Improve what you do every day by having a 'word of intent'

 The one word 'intent' challenge 

- are you up for it?

Have you noticed that when you're intentional about something, you seem to achieve whatever task you've set yourself so much easier.  There's a swagger about you and a purpose to your goal.

A couple of weeks ago, I let myself get too complacent and I drifted from task to task with no real purpose.  I was doing what needed to be done and to be honest I was doing ok but then it caught up with me on the Thursday and it all went t*ts up for want of a better phrase.  It threw me off kilter and instead of finishing my working week on a high and with a clean slate for the following week, I felt discombobulated and out of sorts.

So this week I decided to try a new approach.  Every morning I've chosen 'a word of intent' with the sole purpose of ending that day feeling like I've achieved that word.  For example,

Monday - Satisfied

Tuesday - Energised

Wednesday - Determined

Thursday - Focused

Friday - Productive

Saturday - Positive

Sunday - Relaxed

You know what ... it worked.  Having that one word in my head every day made me approach things differently.  I set about my tasks with more meaning and purpose.

It's all very well having a goal but in order to achieve that goal we have to take actions towards it.  Goals tend to get forgotten because they're written down in a book or on the computer and never get looked at again.  Setting an intention every morning and repeating it to yourself over and over again throughout the day will help you work your way through those actions and get you to your end goal.

So what you need to do exactly?  Well, just like anything else, you have to practise and make it part of your daily routine.  When we decide to do something in life, we have to work hard to make it happen, there's no magical solution.

• Set your intention first thing every morning.  Sit quietly for 5-10 mins and think about how you would like your day to unfold.  What have you got to do that day?  How would like to feel by the end of the day?  From this, choose your word of intent.
• Remind yourself of your chosen word throughout the day.  In order for this to work, you have to remind yourself of your chosen word over and over again so you can apply it to every task.  Write it on a post-it note and put it where you will see it all day or set reminders on your phone.
• Tap into the emotions of your word of intent.  This can be particularly helpful if you have a challenging task to complete.  Your intent can stop you feeling overwhelmed.  For example, I had a task to do this week which I knew would take me a while to do and there was a high chance of procrastination rearing its ugly head.  My word of intent that day was 'determined' so I imagined how I would feel once I'd completed that task.  The fact that I was 'determined' to finish the task helped me power through it.  I ignored other emails and work requests, unless they were urgent, so I could switch off and purely focus on the task in hand.
• Apply your word of intent to every area of your life.  This doesn't just apply to work situations, you can use it for every task in your life.  On Tuesday, my chosen word of intent was 'energised'.  Not only did I want to apply energy to my work that day, I wanted it to continue into the evening when I went to my running club.  I kept repeating to myself that I felt energised and not tired and that I was ready to do the speed session.  The more you say something to yourself, the more you start to believe it.
• Practise, practise, practise.  I'm not expecting every week to be as great as this week and I'm sure there'll be days when my word of intent goes flying out the window.  However, I think this has real potential to improve my productivity and the way I approach tasks so I'm going to stick with it and practise every day.  Don't give up on something if one day it doesn't go to plan.  As adults, we are way too quick to dismiss things if they don't work immediately.  As a child we didn't give up learning how to walk, talk, read, write, ride a bike, swim etc so let's not give up without a fight as adults.  There will be some things that aren't right for you but at least give them a good go to find that out.

Of course, it's all very well setting a 'word of intent' but you do still have to carry out the actions to achieve it!!  But if you are looking for a new way to approach things then why not give it a go, it may just work for you.

#2020