I was working with a friend on defining some long term and short term goals. Now these goals weren’t just pulled out of thin air. This person spent some time and effort digging deep, looking inside, and determining what kind of life she wanted to have in 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, and what kind of legacy she wanted as she lay on her death bed. This person took the time to define her intentions for life and has a pretty good idea what her purpose is. So the goals we were working on were goals that would help her immediately live into her purpose and her intentions for life. One of the things she saw for herself in a year was a much deeper connection with her daughter. Yes, she already had a deep connection with her daughter, but she wanted more of that and wanted to feed that connection. What an incredible intention and a great goal. So we began to talk about the things that would have to happen for that connection to grow deeper. We talked for awhile about changing her schedule, carving out more time with her daughter, and even changing careers and lifestyle in order to facilitate this deeper connection.
After awhile we realized that it was going to be some work and some time before she could alter her schedule completely and change her career path. Most people at this point would get down and depressed about having to wait that long before being able to institute the changes so that her life would line up the way they want. But not my friend. She knew already what she could do to immediately have a deeper connection with her daughter and live into that desire tomorrow. She spoke up and said, “I can be more present with my daughter today.”
Making little changes like turning off the tv, the Ipad, the phone, and anything else that would be a distraction, so that during the evening she could be fully with her daughter. Listening intently to her daughter as she did her reading home work. Eating face to face with each other. Making sure at bed time that she was fully present with her daughter and not working on some other things at the same time.
That is powerful! Actually being emotionally and spiritually present with the person you are in the same space with. People know when you’re with them. People are aware when you choose to set all distractions aside. Especially children.
I couldn’t have been more proud and excited for my friend. She wasn’t going to wait for ‘this’ circumstance to change, or for ‘that thing’ to happen. She wasn’t going to put off what she wanted another day. She made a decision to immediately begin living into the things she truly wanted.
She is making decisions and taking steps to move towards a different career and begin a new path that will take some time to come to full fruition. And the beauty of it is that she will have been present for the entire journey. That’s how intentional journeys are made. By figuring out what you truly want, how you desire to live, and making the necessary changes to live that life. All the while being fully present and looking for opportunities to make big impacts immediately.
What one thing could you do right now that would help bring you closer to those things in your life that you want? What one change could you make on a daily basis that would help feed and motivate you on your journey?