A Meditation to Set an Intention for Your Future with Rich Fernandez

Dec 26, 2025

Rich Fernandez, a mindful leadership trainer and former CEO of the Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute, shares insights on setting intentions for a brighter future. He emphasizes the importance of linking meaning and values to mindfulness practices. Rich guides listeners through visualization techniques, helping them vividly imagine their best lives and the emotions tied to those visions. He advocates for self-acceptance over traditional resolutions, encouraging a gentler approach to personal growth and change.

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ADVICE

Begin By Arriving With Breath

Close your eyes or soften your gaze and settle your body to arrive in the present moment.
Direct your attention to the breath with a calm, alert presence to gather focus for intention-setting.

INSIGHT

Imagining The Future Pulls You Forward

Envisioning a vivid future life brings you psychologically closer to it and clarifies purpose.
Rich Fernandez notes acting and thinking 'as if' you've already experienced that life nudges you toward it.

ADVICE

Use A Simple 'I'm Living My Best Life' Prompt

Use the prompt "I'm living my best life and I am..." to create a clear, embodied intention.
Specify a time horizon (one year, three years, ten years) to make the vision actionable and concrete.

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If you've grown weary of traditional resolutions, but you still carry a glimmer of hope that positive change is possible for us imperfect humans—then you'll love mindful intention-setting.

In this practice from his mini-course, mindful leadership trainer Rich Fernandez shows us how to vividly envision the "imagine if" possibilities. When we tap into meaning, passion, and a felt sense of welcoming what we long for, it's easier to get clear on the purpose behind our pursuits.

Rich Fernandez is the former CEO of Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute (SIYLI). He was previously the director of executive education and people development at Google, where he was also one of the first SIY teachers. Rich previously co-founded Wisdom Labs and has also served in senior roles at eBay, J.P. Morgan Chase and Bank of America.

The transcription of this guided meditation will be online at Mindful.org next week.

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Show Notes

Find more from Rich Fernandez here.

Go Deeper

There are subtle but crucial differences between making traditional New Year's resolutions and setting intentions for the future—because in mindfulness, everything is anchored in self-acceptance and self-love, rather than a quest for endless self-improvement. To learn more and start practicing a gentler, more sustainable way to change and growth, check out these articles on Mindful.org:

You can access all modules of Rich's mini-course on Mindful.org here.

And to experience another approach to intention-setting, try A Guided Meditation to Set Your Intentions for the New Year

And more from Mindful here:

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