On Living With More Intention

May 28

I've always been someone who loves a plan. I love making lists, setting goals, creating routines, and having a clear picture of where I'm going. But if the past few years have taught me anything, it's that life doesn't always follow the timeline we create for it.

And maybe that's not a bad thing. As I've gotten older, setting intentions has become less about trying to perfectly plan my future and more about deciding how I want to live while I'm getting there.

Who do I want to be? What deserves more of my attention? What am I giving too much importance to? What do I want my days to actually feel like? Those questions have become just as important to me as any traditional goal.

Intentions vs. Goals

I think there's room for both. A goal might be getting a new job, reaching a fitness milestone, starting a business, saving a certain amount of money, or finally beginning something you've been putting off.

An intention is a little different. Maybe you want to be more present. Maybe you want to stop making decisions based on what everyone else will think. Maybe you want to prioritize your relationship with God, become more disciplined, spend more time with the people you love, or simply create a life that feels a little less rushed.

Goals give us something to work toward. Intentions remind us who we want to be along the way.

And lately, I've realized I need both.

The Intentions I'm Coming Back To

These aren't rules I'm following perfectly. They're reminders I return to when life starts feeling noisy or I catch myself slipping back into old habits.

Be thoughtful about who has access to you.
I've learned that not every relationship deserves the same amount of access to your life. I want to invest deeply in relationships that feel mutual, honest, supportive, and safe while becoming more comfortable creating distance where that isn't the case.

Make ordinary life feel special.
I'm learning not to wait for the vacation, promotion, photoshoot, celebration, or next big milestone to enjoy my life. Making coffee in the morning, walking the dogs, putting on an outfit I love, making our home feel beautiful, sitting down for dinner, calling someone I love. These are the things life is actually made of.

Pay attention to what actually matters.
There are so many things competing for our attention, especially online. I'm trying to get better at asking myself whether something will matter a year from now before allowing it to consume me today.

Stop expecting perfection from yourself.
This is a hard one for me. I can be very all-or-nothing. If I can't do something exactly how I envisioned it, my instinct can be to feel like I've failed entirely. I'm learning that consistency doesn't require perfection and neither does growth.

Get more comfortable saying no.
Not every invitation, opportunity, relationship, or request needs a yes. I've learned that every yes costs something, even if it's simply time. I want my yeses to mean something.

Be present for the life happening right now.
I don't want to spend today constantly thinking about what's next. There will always be another goal to reach or something to figure out. I want to get better at recognizing when I'm living inside something I once prayed for.

Take care of the people you love.
Send the text. Make the call. Remember the birthday. Ask the second question instead of assuming someone is okay. I never want being "busy" to become an excuse for not showing up for the people who matter to me.

Take care of yourself, too.
Move your body. Eat food that makes you feel good. Get enough sleep. Take the shower. Make the appointment. Pray. Put your phone down. Go outside. Rest when you need to rest. Taking care of yourself doesn't have to be complicated to matter.

Remember that time is the real luxury.
The older I get, the more aware I become of this. Clothes, houses, jobs, money and accomplishments can all change. Time doesn't come back. I want to be much more intentional about where mine goes.

Write Down the Life You Want to Build

One of the most helpful things I've found is actually putting my thoughts somewhere outside of my head. You don't need an elaborate morning routine or a perfectly aesthetic journal. Take ten minutes and ask yourself:

What do I want more of in my life?
What do I want less of?
What am I holding onto that I might need to release?
Where do I need more discipline?
Who do I want to be a year from now?
What would make my everyday life feel more meaningful?
What am I praying about right now?

Then look at your actual life. Do your habits support those answers? Does your calendar? Do your relationships? Does the way you're spending your time?

I've found that sometimes the gap between the life we say we want and the life we're living isn't a lack of opportunity. It's a collection of little choices we've made without really thinking about them.

My Favorite Tool for Checking In

I've used the FORM Daily Check-In Journal as a simple way to slow down and actually check in with myself.

I like having prompts rather than staring at a blank page and wondering what I'm supposed to write. It gives me a place to think through how I'm feeling, what I'm grateful for, what I want to accomplish, and what deserves my attention that day. But whether you use a guided journal, the Notes app on your phone, or an old notebook, the tool isn't really the important part.

The habit of checking in with yourself is.

Leave Room for God to Change the Plan

This is the part of intention-setting that has changed the most for me. I used to think having a clear vision for my future meant figuring out exactly what I wanted and then working hard enough to make it happen.

I still believe in dreaming big. I still make plans. I still believe we have a responsibility to use our gifts well and put effort behind the things we're praying for. But I'm also learning to hold my plans a little more loosely. Because some of the things I desperately wanted didn't happen.

Some of the things I thought would be permanent weren't. Some seasons have looked completely different from what I pictured. And there have also been unexpected turns that eventually made more sense than the plan I had been trying so hard to hold onto.

For me, intention isn't about trying to control the future. It's about being thoughtful with the life God has given me today while trusting Him with where it leads.

Build a Life You Actually Want to Be Present For

There's nothing wrong with wanting more for yourself. Dream about the future. Make the vision board. Write down your goals. Work hard. Change your habits. Try something new. But don't become so focused on creating your future that you completely miss your present.

I don't want to spend my life perpetually waiting for the next version of it to begin. I want to build something meaningful while also noticing what's already here.

So set the goals. Write down your intentions. Pray about where you're headed. And then go live the day that's actually in front of you. You might look back one day and realize that some of the life you were so busy working toward was already happening.