Living (on Purpose): The Power of Intentionality

What do you think of when you hear the world “intentional”?

While mindfulness and “leaning in” are some common buzzwords of our generation are used to describe authentic interpersonal communication and relationship building, they are ultimately getting at a common theme of having purpose.

Being intentional is fundamentally about decision-making with an internally consistent purpose.

Would People Describe You As Intentional?

How we spend your time, what we prioritize, and what we think about are all reflections of our values.

Having purpose is one of the lowest hanging fruits available. That’s because it doesn’t take any special knowledge — just effort and authenticity.

Sure, you might need to reflect on your values if you haven’t been doing so already, but that’s hardly a bad thing.

Imagine if a football team got onto the field without knowing the rules of the game or who is on their team. It would be complete chaos. It would also be no fun to watch.

But, that’s what so many of us fall into the trap of each day. If we don’t start each day continuing on with an overarching purpose that we’re working towards and joyful about, each day is going to be a random assortment of events that probably won’t go too well. And, even when they do, we’re probably not using our talents as prudently as we could be.

Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing. — Thomas Edison

Don’t mistake filling your schedule up with meetings, emails, or even genuinely practically useful tasks for the broader goal of purpose. If every activity is not intimately connected with one another, there’s a wonderful opportunity of harmony that we’re giving up.

Small Steps Towards Being Purposeful

There are fundamentally two important ingredients.

First, what do you believe about yourself and the world?

As a Christian, I believe that I’ve been created uniquely be God and am loved unconditionally so that I can be a blessing and servant to others. That’s been the catalyst behind literally everything I do.

Starting graduate school and finishing two doctorates was hardly something I could have conjured up on my own. But, I did it because that’s where I felt God leading me.

Everything else that followed, therefore, was just a natural extension of that calling to serve through teaching, producing knowledge, and leveraging that knowledge to make better decisions in business and policy.

That certainty about my purpose is precisely what enables me to approach every day with joy regardless of the trials that arise. Moreover, it changes my filter for decision-making away from “what makes me feel good right now” to “how can I make a bigger contribution and share the love that Jesus has shared with me?”

Regardless of what you believe values-wise, if you don’t know what you stand for, then you’re going to have a tough time piecing together all the opportunities that come your way and selecting the ones that are worthwhile.

Second, what are you doing practically to make sure you’re holding yourself accountable to those aims?

We’re constantly inundated with distractions — whether in our physical environment or social media. Having a set of habits that create discipline around our routine and allow us to audit ourselves is absolutely vital to staying on course. It’s what allows us to recalibrate and course-correct.

For example, a practical habit has been not having Facebook and/or other social media, apart from LinkedIn. That’s really important since distractions come easy to me. So, aligning my allocation of time with my values is vital to guarantee that I am moving the right investments forward.

People who use time wisely spend it on activities that advance their overall purpose in life. — John C. Maxwell

We’re all going to make mistakes, but what really matters is how we correct ourselves and get back up as we work towards the broader goal.

What are you going to do differently today to align your values with your activities?