Most of us are living our lives on autopilot. We do the same things every day and never take a step back to think about what we're doing, why we're doing it, or if there's something better out there for us.
This is not how you want to live your life! You deserve more than this! It's time to wake up and start living with intention.
The good news is that living a meaningful life doesn't mean you have to give up your dreams or leave the comfort of home. In fact, it's easier than ever to make time for what matters most!
Living with intention starts with creating meaningful habits in your everyday life – without sacrificing fun and enjoyment along the way. Living with intention means, you'll find yourself more relaxed and focused on what’s truly important – whether at work or play!
What does it mean to live with intention?
What does it mean to live with intention?
Living with intention is about more than just making a plan and sticking to it. It’s about understanding what you want out of life and then doing the work necessary to get there. Living with intention means spending your time on things that matter most in all areas of your life. It's not always easy, but living intentionally will help you find peace in all areas of your life.
Living with intention starts with your why?
The first step to living with intention starts with your why. Ask yourself what’s most important in your life right now, and where you want to go. Are you more interested in changing the world or finding personal happiness? Do you want to travel or settle down? Once you have an idea of what you want out of life, it will be much easier to get started with living intentionally.
Take a moment to yourself. Really think about the things that truly make you happy. Really think about how you feel when you're around certain people or engaging in certain activities.
Find a notebook or journal. Then write it all down. Do this often and revisit it as needed.
Living with intention means giving yourself grace.
It’s not about having everything figured out. It’s about understanding what you want out of life and then doing the work necessary to get there. Living with intention means spending your time on things that matter most in all areas of your life.
On your journey towards intentional living, it is important to give yourself grace. In other words, don’t beat yourself up if you skip a workout or say the wrong thing. You are not perfect, and that's okay! Instead of beating yourself up about what went wrong, focus on how to do better next time.
Keep your eyes on the prize! Living with intention means understanding why certain behaviors will benefit your goals, and actively working towards those goals.
How do you start living with intention?
In order to live with intention, you have to figure out what matters and who you want to be. Sometimes it can take a while because your family doesn't know any better and they're not supportive of the life that you want for yourself. But once you see the light and know where to head in, it gets easier. You start by clarifying your values and training your mind to stay in the present moment.
You don't have to try to do everything at once. You can work towards living an intentional life in steps.
Focus on what is important to you like your core values.
It's easy to get caught up and lose track of what matters. It happens to the best of us. However, there are small things you can do to focus.
Ask yourself questions like: “What do I value?” or “What decisions have led me to where I am today?” Write out your answers and look them over. Then see if they match up with the reality around you.
Remind yourself that you're in charge of your life. Be the captain of your ship, as they say, and steer towards what you want instead of being pushed by someone else's agenda. You have to make decisions that align with who you are at heart or there is no point in continuing down that path.
It can be a lot easier if you keep a constant
Know that you have control.
You have control. You have the ability to take control of your life. The first step is to accept that you have control and believe that you truly have the ability to control and make changes to your life.
You don't have to have all the answers in this journey however it is important to take ownership. Ditch the excuses, the blaming, and the complaining and focus on positive thoughts and emotions. You will be surprised what happens the minute you start to flip the script and believe that you truly have control.
Start with Baby Steps.
This is a journey and the goal is not perfection. You're going to have slip-ups, you're going to have fails, and that's okay!
Start with baby steps. If you want to eat healthier start by cutting out soda or having fruit instead of candy for snacks. It's easy to try too hard and quit when you're not seeing instant results. Start small and build on your successes one habit at a time.
Take baby steps when it comes to positive change in your life.
It can be really overwhelming trying to make all of the changes that living with intention requires all at once. You try too hard and give up quickly because you can't see results yet. The key to changing your life is not trying to change everything all at once but instead making small changes one habit or behavior at a time.
Focus on what you can control and let the rest of the world around you fall into place as it may.
Ditch the Comparison.
Comparison is the thief of joy. It will do nothing but make you miserable and unhappy with who you are and where you are in life. Everybody has their own unique path, their own unique challenges, and their own unique set of blessings. You just have to let it be what it is at that moment, and not compare yourself.
It could be difficult at times, especially with social media. However, work to focus on designing a life that you want and not the life that you think you want because it looks nice on Instagram.
It is easy to get caught up in what everyone else is doing and wanting to do the same because they look happy. However, nobody has the same path that you are taking. There is nobody who knows where you are coming from and there is nobody that knows what you truly value.
Focus on what matters most to you and work towards living an intentional life. You will find yourself focused, motivated, and achieving success in your own unique way. Stop wasting time comparing your life to someone else
Living with Intention is a Life-Long Journey.
Living with intention is not something you figure out completely and then it stays the same forever because every day we are faced with new decisions that will cross our paths.
Living with intention is a life-long journey to discover what kind of person you want to be in this world–how do you want people to see you? How do you want to see yourself?
It might take you a while to figure out what matters and who you want to be in this life, but once you know, it gets easier.
What does living with intention look like?
Living with intention is a life-long journey to discover what kind of person you want to be in this world–how do you want people to see you? How do you want to see yourself? It might take you a while to figure out what matters and who you want to be in this life, but once you know, it gets easier. What does living with intention look like?
Living with intention is the ultimate goal for most people because it means that everything they are doing has meaning. They have purpose and they are following their passions wherever they lead them. Living with intention also means being mindful of your thoughts and feelings so that when something happens in your day, there's no judgment or worry about if it was good or bad.
But what does living with intention look like? Well, it depends. Everyone's wants and dreams are unique.
But imagine a day where every single thing you do and task you accomplish is something that brings you closer to your ideal self.
For example, you wake up and go for a run because it makes you feel good and empowered. Not just because it's good for your physical health.
