New Year Intentions
I’ve never much liked the word RESOLUTION. It’s always seemed like a hard word to me—like something difficult you have to white-knuckle your way through, and if you don’t or can’t, you’ve failed.
I much prefer the word INTENTION. It’s softer, more female, and tied into words like purpose and design. It’s more about a way of being in the world than achieving an end result.
So I don’t have resolutions, but I do have intentions. The first of which is to write every day and to put “my” work first. I began the year with a new, interesting, complicated freelance writing job with a short deadline. It would be easy to let it take over my life, but I’m beginning each day by working on my own novel, even if only for fifteen minutes. After the alarm goes off and the tea-water boils, I sit down at my desk with pen in hand. I set myself up for success by leaving my WIP notebook open on my desk. A brief note about whatever comes next is the first thing I see.
And the days when the words aren’t flowing, or the pull of the freelance job is so loud that I can’t focus on my story? It’s okay – I'm not a failure. There’s always tomorrow.
I much prefer the word INTENTION. It’s softer, more female, and tied into words like purpose and design. It’s more about a way of being in the world than achieving an end result.
So I don’t have resolutions, but I do have intentions. The first of which is to write every day and to put “my” work first. I began the year with a new, interesting, complicated freelance writing job with a short deadline. It would be easy to let it take over my life, but I’m beginning each day by working on my own novel, even if only for fifteen minutes. After the alarm goes off and the tea-water boils, I sit down at my desk with pen in hand. I set myself up for success by leaving my WIP notebook open on my desk. A brief note about whatever comes next is the first thing I see.
And the days when the words aren’t flowing, or the pull of the freelance job is so loud that I can’t focus on my story? It’s okay – I'm not a failure. There’s always tomorrow.
Differentiating between resolution and intention is so helpful. I particularly appreciate the concept of starting fresh each day; that a slip-up one day does not a total failure make! The way you prioritize your day and the note to yourself from the day before is very focusing. I need to try this! BTW: congratulations on the new free-lance job!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Marcia.
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