Pray AND Meditate
To live more intentionally, you have to be clear about what you want to accomplish. One of the best ways to achieve that clarity is through mediation or prayer. Find a little quiet time here and there to clear you mind and then pray or meditate on your intentions. With the clarity gained, you’ll have a deeper understanding of what you need to do. Your path will be clearer and taking the right actions will become easier. It’s also a wonderful way to enforce helpful new habits.
It’s important to find something that works for you. If you’re comfortable in your faith and your particular form of prayer, use that. If that doesn’t work for you, look into some simple mediation techniques like breathing exercises. Don’t get hung up on a particular practice. Even just sitting quietly, letting your mind calm down, and then thinking, or even daydreaming about your intentions will do you a lot of good. Make whatever you decide to practice work for you.
Keep a Journal
Keeping a journal is another great way to make sure you stay on track. Writing like meditating enforces what you’re trying to do and the process of writing things down can be a great way to clear your head and worth through obstacles and issue that may arise as you move along.
A journal will also help you hold yourself accountable and of course it’s a great tool to stay motivated. Whenever you feel like you’re not making progress, spend a few minutes reading through past entries and see just how far you’ve come already.
Stop and Evaluate Frequently
Another good strategy is to stop every few weeks and evaluate if what you’re doing is working for you. Are you starting to see some results? Is what you’re doing still aligning with your intentions and your purpose?
If it isn’t make some changes and create new habits until you find a new routine that works well for you and what you want to accomplish. Trust me, you’ll get there and you’ll find your grove.
Remind Yourself of Your “Why”
Until you’ve created those new routines and living intentionally has become an integral part of your life, it’s important to remind yourself why you’re doing this. Using a journal can be very helpful here. An affirmative statement in the morning before you get started on your busy day is another good option. You can even write your “why” down on a sticky note and put it on your bathroom mirror. Do whatever it takes to remind yourself why you want to change and the intentions behind it. It will keep you motivated to continue to create those new habits.
Lear More About What You Want To Be Intentional About
It’s easy to be intentional about something when you first start out. Things are new and exciting. It’s easy to stay motivated and make those small changes you need to make. Then after a while, the excitement fades and with it some of your motivation and drive does too. The best way to bring back that excitement is to immerse yourself in the topic and continue to learn something new. Read books on the topic, watch videos, take a course or class, read up on the topic online. Do what you can to keep learning and keep staying excited about the things you want to be intentional about.
For example, let’s say one of your intentions is to eat healthier and lose a few pounds. Keep looking up new recipes and diving into the latest nutritional science to stay interested and engaged. It will become much easier to stick to those new healthy eating habits when you do.