Intention: Turning On & Tuning into Your Internal GPS

by | Mar 27, 2011 | Attention, Mindfulness, Resilience

Think of setti

ng your intention for the day as the process of turning on your internal GPS system to orient you to where you want to go. Ultimately, it’s to that Big Life Commitment of yours; however, for today, it’s being clear that you’re actually on the move down that path of your life, that you’re leading from what’s most important to you.

Your intention can be about many things. Here are a  few examples:

  • How do I want to show up today, in what mood? curiosity, playfulness, hope
  • What skills do I wish to use more of today?  listening, speaking up, being open, planning, enjoying
  •  What values do I intend to live out today? family, safety, risk, honesty, good-will

Leading an integrated life involves aligning our Purpose & our Passion into this very moment, the Present. It’s from this centered place, that seat of personal power, that we can move most effectively in the world.
To turn on your internal GPS, to lead from center, begin with the breath. As we literally drop our attention  into that felt sense of who we are as human beings, we begin to settle down into ourselves. It’s at this point that we want to set our intention for the day.

With a deep in-breath, still your body, heart, and mind, focusing on your breath at your belly; take a second breath and focus on your breath at your heart; take a third breath and focus your breath on your mind. Take a fourth, cleansing breath, allowing your body to be as it is right now. You’re aligning yourself in purpose, passion, present.
Allow your intention to develop out of this quiet space. And, given that the new year is upon us, with all the resolutions and expectations that go with the start of something new, give yourself an extra few moments to settle into yourself today. Bring your intention to your mind’s eye, using all your senses: see it, smell it, feel it, taste it, and observe it fully.
Speak your intention to yourself and feel it fully in your body; do this two-three times, coordinating it with your breath. Review your intention at the end of the day by feeling into it in your body, reviewing–without judgment–just how you lived into your intention.

By turning on and tuning into your own internal GPS, by setting your intention at the outset of the day, you choose where and how to direct your personal, centered power, power for action in the world. What’s your intention today?