Svaha: the time between seeing lightning and hearing the thunder
I will be eternally grateful for your great gift of taking in to the fullest extent what it is that I have to offer, living it, and then reflecting it back in terms of the potential experience of others. You have given words to a process that defies words. And you’re constantly in a position to help me continue to hone that, deeper and deeper and more and more resonantly, who I am and what I offer, which is truly invaluable. — Jon Hansen, The Remembering Room, Richmond, Illinois
What you’ve sent me is so darn perfect it hurts! It’s a sheer pleasure to work with someone who writes as beautifully as you do — and in “my” voice. — Ariane Goodwin, Ed.D, smARTist® Telesummit, Millers Falls, Massachusetts
You have a real gift for words. You’re really, really good at it. — Sherry Essig, Priority Ventures Group, Raleigh, North Carolina
You’ve built such integrity of message in your company. I know that’s because it springs forth intrinsically, but you stay so focused at your core! I can’t think of a better way to phrase that laser-beam focus you have. It’s funny, because in someone else, laser-beam focus would be intense, but somehow you manage to make it much more kind and easy. — Jessica Albon, Thrive Your Tribe, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
I’ve never worked with anybody in the way that I’ve worked with you in terms of trusting in your abilities to the level that I have. — Catherine Hajnal PhD, Eight Branches Consulting, Vancouver, Canada ... facilitating and nurturing joyful living
You have an uncanny ability to see through what is being said and surface all the “unsaid” issues. Then you quickly give candid feedback and have a tremendous toolbox to help me move forward through your expert guidance of the right tool.
I have worked with many facilitators/coaches/counselors relating to work and personal situations. Your skills are exemplary and moved me faster than I ever expected. — Jennifer Baker, Fishers, Indiana
You bring both a spiritual perspective and some real-world hard-headedness. — Janet Bailey, Mindful Time Management, San Francisco, California
Brava! I wish I could draw a picture of me — you’d see me in a deep bow to you!
I read your newsletter as soon as it hits my in-box and you’re always right on with your advice. I had to let you know that this issue is particularly brilliant.
I will definitely keep this info — and your contact info — in a secure place.
Thanks so much for sharing your insight and wisdom. — Debbie Rodgers, CGA
If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while, you already know I’m not in favor of New Year’s resolutions.
Setting an intention, however, is quite different from making a resolution.
Of course, I’m not talking about the intentions that pave the road to hell. Nor am I referring to the generic and rather vague intentions of the “I will be a better person” variety.
I’m talking about intentions that grab you by the throat, that give you goosebumps, that speak from what’s deepest within you. Intentions that impact every aspect of your life, from your business to your family, from your finances to your exercise routine.
When you’re willing to go deep and allow an intention to come from that wordless, instinctive, inspired place within you, then you’ll have something powerful. You’ll have something that will ring through your being, naturally informing everything that you do — and more importantly, everything that you are.
Some intentions can last for years, even for a lifetime. Others help you attend to a shift in your life or way of being; once the shift has happened, the intention isn’t needed any more, and naturally falls away.
Of course you can set an intention at any time of year, and for any reason you want. However, since year-end is when many people look at their lives and think about what’s upcoming, it’s a good time to check in with yourself. Is there an intention that’s arising for you? And what can you ask yourself to help you form an intention that will be meaningful and powerful?
Here are a few questions to consider. Allow them to inspire you!
Note: I have deliberately not included examples. When you’re first engaging with setting intentions in this way, it’s tempting to model yours after those you see from other people — but that’s nowhere near as powerful as forming your own.
In the next few weeks, I’ll post follow-up thoughts on my blog, and I’ll invite you to comment, ask questions, and share your intentions there.
The best intentions arise from deeply-felt inspiration.
Rather than setting a goal for a specific aspect of their business, I ask my clients to look at their lives as a whole. I ask them to consider what they want, where they are — and who they want to be.
What’s the feeling behind what you want? How might that feeling impact other areas of your life?
One client was struggling to complete follow-up tasks with potential customers and partners. In bringing that into a “feeling” place, she identified it as wanting to feel in integrity about commitments — not just commitments to others, but also commitments to herself. (Her final wording is clearer and more specific — and as I said, I’m not including examples here!)
As she experienced, it’s far more powerful to identify the desire to feel in a particular way than it is to set a goal to “be better at following up”!
Resolutions and goals tend to make you feel pushed, forced, held accountable. In other words, they’re about outside influence and “shoulds” — and that, of course, is why they get lost so quickly.
A good intention will pull you forward into what you want. It will be so much a part of you that it rings like a bell inside you. It becomes a guiding force, a compass showing you what direction to take.
And it will challenge you to stretch and grow.
My client’s intention about commitments feels powerful and attractive to her — and it invites her to be aware of what she really wants to do. Living this intention guides her to make only those commitments she knows she wants to keep!
How do you feel about your intention? Is it welcoming, exciting, and inspiring — and maybe just a little bit unnerving?
Don’t answer these questions quickly. This isn’t a rote exercise to get through so you can check it off on your to-do list!
Sit with what you want. Explore the ways your intention might affect each aspect of your life. Be willing to experiment and tinker and play with different wording and different emphasis. See how small tweaks change how you feel about it.
As you can imagine, as my client lives her intention she’s seeing how it carries far beyond follow-up with customers — and far beyond her business — to impact many aspects of her life.
Write your intention down where you can see it often. Allow it to become part of your day, part of your life. When it’s a part of you, when you’re living it, it becomes a guide, helping you make choices and informing how you act.
Don’t just “have” your intention. Live your intention.
Intentions change and grow — and sometimes fall away.
If your intention starts to feel constricting, or as if it’s forcing you to do or be differently than you want, then it’s become a “should” instead of a true intention.
On the other hand, it may become so much a part of you that it no longer needs your focus.
In either case, it’s time to allow it to evolve, or to allow it to go.
And then you may find yourself called to explore a new intention!
“Ask yourself: What is my truest intention? Give yourself time to let a yes resound within you. When it’s right, I guarantee that your entire body will feel it.” Oprah Winfrey, 1954-, American television host, producer, and philanthropist.
If you liked this article, you can
sign up to receive my regular newsletter!