute habits that can support each/one goal.
• Daily routines (10-30min) that can support each/one goal.
• Weekly routines that can support each/one goal.
• Changes you can make at home to support each/one goal.
• People/ideas to support you on tough days.
• 7-day or 30-day challenges you could do in January.

Get the Monthly ‘Setting Intentions’ Calendar Printable here.

Good luck making plans for the new year. You can get inspiration from more of our December journaling calendars here.