decide what to be and go be it

For much of last week I was so swamped that I wasn't thinking about how I wanted to show up and what my intentions were. Those days my mind felt clouded, my purpose wasn’t clear, and while I had happy and productive days, there were certainly things I dwelled on that I didn't need to and equally things I didn't think enough about.

On a stroll to Starbucks early Sunday afternoon I realized that I hadn’t thought about my intention in days. Since it was Sunday I decided that my focus didn’t need to be anything monumental. I had felt immensely fortunate over the past couple of days and I decided, with that in mind, that what I wanted to really pay attention to was being kind. I don't consider myself an unkind person by any means but I'm not sure that we all spend enough time really focused on and wanting to be kind.

The universe didn’t waste any time to put my intention to the test. Not a middle aged, homeless man was standing at the front door of Starbucks; his strong, musty scent introduced him before I looked up and saw him. He was thin with wild hair and oddly placed tatoos. He wore very loose, ripped shorts and a baggy tshirt. I couldn’t help but think that with his thin frame he could have been a petite model dressed in hipster fashions that girls like me would pin to their street style Pinterest boards.

I walked inside and he followed close -- very close -- behind. He stood no less than 6 inches behind me in the uncrowded line. He seemed a but many and was standing so close that in an effort to back up I walked out of line so he approached the counter before me. He ordered a cup of coffee and pulled out one dollar bill. The barista asked him if he had any more money; his drink was $1 and some change but he didn’t produce anything else. Not wanting to make a scene I stood quietly for a moment. I then asked what he was trying to order. The barista smiled and shook her head at me; she had just run the transaction and just charged him $1. He stood by me, still very close by, as she poured him a cup of coffee. He wasn’t looking at the pastries with any real longing but the least I could do it seemed was to ask if he’d like anything. He quietly scanned his options for a few seconds without even acknowledging my offer; then he declared, with the same excitement of a child after finally choosing an ice cream flavor, “Coffee cake!” 

I don’t post this to make myself feel good or to receive kudos for purchasing small pastry for a homeless man at a coffee shop. People do acts of kindness like this all the time. If I’m being honest I could do them a lot more frequently. 

I post this because it’s not everyday when you decide you want to do something and then are presented a perfect opportunity to do so, literally moments later. I felt lucky to have the opportunity to do something kind for someone else and be able to see the real result.

It was a good reminder about my intention to be more purpose oriented this month. Even though I got a little side-tracked some days, all of the days that I did operate with clear thought and intentions I was more productive (and not just with those specific plans or goals), more content, and I think happier.

Happy Tuesday, decide how you want to show up today and keep your eye on your own prize.

2nd PSL of the season. Don't hate, we all know these are delicious.

finding purpose on my daily commute

I committed to sharing my experience living more purposefully but life happened last week and writing posts fell towards the bottom of my to-do list. Luckily I was fortunate enough to attend part of Oprah's The Life You Want Weekend here in Atlanta which was, strangely enough -- but not all surprisingly -- very aligned with this focus on purpose that I'm living right now.

I'll share about the Oprah experience at a later point but for now I thought I'd share about a specific moment from last week when I could pinpoint this little experiment having a positive, real impact on me.

With my recent move (read about my feelings on moving here and here) I've been able to take MARTA, Atlanta's public transit system. To say that it has been a wonderful life change would be an understatement. 

MARTA gets a bad rap so hear (read) me out... Moving from another city with a huge traffic problem  but one that also has a strong public transit system (Washington, DC), it's been a challenge getting used to life without easy access to public transit. Enter: living less than 4 blocks from MARTA and working less than a half a mile from a transit station.

MARTA seems to be looked down on in Atlanta. But truth be told, it's cleaner and less crowded than all the other public transits I've taken on a regular basis. This is likely due to the fact that it's not all that popular, which is largely due to the fact that it doesn't run through the most convenient locations, but I digress.

