5 Ways Forest Therapy Can Inspire Your New Year’s Goals
Discover how connecting with nature can help you set meaningful, sustainable intentions for 2026
The beginning of a new year brings a fresh start and the chance to set intentions that align with our values and well-being. But what if, instead of forcing rigid resolutions, we turned to nature for guidance? Forest therapy offers a unique approach to goal-setting that's gentle, grounding, and deeply mindful. By drawing inspiration from the natural world, we can approach our goals with balance and resilience, creating sustainable changes that support overall wellness.
As a certified forest therapy guide, I've witnessed how powerful it can be to let nature inform our intentions. The forest doesn't rush. It doesn't judge. It simply grows, adapts, and thrives—and these same principles can transform how we approach our own personal growth.
Here are five ways that forest therapy can inspire and guide your nature-inspired new year goals for 2026.
1. Embrace Small Steps, Just Like Nature
In nature, growth is often subtle and steady. A seedling doesn't become a towering oak overnight. Forest therapy reminds us that meaningful change doesn't have to be drastic—small, consistent steps add up over time.
When we set nature-inspired new year goals, we give ourselves permission to grow at our own pace. Approach your intentions with this mindset, celebrating each small victory and acknowledging that progress doesn't happen overnight. Just as trees teach us valuable lessons about patience and persistence, allow yourself the time to build habits and intentions that will flourish in their own way.
Practice: Set a weekly goal to walk outdoors or spend a few minutes in nature. With each visit, reflect on your small progress and recognize that each step counts toward your bigger journey. Notice how trees have grown millimeters since your last visit—this is the kind of gentle, persistent growth that creates lasting change.
2. Use Nature's Rhythm to Reset Your Routine
The forest has its own rhythms and cycles, from the changing seasons to the rise and fall of the sun. By syncing our routines with nature's pace, we can find a flow that feels sustainable and refreshing.
Forest therapy teaches us that rest isn't laziness—it's essential. Winter invites us to slow down, just as spring calls us to expand and grow. Allow this connection to nature to remind you of the importance of balance, regular pauses, and honoring your body's natural needs. This approach prevents burnout and helps keep you grounded as you pursue your goals.
Even winter offers profound benefits for forest bathing and connecting with nature's cycles.
Practice: Start each morning with a simple nature-inspired routine, like a mindful breathing exercise by an open window or a short walk to greet the day. Notice how the morning light changes throughout the seasons. Aligning with these small, natural routines can help you find stability and rhythm in your daily life, making your goals feel less like obligations and more like natural extensions of who you are.
3. Reflect Mindfully to Build Self-Awareness
Forest therapy encourages us to slow down and reflect on our experiences, creating a space for genuine self-awareness. This mindfulness can be incredibly valuable when setting intentions, helping us clarify what truly matters to us.
In the forest, there's no pressure to perform or produce. You simply are. By spending time in nature, you're giving yourself space to observe your thoughts without judgment, understand your deeper motivations, and ensure your goals align with your authentic self—not what you think you "should" want.
This reflective practice is at the heart of creating nature-inspired new year goals that actually resonate with your values.
Practice: Take a notebook on your next forest walk. Find a quiet spot where you feel comfortable, sit down, and jot down whatever comes to mind. Don't edit or judge—just notice. Use these notes to reflect on what you want to bring into the new year and to identify goals that feel genuinely aligned with your values. Ask yourself: "What does my heart need more of?" Let nature help you answer.
4. Connect with a Supportive Community
One of the most powerful aspects of forest therapy is the sense of connection it fosters—not only with nature but with others who share a similar journey. Setting intentions with the support of a community provides encouragement, accountability, and camaraderie.
When you're surrounded by people who understand the value of slowing down, honoring nature's wisdom, and pursuing wellness with intention, your goals become more than personal aspirations—they become part of a shared commitment to mindful living.
If your goals involve personal growth, mindfulness, or wellness, having a community by your side can make the journey more meaningful, sustainable, and enjoyable.
Practice: Consider joining a group forest therapy session, whether in person or virtual, to experience nature's healing with others. The shared experience can bring fresh perspectives, deepen your connection to your goals, and help you feel supported as you work toward meaningful change. When we witness others' growth, it inspires our own.
5. Celebrate Nature's Resilience as Your Inspiration
Nature is incredibly resilient, adapting to changes, overcoming challenges, and thriving despite obstacles. A tree bent by storms continues to reach toward the light. A forest recovers from fire with new growth. Forest therapy encourages us to observe this resilience and let it inspire our own approach to goals and setbacks.
When you encounter challenges or feel discouraged about your progress, remember that growth doesn't follow a straight line. Nature adapts, pivots, and flourishes in unexpected ways—and so can you. Your nature-inspired new year goals aren't about perfection; they're about persistence, adaptation, and trusting the process.
Practice: Next time you're in nature, find a tree or plant that's weathered storms, seasons, or other visible challenges. Maybe it's a tree growing from a crack in a rock, or a plant that's found sunlight in an unexpected place. Let this natural resilience remind you that setbacks are part of the process, not signs of failure. Use this perspective to embrace your own strength and adaptability as you work toward your goals for 2026.
Begin Your Nature-Inspired Journey in 2026
Forest therapy offers us a powerful alternative to the pressure-filled approach many of us take toward New Year's resolutions. By drawing wisdom from the natural world, we can set intentions that feel nourishing rather than demanding, sustainable rather than overwhelming.
As you move into 2026, consider what it might feel like to approach your goals the way a forest grows—steadily, patiently, and with deep roots that support lasting transformation.
Ready to deepen your connection with nature and set meaningful intentions for the year ahead? Join the ReWild Community to connect with others on this journey, access guided forest therapy experiences (both in-person and virtual), and receive ongoing support as you cultivate your nature-inspired new year goals. Together, we can learn from the wisdom of the forest and create lives that reflect the balance, beauty, and resilience we find in nature.
Let 2026 be the year you grow at nature's pace—and discover just how transformative that can be.
