John Marshall Blog
Intentionality
Are you drifting through life like a rudderless boat? Or are you living life intentionally and on purpose? Do you wake up every morning excited to live your life? The secret to a happy, satisfying and fulfilling life is living intentionally. You can choose to complain about the things you don’t like without doing anything to change the situation. But is that the life you want to live?
What does it mean to be intentional?
The power of intentionality is remarkable. It is the key to genuine happiness. Living an Intentional life involves focusing on your core values and beliefs. It consists in knowing why you do what you do and why you don’t do the other things. It means you are living a life of purpose both in your words and actions. It means you are living a fulfilling life and making conscious choices. Being intentional involves actively engaging with your life.
Our world is full of options, and we are bombarded with countless choices daily. At times it’s much easier to ‘go with the flow’ and not consciously consider these options. Interestingly, living intentionally does not have to do with specific choices we make daily. Living intentionally involves your willingness to evaluate your daily decisions and evaluate why you do the things you do. It consists of the ability to do the things that matter to you, even when it seems complicated. It also means defining your core values and making decisions that are consistent with those values.
Why be intentional?
Be intentional because you aspire to live fully, not just get by. Living intentionally allows you to set a course for your life instead of drifting aimlessly. You will enjoy the freedom to focus on things that are truly important to you. Living intentionally also helps you to respond instead of reacting to situations. When you’re intentional in your words and actions, you’re doing things purposefully, and as a result, you will enjoy more productivity. Be mindful of your choices and decisions; you will be less likely to make bad or uninformed decisions. Imagine waking up every morning and loving your life, clearly defining what you want in life and creating a plan to make it happen. You can make significant progress in your life by considering these three ways to live more intentionally daily.
Begin each day in gratitude
Regardless of how difficult life is, there’s something going on in your life that you can be grateful for. Starting each day on a gratitude note helps you to realize that good things are happening in your life. That alone can make a significant difference when facing the day ahead. Reconnecting with the several reasons we have to be grateful will help you realize that you can overcome whatever obstacles you are experiencing. Focusing only on the negatives is a sure way to remain in a cycle of depression, unhappiness and lack of fulfillment. Remember, there’s always something that you can be happy about or sad about. The choice is yours.
Cultivate self-awareness
To be intentional, you need to be constantly aware of your thoughts. Ask yourself, “How do I want to feel today? What energy am I giving out? How can I get the most out of my day? The best investment you can make is knowing yourself. Take the time to meditate and bring yourself to a reflective state of mind. This will help you to be in alignment with who you indeed are and what your values are. Be intentional about it; own your life. Once you achieve this state of self-awareness, you will be able to approach every other thing with a specific intention. By living intentionally, you choose what comes into your path and how you respond to it. Remarkably, you get to choose your decisions daily because you are truly living life on purpose, with the full intention.
Create a Plan and set Realistic Goals
A plan provides direction and purpose to your life, while goals are specific things you wish to achieve that fit into your life’s plan. You may find it helpful to create vision boards, journal, keep notes in a calendar app, or start your day with a list of specific goals you wish to accomplish. Strive to prioritize the things that will bring you the most incredible sense of achievement when completed. You will be amazed to see yourself achieve your goals throughout the day.
Keep living the good life!
Keep learning, keep living and be intentional in whatever you do. Live a purposeful life today and do it again tomorrow. Think about the possibility of living a life you consciously create. Now is the time to start taking action from a place of clarity. It is possible to create a life that you are passionate about; you have the power to do it.
John Marshall
John Marshall Training will assist you to: Gain Clarity of Purpose… Strengthen Your Leadership Capability… Achieve Health and Fitness… Embrace Change… Ignite Passion… John Marshall training was Founded by John Marshall, a Canadian international entrepreneur (now Managing Director) incarcerated in the United States Federal Bureau of Prisons, who sought a permanent change to his own life and past behavioral patterns so that he could begin repairing the damage he had caused. To achieve this change, John Marshall recognized the need to undertake a powerful journey of personal transformation. From the onset of John’s transformative journey, he realized that an integral part of his own healing was to help facilitate change in others who needed it. In response to this calling, John created “Paradigm Thinking”, a transformational training/coaching program that 100’s of men have participated in. Now, Peak Performance Coaching is the byproduct of John’s ongoing journey with God and his own mission to facilitate change in others. Finally, after 6 years in prison and life coaching, mentoring and pastoring 100’s men over 1000’s of hours, John is ready to share this experience on a larger scale, with you.
