Day 1: Intention
Here goes the #evolving40...
- All are welcome.
- If you’d like to join me, you can jump in at any time.
- Think: “How have I evolved? How am I evolving?”
- You can use any format, as long or as short as you'd like.
- Post in the comments below or on your own social with the hashtag.
Whatever comes up for you is what’s meant to be!
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#evolving40 Day 1: Intention
Two important people in my life have shaped my thinking about intention: my husband, Darren, and Oprah. 😀
One of the things I admire most about Darren is how intentional he is about every action he takes. He wants Present Darren and Future Darren to have the most optimal experience of each moment they get to spend on earth, so he sets up his life that way by design.
He thinks before he speaks, as calmly as he can. When something frustrates him, he channels that feeling into figuring out a way to improve the situation. Whenever possible, he won’t act under duress so he can be intentional about his decisions -- from which coffee starts his day out right, to how to structure our business to give us the best quality of life as a family.
When I heard Oprah talk about intention, I had an “aha moment.” Three years into The Oprah Winfrey Show, after a couple of tabloid-style episodes, she didn’t like the direction it was going. The book “The Seat of the Soul” by Gary Zukav introduced her to the power of intention: Before every thought and action is an intention that ultimately creates an outcome.
From then on, she set an intention that her show would be “a force for good.” When discussing any episode idea, she’d consider the intention behind it. Before she interviewed anyone, she asked their intention for the interview -- the outcome they had in mind.
And in her own life, she doesn’t do anything without considering the energy and motivation she’s putting into it. She says, “I only do what I intend to do."
How I’ve evolved in Intention: I’ve learned to Practice the Pause so I can respond rather than react. I understand that getting clearer about my intention -- for little actions and big ones -- will yield better results.
How I’m still evolving: I’m still closing the gap between knowing and doing. I’d like to be less emotion-driven and reactive (especially with the kids!) and focus on the long-term outcomes of my actions now.
My intention for The Evolving 40 is to recognize how I’ve grown over 40 years in being more fully myself and a force for good, and to chart how I’d like to grow from here. I’d like to create the space for other people to have that opportunity, too, among a welcoming community. Thanks for being a part of it. ❤️