I've been taking the train to my office 2-3 times a week for the past 3 weeks. Along with removing me from the mess that is Metro Atlanta traffic it gives me time to read and decompress, offers a little exercise as I walk to/from the stations, and costs no more than traveling via car.

A co-worker of mine has joked that he can tell the days I take MARTA since I just seem to be in a brighter mood.

The other day I was leaving the train and saw one of the other women in my office who takes the train into work. My immediate reaction was to avoid her. I hate to admit this but then again I think that's a pretty normal reaction: I had a 5 minute walk to my building left in my commute and part of me wanted to revel in my solitude. I rationalized to myself that it wasn't just so that I'd have a few more minutes of "me" time but since she had ear buds in surely she wouldn't want to chat; further even if she did I'm sure I would have startled her if I approached her. 

Just before I could finish talking myself out of saying hello I remembered a part of the intention I set for myself that morning. My intention was to really think about and connect with my coworkers on a human level. Not that I don't do this on a pretty regular basis but I had recently been asked to develop a team development program to encourage associates to get to know one another on a more personal basis. I figured I should walk the walk. But more so I really firmly believe that showing our authentic selves at work and getting to know the authentic selves of our coworkers is really important to our happiness and success at a company. I am friendly with a lot of my coworkers and close with a few but I knew that there was still room for improvement.

With that I quickened my pace and caught up to her. We had a very nice walk to the office together. Then two days later we walked to the train together at the end of the day. That time she saw me heading out and asked if I had driven or rode in; when I told her I took the train her face lit up, she asked if I'd wait 2 minutes for her to grab her things (I obliged), and when she got back to the door she said as we walked towards the elevators, "I've had no one to ever walk with since the interns left!"

My simple act, while small to me, was big to her. 

This was the point of my set purpose that morning. And being able to identify and see progress in these purposes and intentions is a big reason I've been starting my days with a set intention or two.

What about you? What are your intentions for the day or month or even longer term? Declare your purpose and start making progress now. 

purpose project: day 1

A good chunk of my time as a marketing manager is spent developing strategy. This makes sense since there needs to be a plan in place (even if just a basic, rough concept) before execution is possible. 

As I build my plans I consider multiple components such as the wants, needs, and motivations of my audience, the goals of my business, sales, and product partners, as well as the competitive climate, past results, projects results, and more.

At times it can seem like there are too many options or courses of action that can be taken. Sometimes it can be overwhelming. This is why for me, like many strategists, it often comes back to intent. Intent or what we want to happen as a result of our efforts critical in business. It helps answer a key operating question that a former manager and champion of mine would ask which is,  for the sake of what?

Increasingly I've been considering what would happen if I employed as much intent in my daily life as I do professionally. Not that I would want to have everything  planned out -- that's no fun -- but what would happen if I acted with purpose and intention daily. 

I believe that if I operate with a clear vision of my purpose and goals for each day I will be more productive, efficient, and happier.

This is why I've decided to live the month of September with intent. I'm calling it my purpose project.

I believe that by thinking through the intent, or the for the sake of what, behind our behavior we can better understand why we do the things we do and in turn, we will understand ourselves a bit more as well.

So if I won't be plotting or planning out everything I do what will this look like? I plan to be aware of my daily actions, activities, decisions, and choices. Plain and simply I want to start  each day by thinking about how I intend to be-- How do I want to show up throughout the day at my office and beyond? How do I want to make people feel? Maybe I've been having the tendency lately to snap at people; if so can I operate with more compassion and understanding? Have I been neglecting any friend or family member; if yes should I consider carving off some extra time to him or her? Or maybe I have been neglecting myself and I should consider carving off extra time for me. 

Far too many people live far too many days feeling as if they are simply drifting and going through the motions. My hope is that operating with intent and purpose will help resolve this. 

I'm not sure how an entire month of this will go and what the result -- if any -- will be but I intend (pun intended!) to find out. 

I'll post regularly (at least twice a week) on the experiment so check back frequently!