There is a “movement” of sorts sweeping the nation, one that teaches the value of vulnerability. In that vein falls books about being authentic and living with intention. Authors such as Brene’ Brown are a huge part of this movement, and her books have really inspired me to “take my armor off” and be more vulnerable and authentic.

Since I am a huge work-in-process, I am constantly trying to learn and improve myself. For example, I grabbed a new book the other day, The Authenticity Challenge by Sarah Heath. The first challenge in the book is to detox from social media for one week. The goal is to be more intentional in your relationships. Guess what happened during the past week? I had a considerable amount of time to spend with my girls—helping with homework and just spending time together—and my house was much cleaner.

It amazes me that we have become a society so attached to our digital identity and the amount of likes we have (myself included). Even better, this is the second blog post I’ve written in a month!

Being intentional isn’t just important in personal relationships. It’s required in all parts of your life. We have all seen the people at the gym “working out,” but they are more focused on their phones than anything else. There is definitely no “intention” to what they’re doing.

Honestly, I think you have to be “intentional about being intentional.” It’s a daily battle to not merely “go through the motions” and really have a focus and a reason for why you’re doing something. One of my bosses used to say, “If you fail to plan, you can plan to fail.” There is a lot of truth to that statement.

The goal of this blog post is to remind everyone that it is very important to set your intention to what you’re doing in all areas of your life:

·        Why are you at the gym? What is your end goal? What are your milestones along the way?

·        What areas of your home life are lacking? Where can you be intentional in those relationships?

·        What are your career goals? Are you going to work every day to be intentional to reach those goals?

There is a great song by Matthew West called “The Motions.” I would encourage you to listen to it. Some of the lyrics to the song are as follows:

I don’t want to spend my whole life asking,

What if I had given everything,

Instead of going through the motions?

Setting your intensions and “taking your armor off” requires you to be vulnerable and give everything in your life—your ALL.

And yes, if you recognize the girl in the above photo, it’s my oldest daughter, Grace. She has an amazing work ethic and is definitely very intentional about everything she does. I thought her picture might inspire you to work hard and keep your eye on the finish line!