You get dressed in clothes that make you feel like the person you want to portray yourself as – maybe you're going for a polished and classic look. Or maybe some funky new outfit that expresses the free spirit inside of you. Either way, you're doing it for YOU, not because society tells you that's how people expect to see you look.
After getting dressed, your breakfast reflects who you are–you blend up a smoothie with bananas and berries because love the taste of fresh fruit in the morning or you got for an everything omelet because it fuels your soul.
After breakfast, you head to work but instead of just waiting for it to be over, you're actually excited to go. And once you get there, you add some extra pep in your step and are enthusiastic about helping your co-workers because it feels good. You think ahead of time about how the day might go and come up with ideas to make everyone's life a little easier.
After work, you have some free time so you go to the library and check out some books on topics that interest you. You might pick up something educational or for fun. Who knows? Then head home with your new books and cook yourself a soul-satisfying dinner or pick up take-out from your favorite local spot.
Your perfect life is determined by YOU! There is no right or wrong way when it comes to living with intention.
If you cringe at the idea of having fruit for breakfast or break into hives at the idea of going to the library that makes total sense. It's not your thing. The goal is to find the think that fuel you, bring your joy, empower you, and focusing on incorporating more of that into your day to day life.
Choosing to focus on what is important to you.
Living with intention means focusing on what is important to you. Spend some time really thinking about this. Feeling it. Writing it down. And every time you do something, buy something, say yes to something; Ask yourself. Is this important to me? How does this make me feel?
For example, say you buy a new dress. A question to ask yourself is Does this dress bring me joy? It should because if it doesn't, that means your values are not in alignment with what you're buying and it goes back on the rack, or eventually it gets donated somewhere where someone else can use it.
Being Self Aware
You may run into bumps in the road when it comes to really identify and focus on what is important to you.
One of the biggest reasons is because we often find ourselves surrounded by people whose values are vastly different from ours. This can make a person second guess themselves and wonder if they're really living with intention. Think about when you were younger and it seemed like all of your friends wanted to go out drinking or party every night. But you didn't care much for that. Instead, you hung out with people who shared the same values as yourself.
Now think about when you were in high school and your friends did everything together. You rarely saw your family because they only wanted to hang out with their own circle of friends.
Now think about when you were a teen and the coolest thing was to dress exactly like everyone else around you. Maybe it was Jordache jeans or Nike Air Max sneakers, but the point is, when you're young it's easy to figure out what your peers value.
But once you get older and move away from your hometown or college campus where everyone meets people who are different from themselves.
Now think about being an adult and realizing that maybe the things you valued growing up aren't really all that important anymore.
The same goes for the things that you thought were important when you were younger.
All of these mental shifts are totally normal, but it's important to be aware of them so they don't lead to a life where your time is spent doing things that you don't truly value.
So how do you stay true to yourself and reinforce your values?
It starts with being self-aware.
It takes a lot of conscious effort and will require you to look at your life with a critical eye. You may need to make some changes along the way, but when you find out what drives you, it's empowering. And it becomes easier to prioritize the things that matter most in your busy life.
Setting Goals and Refining them as you go along
You can't plan out your life and expect everything to go exactly as you imagine it will. So it's important to look for ways that you can improve the quality of your life as you go along.
You can start by setting short-term goals. These are achievable and measurable tasks that you want to accomplish in under two weeks, for example. Then you can set medium-term goals. These are tasks you want to accomplish in the next two months up to one year. And finally, long-term goals would be anything more than a year out.
Breaking your life into manageable chunks can help get things done and make it easier for you to see how everything fits together and makes an impact on your life as a whole.
Creating a plan that works for you
Let's talk about creating a plan that works for you. It is easy to get excited and want to see results right away. However, make sure to take the time to create a plan that works for you and your individual timeline.
Reset your mindset, give yourself direction, and set your priorities
Creating a plan first requires you to take some time and really think about what is important to you. (If that sounds familiar it's because it bears repeating over and over again).
When this is done it becomes easy for you to prioritize the things in your life that bring you joy, rather than letting stress drive all of your decisions.
Your job is to define what is important to you and work on a plan to achieve more of that in your life.
Enjoying the Journey and Living in the Moment
The most important thing to do is live in the moment. Don't get too caught up in the destination. Take the time to enjoy the journey. We only get one shot at this life so it is important that we make the most of it.
If you think about all your friends who are rushing from thing to thing, trying to fit everything in they end up missing out on a lot. And these same people often have no idea what drives them and do not take the time to appreciate where they are right now, in the present moment.
If you get up and try to live your life with intention, you will be surprised at how much calmer and more impactful your world will become.
And everything you do from this point forward will have a better chance of being something that is truly important to who you are today and who you want to become as you continue down the path of your life.
Checking in with yourself and realigning as needed.
It is important to check in with yourself occasionally and see how you are doing. Are your values still the same or have they actually changed as you've gone along?
Have a conversation with yourself about what is working for you and what isn't. If your goals are not aligned with your values, that may be an indicator that it's time to make some changes along the way so that you can keep your daily life balanced and in line with who you want to continue becoming.
Living with intention takes time, commitment, and a lot of self-awareness but it is worth it!
How do you live every day with intention?
Living with intention is about living your life fully. It's about waking up excited to tackle the day ahead of you, and looking forward to all that it has in store.
It’s acknowledging each moment as a new opportunity for growth, learning, understanding more of yourself and the world around you.
There are many ways to live with intention—you can be intentional by staying true to who you are or what makes you happy; choosing not only how but why you do something; being mindful instead of reactive; prioritizing self-care above everything else—the list goes on!
The important thing is making sure every day matters and thinking through what really matters most to YOU when trying to make decisions. It is about the practice of mindfulness.
I challenge you to take one small step to live with intention. Comment below the first step you are planning to take.
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