The Art of Intention

Have you ever thought about why you do what you do? How you spend your time? Who you spend it with?

Prior to the spring of 2020 my job required a lot of hours. I work in college athletics and pour a lot of hours into office hours and game days. I love what I do but I used the hours as an excuse a lot to not properly care for myself or not build and maintain good relationships with people. I always “didn’t have time.”

The truth is friends, we do have time. We make time for the things in our lives that truly matter to us, the truth is, we use time as an excuse when something isn’t a priority. We have a lot more time than we realize, we just have to be very intentional about how we utilize it. If you think of your time as an investment, would you spend it the same way you are spending it now?

I caught myself one day scrolling through social media, tv blaring in the background and realized I had no idea what I was watching or what I was reading on my screen. I was completely zoned out. I was pouring out time as though it were a limitless resource. I challenged myself to consider the amount of time I spend blindly scrolling social media. Those screen time reports will make you reconsider a lot of things. What I realized is I was wasting several hours a day when I could be investing it elsewhere.

Now, instead of blindly scrolling through my phone when I’m bored, I read a chapter in a book. I have read 37 books this year (yes, I keep track of that) by reading for 30 minutes in the morning and grabbing a book instead of my phone. When I’m watching tv, I only check my phone during commercials. I call a friend or family member when I’m driving. I listen to podcasts or audiobooks when I clean. When I workout, I get locked in, I pour all of my focus and energy into that moment. Meal times are intentional for me also, I sit down and enjoy my food, no tv allowed at mealtimes. If I’m eating with someone, no phones are allowed. I believe we can regain a lot of lost family time through intentional meal times.

The more intentional I became with my time, the more time I seemed to have for the things I enjoyed. I’m not against social media at all, I think it has a place and I love seeing what my precious friends and family are up to, but I think we need to be aware of how much it can suck us into a time warp.

The same is true of our relationships. We need to be intentional. We tend to take the people we see the most for granted. We assume they are always going to be there. We are not intentional with our interactions with them. We do not sit down and intentionally communicate. No one on the planet deserves more of your intention than your precious family. Interact with them intentionally every single day and watch the growth that happens.

Today, may I challenge you to consider where you are investing your time? Are you being intentional? Where can you make some changes that will serve you better? One small step at a time, much love friends.