Being 'Intentional'!

A week or two ago, in a post titled '50 Things I Want To Do Before I Die', i had talked about 'What am I doing today to ensure the tomorrow i want becomes a reality?'

While the statement makes me feel 'energized', I have been struggling with 'How does one effectively action on a statement like this?' There only are 24 hours in a day!

I remember reading an article by Swedish psychologist, Dr. K Anders Ericsson on 'Deliberate Practice'. In this article he talks about how experts in chess, music, sports, etc acquire their superior performance by extended 'deliberate practice'.

'Deliberate practice' - aah! The term had sounded interesting to me when i had heard it, and is something i keep on coming back to and exploring.

What does one mean by 'deliberate practice'? If I'm a cricketer with a flawed front foot drive technique, i keep on working everyday on my front foot drive technique. There is an element of 'intentionality' about such kind of practice.

'Being Intentional' about how we spend our day can help. It has atleast got me started. Many times my days are a bit crazy and i am not completely in control of my time. But then i would have thought for few minutes in the morning what are the things i want to achieve/do today. That helps, but only to a certain extent!

I like 'serendipity' and prefer doing things only when they 'absolutely' need to be done :). 'Being intentional' about how i am going to spend this hour - the hour i am currently in works for me. I decide on things i want to achieve in the hour i am in, along with the order i want to do those things in.

I prefer not to multi-task. So if you see me working at a point of time, would you find me multi-tasking? No! You would usually find me 'zoned' into what i am doing. But if you happen to meet me after an hour's gap, would you feel i have multi-tasked in the hour gone by? Maybe - because you would find that i have completed a number of things which ordinarily might have taken longer to complete.

Being 'Intentional' about the hour i am in works for me! It leaves me happy and satisfied at the end of the day - i feel i'm actively shaping my tomorrow!

What works for you?

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Sourav