New Year! New Resolutions!
Well,….maybe…
Confession: I am a serial New Year’s Resolutions setter.
My magic number is 10!! Each year, since Middle School, I have made a list of 10 resolutions for the year to come. Historically, I have tucked these resolutions away somewhere and admittedly did not look at them ever again. I actually never needed to pull the list out again, because it was the same list each year. Over half of the list would contain the same standards items, always leading off the list of resolutions: Exercise more, eat healthy, lose weight, pay down debt, be kind,…
Last year, while I continued with my New Year’s Resolutions routine, I did something different. I changed the name of the list. The list became my Intention List. I realized that if I was sincere about the changes that I wished to make in my life, I need to make an intentional choice each day, if not each moment, to choose the action I wished to take. By simply changing the name of my list from the Resolution List to the Intention List, it reminded me to focus on the matter of choice. Each day I have a choice to exercise, each meal I have a choice to eat healthy, and each purchase I make I can choose whether or not I wish to spend my money in such a way.
Simply put, to make changes in my life, it is necessary for me to not just make a resolution, I need to live each day with intention. Intention is a daily, a moment, a constant choice. It is ongoing. It is active.
Living this way gives me the permission to be human. If I “mess up”, that is okay. I constantly have the choice and the opportunity to live with the intention that I desire. In other words, because I break one dish, I don’t have to break the whole set. It is not one shot, fail, and you’re out.
Living with an Intention list also reminds me that life and time are precious
gifts.
Have you ever noticed that when you are given a set amount of time to finish a project, you tend to use your time wisely? With life, we do not know how much time we have – at least, not until the last moments of life, if even given that. Time can feel unlimited which can cause us to foolishly waste our gift of time. With an Intention list, I wake up each day reminded that there is no room to waste time on anger, ego, laziness, or greed.
In addition to my Intention list, I also set a Mantra. This year, for 2020, mine comes in the form of a question. This question provides me with constant direction and often gives me the pause I need to see things clearly. My Mantra, my question that I’ve set for 2020 is simply:
“Is this how I want to spend my gift of time?”
Your time is now! Happy new year – from my heart to yours!
Now through the end of January 2020, An Imperfectly Perfect Life is offering new clients an opportunity to connect for a 1-hour 2020 Intention Setting Session – to guide you to find your personal 2020 Intention List and Mantra. Please schedule https://animperfectlyperfectlife.com/schedule
