Habits That Have Helped Me Adopt A More Intentional Approach to Life

Becoming a mother for the first time has been life-changing. Six months into this journey and there are still new things that I am learning about myself. My desires and needs have changed. My perspective of life and the world overall is a lot broader. You'll hear me talk a lot about my motherhood journey because it has shaped so much of who I've become. I am in a new form mentally, spiritually, and physically. As a result, I feel more connected to the woman I am. I feel more evolved, creative, and, most importantly, intentional. 

If I had to name this period, I'd title it "Foundation." 

I am in a beautiful period where I have made peace with any desire to find comfort or be attached to anything or anyone that does not support this phase of foundational building for me. Life is about navigating through and ensuring you're making the decisions that benefit your future. Even through all the ebbs and flows, I still feel uncertain. I am still trying to decide which direction to go in or what decisions to make. It is relatively easy to feel unsure about our life journey. But uncertainty may mean that we will always find our way. 

This is why living intentionally is essential. Motherhood has been the most awakening call for me to prioritize being more intentional. While we all may not be mothers, think about your most recent transformative life shift. How has the growth helped you view the world and your decisions? If you need inspiration, below, I've listed a few habits that have helped me adopt a more intentional approach to life.

Trusting My Life Process 

More than ever, I've had to learn to trust the direction of my life. Recently, I've started questioning my abilities or being overly concerned about what can or will work out for me. There is never really anything that occurs in my life that I feel incapable of managing. But even still, there are times when I experience moments of doubt or fear; we are human, and I can assure you that these feelings are perfectly normal. We will always be faced with hardships and obstacles. How we handle these situations ultimately determines the fate of everything. Appreciate the moments in life where you can relax, reflect and realign. Every day may not be perfect, but we can always choose how we perceive our reality. Our perception of life's occurrences will always be the determining factor in our days. Perceive wisely! Aligning our perception of our life with faith is essential. Trusting in our life process is a massive part of living an intentional life. It's understanding that you are destined to live a life of greatness regardless of what occurs.

I Became Less and Less Concerned With The Opinions of The World

At a point in life, I cared about being able to say I accomplished certain milestones by a specific age. There was a time when I needed my name to be attached to something to feel accomplished or successful. Since breaking up with this way of living, I have never felt more at peace. I feel grounded, whole, and secure. I stopped checking for what others were doing, hoping their lifestyle changes would help me define who I am and where I am going. One day, I decided that living to satisfy the world was setting me up for failure. Relying on others to affirm me was continuously leaving me coming up short. I knew that to be confident in myself, I had to silence the world's opinions around me. You have to grow to learn what it feels like not to let other people's views or assumptions shape how you feel about yourself. Silence the world and change your life.

Changing My Negative Surroundings

The above tweet couldn't be more relatable for me right now. Sometimes the wrong environments and company can cost you a lot. The wrong people, places, and things can sometimes rob you of your peace, joy, strength, happiness, and even finances. I have made a multitude of mistakes in my life. Most of my mistakes resulted from being surrounded by negative people or willingly indulging in adverse situations. You can always find comfort in the fact that your mistakes may someday be a source of inspiration to someone else's life or the push you need to lead you down a healthier life path. A more intentional way of living begins when we choose not to let energy leeches live within our personal space. To live an intentional life, we must learn to put ourselves first. Be intentional about who you give your time, love, and energy.

Learning Always to Choose Love and Peace

My level of peace in life didn't always exist. There was a time I harbored a lot of hurt and resentment, which was reflected in my daily life. I always had a negative view or opinion. I was often a very paranoid and pessimistic person. I reveled in negativity simply because my mind hadn't evolved into seeing past the negative. When my perspective began to shift, so did my life's circumstances. The moment I devoted every waking moment of my time to seeing my life through new eyes, shifts continued to occur. I found peace in having faith in God. I found peace in trusting that being surrounded by love and giving love is real success. A more intentional way of living for me started when I chose to see love in everything and everyone. By choosing peace regardless of the outcome of the situation I am faced with, I am choosing to live a better life intentionally.

Focusing On My Own Life

There is no peace like the peace of minding your own business. Being concerned with others keeps you distracted from living your own life. Some people are so worried that others are living on their own terms that they lack self-focus. You only lose sight of how beautiful your own life is when you refuse to exercise non-judgment and not compare yourself to others. Developing a sense of contentment with where I am presently was my way of being intentional about my life. It was my way of being proud of who and where I am. The key is to be intentional about staying focused on what is ahead of you, not what everyone is doing around you. Concentrating on your path is the only sure way to continue on the path of intentional living.

I'd love to hear how you're living an intentional life; let me know in the comments or send me a private message!