Being Intentional

At the beginning of each year, we are full of determination and ambition, and we carve out new resolutions that will stick…this year, not like last year.  And yet, for some reason, we find ourselves back in that same boat and before we know it, we are doing the same thing yet again.  Kind of reminds us of “Groundhog Day” or being part of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

What if we didn’t wait until the beginning of the year and what if we made the decision to really do something different that will change our thinking, our mindset, and our journey.  What if we decided to live with Intention …. not only living with intention, but creating success on the way…today and every day?

Why is it so difficult to decide to live with intention? The most probable answer is because it tends to take you outside your comfort zone, a place that most of us are not comfortable with. Even though your life may not be ideal, you know what is going to happen so why change it? That is what many of us believe. The truth is when you make the decision to live with intention, it’s like waking up after a long sleep…you’ve been hibernating and now you look at this new world with half-opened eyes, excited, nervous but ready to move forward. You might have gone down the checklist of your life and decided it’s time to shake things up and make things happen. You look around and you see how others are living a life that you believe is a meaningful one and no don’t compare yourself to others but what you are doing right now isn’t working.  

Living with Intention Means Choosing Your Path

Living with intention is about choice. You have the opportunity to review your life and your surroundings and decide what’s important to you. You get to choose where you will put your attention, where you won’t, what obstacles you are willing to tackle, what you won’t and what consequences you can live with and what you won’t.  But, it’s all a journey and you have to decide if you are ready and willing to do it.  This is your intention, not someone else’s.  It’s like your core values…they are yours and not right or wrong.  So, let’s set you up with some ideas for success through intention.  

In an article called “Leading with Intention: The Subtle Art of Shaping Your Leadership Journey” by Carol Schulte, she talks about something that can significantly enhance our leadership journey: the art of setting intentions. She contrasts the differences between our goals and our intentions by saying, “Intentions differ from goals in their fluidity and purposefulness. While goals are specific targets we strive to hit, intentions are about aligning our daily actions with our core values and aspirations. They bring a sense of curiosity, openness, and purpose to our everyday decisions and interactions.” I love the way she talks about intentions… “The beauty of intentions lies in their simplicity and transformative potential. Whether it’s adopting a mindset of being more present, embodying a quality like organization, or focusing on connecting deeply with others, setting an intention each morning can profoundly impact how we navigate our day.”

5 Ways to Lead with Intention Every Day

Let’s continue that thought with some ways of creating intentions and being intentional both personally and professionally.  Read this carefully because I am telling you, until I became very intentional with what I was doing and how I was doing it, I was spinning my wheels and kept asking myself WHY?

1. Be Intentional About Marketing And Connecting-You need to be able to answer at least a few questions about your perfect person or ideal client i.e. What do they look like? How do they behave? Who are they? How do they relate to the problem you solve? There are so many other questions you can ask, but this is a great starting point. When your market is more targeted, you have a better focus on who you serve and what your message is.  We all know that we can be shiny object people and want to be all things to all people. When you aren’t trying to accomplish that, you find that your time is better spent because you are aiming your products or service to that group that likes you…they really like you. You will know where to network, where to meet people, where to have a presence on social media and what experience is the right one to deliver. Think about who inspires you to do better and be better. When you are first starting, you may not have a target market or perfect person…yet. What you will find is that you will decide who you love to do business with and will see that appear in those clients that become your perfect person.
2. Be Intentional About Standing Out-WOW your customers-As simple as it sounds, show up, do what you say and if you can’t do something, don’t say you can and of course, be available.  I’m not saying 24/7 but if someone calls you or texts you or emails you, respond within a reasonable amount of time. There is nothing worse than having a client feel like you took their time and money and that’s it. Also remember how your client likes to be communicated with. Some like a quick text and some like a more personal call.
3. Be Intentional By Communicating Effectively-As someone who has been dubbed “The Question Queen”, asking questions is my key and is really key. This is your time to be interested not interesting. The more questions that are asked, the more you will find out about your client.

In my 30 years of sales, I have NEVER sold anyone anything and yet I was the number one Salesperson, the number one Sales Leader and the number one Agency Manager. I simply had conversations with my clients. I built relationships with my clients, and I included them in the solutions that we decided on together. I asked more questions than you can possibly imagine…that’s how I got to know my clients. And of course, while questions build the relationship, listening will cement it. As the saying goes, “Listen to what your customers really want instead of trying to figure out what they want.”

• Be Intentional With Your Success-What does success mean to you? That’s your first step.  One of my favorite affirmations is, I Can. I Will…End of Story… because it gives you no room for excuses. It doesn’t mean its smooth sailing; it simply means you are going to do whatever needs to be done. Live less out of habit, and more out of intent. It’s not always who you know…it’s who knows you. See what doors open from people who you intentionally connect with and support.
• Be Intentional With Your Time– THIS is a big one…so first let me burst that bubble about work/life balance…there is no such thing. You can’t be 50/50 in anything you do; you have to be 100%.  

When we talk about time management, the truth of the matter is that we all have the same number of hours in the day and yet some of us finish mountains of work and projects while others complain they ran out of time. What’s the difference between the two scenarios? It’s all about priorities. A priority is the concern, interest or desire that comes before all others. So maybe it isn’t time management at all. Maybe it’s really managing ourselves.

Contrary to popular belief, human beings cannot multitask…even though it feels like we are accomplishing so much at the same time, we cannot do anything well when we are focused on getting everything done at the same time. We need to recognize that, even though we believe we can, and even convince ourselves that we are different, we really can only do one thing at a time, so we ought to do that thing and do it well. Most of our time is spent in the past or the future, rather than the present moment. What we end up doing is passing through that moment on the way to somewhere else and, in doing so, we miss the moment.

The Myth of Balance and the Power of Presence

Wherever you are, be in harmony.  Because harmony is my work/life balance.  Being present is harmony. Wherever I am, I’m present. Whether you are in person or virtually…be present. Show the others that are there that you are interested in what they are saying. Be present. Listen to those you respect. Enjoy the moment you’re in. Celebrate your accomplishments, no matter how small. Today is a gift …that’s why it’s called the present.

Remember, our intention creates our reality; we are powerful beyond measure.