Pathwalking 281 – Intention

Intention is the reality of control.

When you take an intentional action, you have a purpose, and are not just doing some thing for the sake of doing the thing. Intent means there is a plan to gain something from the action taken.

I have been writing more or less since I began Pathwalking that one of the main reasons to walk one’s own path is to take control of your own destiny. I want to create a unique, interesting life that I wake up excited to partake of day in, day out. I don’t want to just let life happen or let circumstances dictate who I can be. That is why I am choosing my paths for myself.

A lot of people get hung up on the idea of control. They want to control how things happen in their lives, and often become unhappy when that does not work out as intended. The thing is, control means nothing if there is no intent behind it.

What does that mean? What that means is that taking an action for the sake of acting is ineffectual. It’s the equivalent of igniting the rocket engine but not bothering to steer, and hoping you’ll fly straight and true. Sure, you’re moving…but are you moving where you want to?

Intentional action is igniting the rocket engine and then steering the rocket where you want it to go. You are not just acting, you are acting with purpose, with a plan, with a goal in mind.

I want to be in control of my destiny. That’s a pretty lofty idea. Along the way there are going to be twists and turns and obstacles and other factors that will change my course, alter my plans, and maybe even shift the destiny I believe I want. So it is important to work to control only the seemingly little bits that are, and always will be, mine to control.

This begins with thoughts. You, and you alone, are responsible for your own thoughts. Yes, you can read things that will give you ideas, and you can certainly talk to people who might influence your thoughts. But when all is said and done, you are in control. You are the only one who can think the thoughts in the way that you think them.

The same is true of feelings. You, and you alone, are responsible for your emotions. Yes, you can have encounters that will make you feel certain ways, and you will talk to and associate with people who will make you feel good and bad, superior and inferior. But when all is said and done, you are in control. You are the only one who can feel the feelings in the way that you feel them.

Frequently, we do not acknowledge this. We blame society, leaders, teachers, parents, lovers, friends and enemies for making us think and feel certain things. We give away our power, and we let unintentional thoughts and feelings dominate us. This can lead to unintentional consequences, and before we know it we are reacting to problems and putting out fires and fighting to regain lost control more often than actually taking it.

This is where intention comes in. Intention is about first directing your thoughts. Intention might as well be the initial idea. For example, mine: “I want to be a best-selling author”.

That is the idea. So the thought that stems from there leads to other thoughts, which in turn lead to feelings and then to actions. From the thought of “I want to be a best-selling author” to the feeling of “I will feel fulfilled and happy when I succeed,” then intentionally feeling how that feels; inspired, intentional actions are engaged and movement happens.

These are actions that have the idea behind them, the intent…and intentional action is, just to reiterate the point, not just accelerating down the highway in a rocket-powered car, but steering that car along the road. That is what intention is, and intention is the key to taking control.

Intention is the reality of control. This comes from having thought and feeling and direction leading into action. Acting without intent might get you where you want to go, but still leaves an awful lot up to chance. If you are seeking your own path, then you want to take every opportunity to traverse it as best suits you. Being intentional takes in the control that we desire to have.

One important note of caution. Intent is not the same as knowing how. I have written before about sometimes getting so caught up in the how of a process that I fail to manifest anything. I have the thought, feel the feeling, take an intentional action, but then wonder how all this will actually get me to my goal. I will constantly question how the frequency changes and shifts matters to me. Intent is not knowing the how of the action, per se; it is putting energy into the action to generate the vibrational frequency necessary to attract the goal and manifest the desired outcome.

Conscious creates reality. We have the power to manifest almost anything we want for our lives. Once we see how true this really is, we gain an amazing amount of power over our world. Intentional actions following our thoughts and feelings will let us achieve almost anything we can think of. Intention truly is the reality of control.

Are your actions intentional? What intentional actions would you like to be taking?

This is the two-hundred eighty-first entry in my series. These weekly posts are ideas for and my personal experiences with walking along the path of life. I share this journey as part of my desire to make a difference in this world along the way.

Thank you for joining me. Feel free to re-blog and share.

The first year of Pathwalking, including some expanded ideas, is available here.

If you enjoy Pathwalking, you may also want to read my Five Easy Steps to Change the World for the Better.

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