Aligning Habits with Goals

[Becki Pauls]

" ... Living intentionally means you create your vision and decide what you want your life and career to be like. You write it down so it's even more powerful. You read this vision every day. Then you align your habits with your goals and take action that moves you towards your vision. Living intentionally means you also make time for pit- stops to refuel and recharge. You stop, breathe, meditate, pray and engage in the present moment and fill your moments with purpose, gratitude, enthusiasm, love and joy. Instead of scattering your energy you focus it. Instead of weak intentions and actions you bring more power and energy to everything you think, say and do. You have your vision, you know where you are going and with each action and present, purpose filled moment- you build more momentum and power. As a result you accomplish more with more ease. You work hard but work isn't hard. You are a powerful co-creator of your life. Instead of always responding to life you create it with your words, thoughts, choices and actions ...."

I read this from Jon Gordon today and it reminded me of our Group here on the Network. Maybe some of you will find it as useful as I have. It makes me asks myself the questions:

What can we do today to align our habits with our goals?

What activities can help us to feel recharged and refueled?

Where is our energy scattered?

[Stephen Craig Coulson]

I just read the link to Jon Gordon's article and what struck me was the power of writing your dreams and vision down - or in some other way sharing them with yourself and the world. In my work using person centred planning over the years and even more dramatically with the Big Plan work I do with young people - the power of actually getting the idea out of your head and into the real world is enormously decisive. Once out - a journey has begun and an energy and momentum created - that makes the possibility of success all the greater. Good stuff indeed.

[Michelle Schwartz]

Thanks so much for this Becki.... the last statement about "always responding to life " resonates with me. My question has been.... How do we respond differently to those situations that begin to "sink" us? How do we attend to our stated intentions?

[Anne Mitchell]

And I wonder about how we get comfortable sitting with, being with, the questions and not rushing to find the answers? So many of us (me included) want to find, to offer, an answer right here, right now. And the urgency is great. People's lives are in the balance. But in that process we keep attending to the surface part of the problem rather than allowing ourselves the time, individually and collectively, to go deep enough to understand what is really happening. And so our "answers" don't solve anything and we get caught in this horrible cycle of grasping the problem at the surface, doing something to change the very tip of the problem, while the problem gets bigger and stronger underneath what we can easily see. Living intentionally for me has something to do with understanding the things below the surface and becoming capable of (maybe rather than comfortable with) being with the problems rather than pushing them away too quickly.

John O'Brien included this quote at the beginning of his article "Assistance with Integrity" (available on this site under the forum "Life Beyond Plastic Words") that has allowed me to think about this idea more than once:

"The problems of life are insoluble on the surface…
Getting hold of the difficulty deep down is what is hard.
Because if it is grasped near the surface it simply remains the
difficulty it was. It has to be pulled out by the roots; and that
involves our beginning to think about things in a new way.
The change is as decisive as, for example, that from the
alchemical to the chemical way of thinking. The new way of
thinking is what is so hard to establish.
Once the new way of thinking has been established, the old
problems vanish; indeed they become hard to recapture. For
they go with our way of expressing ourselves and, if we clothe
ourselves in a new form of expression, the old problems are
discarded along with the old garment.
–Ludwig Wittgenstein*"

[Becki Pauls]

Anne - Thanks for for sharing this thoughtful post. Personally, the idea that I could be spending so much time and energy only to stabilize 'surface problems' weighs heavy on my heart. It doesn't feel right. Your statement is clear and very true - while we are grasping at the surface, the real challenges are becoming bigger and stronger. I work for a large community organization and frequently find myself running from staff support meetings, case conferences, and planning groups to family meetings, budget planning (.... or whatever ....50-60 hours a week, every week - same cycle.) In my heart and mind a strong sense of conviction is beginning to emerge about the way that I am spending my time and using the resources that have been offered to me.

I very much appreciate the conversation that is developing within this group and all that each of you are contributing. I am looking forward to the continued connection and sharing - as I personally work through what this means for me .... and collectively as we move forward on this journey. Cheers.

[Becki Pauls]

Thank you for posting this, Anne. I have come back to read it a few times.

Anne Mitchell posted: The problems of life are insoluble on the surface…
Getting hold of the difficulty deep down is what is hard.
Because if it is grasped near the surface it simply remains the
difficulty it was. It has to be pulled out by the roots; and that
involves our beginning to think about things in a new way.
The change is as decisive as, for example, that from the
alchemical to the chemical way of thinking. The new way of
thinking is what is so hard to establish.
Once the new way of thinking has been established, the old
problems vanish; indeed they become hard to recapture. For
they go with our way of expressing ourselves and, if we clothe
ourselves in a new form of expression, the old problems are
discarded along with the old garment.
–Ludwig Wittgenstein*"

[Monica Boothby]

I recently heard Susan Stewart speak (a self-proclaimed 'inspirational speaker' as opposed to 'motivational speaker') and she said something that resonated with me and has helped me to be more intentional, more focused, to have a better outlook:

It was something like: "Things don't happen TO us, they happen FOR us".  Simple yet profound.

Now when things come up, I ask the question, "how can I make this work FOR me"? That simple action/thought changes everything, helps with focus.. Intentionally asking how this event or experience can propel us on our path towards our goals..has helped me personally:)

[Craig Kenneth Coulson]

I wonder how many people really have goals? I mean, not just obtaining 'wants', but real life goals that will help them grow within themselves and encourage others to grow. I suppose even thinking about it, is the first step, but it is not enough. We need the next step, and there is always a next step, and if we make that our habit, to embrace the next step, we will soon align our habits with our goals. This is an interesting question, I like the fact that a question can live on in cyber space, just waiting to be answered, thanks Becki