When I was little, my mom used to make the best birthday cakes. I’d asked her how come her cakes were always the best and would I ever be able to make a cake that tasted so good. She’d answer “My secret is in the love I bring to my baking.” I didn’t understand it then, but my mom was mastering the art of setting intention.
If you’d like to make everything in your life “taste” a little bit better, ask yourself these three questions everyday:
QUESTION 1 (ask yourself this in the beginning of your day):
“What’s my intention for this day?” Put another way, “What is one personal quality that I want to focus on today?”
Is it love, trust, faith, open-mindedness, non-judgment, patience? Notice that focusing on any of these qualities doesn't require a specific result. Life will happen, and though you won’t always have control over everything, you do have control over the way you choose to perceive things and what intention you choose to bring to the experience. Even on the most horrific day, just sticking to your intention in the heat of the moment can keep you sane and grounded.
QUESTION 2 (ask yourself this during your day):
As I go through my day, are my words and actions truly reflecting the intention I set for myself this morning? If not, how could I change them so that they are?
Setting an intention is only part one. We must put it into action to watch it flourish. My mom couldn’t just think nice thoughts about baking a cake and hope it would come to fruition. She had to put her good intentions to work and trust whatever impact they had on the process of her baking. In a similar way, we must constantly check in with our intentions throughout the day, no matter what is happening, and ask ourselves if we’re being truthful to honoring them in the moment.
I know it seems easier said than done. But what have you got to lose? Try asking yourself this question and following through with the feedback you receive, and you may be surprised at how dramatically this small act might change the course of your entire day.
QUESTION 3 (ask yourself this at the end of your day):
What am I grateful for today?
No matter how crappy or horrible a day may appear, I am convinced there is always something you can find about it that you are grateful for. Some days it might be something really basic like being grateful for having a roof over your head or food to eat. Other days it might be more specific like being grateful for a certain person or event that happened in your life. No matter how significant or insignificant these things seem to be, connect to your gratitude for them daily. Gratitude brings perspective and expands the heart to receive more good things, making us less susceptible to the dramatic flairs of our egos.
Even, on the rare occasion, when my mom would screw up a recipe, we’d end up laughing and feeding the crumbs to the birds in the backyard, just being grateful for this opportunity to have time together and to connect. Practicing intention and gratitude may not make your life all rosy, but they do help you to ride out the inevitable ups and downs of your day with a lot less wear and tear, and they remind you that your true power, the power of perception, lies within.
Try it out and let us know how it goes. And pass on the BLISS by sharing this post with your women friends and helping us spread the word about living a BLISSED OUT! life.
Thanks!
Amy
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