Intentions are in the air. Since it is the beginning of a new year, many people are talking about what they hope the year holds for them, personally and professionally – as well as for the world as a whole. One person talked about how she wanted to make sure that the many choices that come her way each day support the outcomes she seeks to have in her life. We talked about the ways in which any of us can become more aware of the points along the way where we make choices – often outside conscious awareness – that may take us away from our goals, that may move us in directions other than those we have said we want to go. Each step – and every day is comprised of many small steps – can either support or hinder the birth of our intentions into the reality of daily life.

We also talked about the ways in which we could more consciously and actively support our intentions and the outcomes we seek to achieve. As we continued to explore the subject, a couple of questions emerged that can become touchstones – companions along the way – to meeting our goals and I’d like to share them with you. In each moment, we can stop and ask ourselves,

“Does what I’m about to do support the outcomes I want in my life? Would something else serve me better?”
Another question we can ask might be,

“Is this activity – spending my time this way – in line with what I say I want to achieve?”

A third question also focuses on the many moments of choice offered to us each day:

“Is what I’m doing right now a way of supporting my deepest desires and the outcomes I seek?” or “Does the quality and tone of my thinking, right now, move me in the direction I want to go?”

You can make up your own questions to ask yourself when you become aware of moments of choice. These questions aren’t an invitation to struggle with yourself, nor need they bring any self-criticism or judgment. Their deepest purpose is to give you an opportunity to take a moment and recognize how your actions, activities, states of mind and being all support or block actually manifesting your intentions in daily life. They can enhance your capacity to shift from a not-so-useful choice to one that more directly supports the outcomes you seek.

As you work with this experiment, enjoy the process of simply becoming more aware. Increased awareness of what we’re doing when we’re doing it is always a gift, even when we aren’t particularly fond of what we discover. With awareness comes the possibility of choice, and that’s a beautiful skill and option to have, regardless of what it may address.

Click Here for Other Weeks in This Series:

Home Page