Intention Setting: An INA Principle

The Art of Intention Setting

There are days when I wake up and feel as though I’ve already started running.

First come the “running thoughts.”

Before I’ve even had my first sip of water, my mind is somewhere else.

Thinking about the orders that need to go out.

The emails waiting for a reply.

The piece of jewellery I want to finish.

The message I forgot to send yesterday.

The laundry that somehow always seems to be there.

And suddenly, without really noticing, I’ve moved from one thing to the next without ever quite arriving anywhere.

I’ve been thinking a lot about intention lately.

Not in the sense of having a perfectly planned day or knowing exactly what I want to accomplish from morning until night.

Something much simpler.

Something quieter.

The intention to actually be where I am.

I think there is a certain kind of beauty in giving the ordinary moments of our lives a little more meaning simply by choosing how we enter them.

For me, this has become especially important because I work from home.

There is no physical distance between my work and my personal life.

My studio, my kitchen, my living room, my computer, my jewellery, my home… they all exist within the same space.

And for a long time, I thought freedom meant being able to work whenever I wanted.

But I’ve slowly realised that freedom without boundaries can become its own kind of chaos.

If I don't intentionally begin my workday, I can find myself answering an email while making breakfast.

If I don't intentionally finish my workday, I can find myself checking an order late at night.

If I don't create some kind of separation, everything starts to blend into everything else.

So I began creating little rituals.

Nothing complicated.

Sometimes it’s simply making a cup of tea before I begin.

Putting my phone away.

Tidying my workspace.

Lighting a candle.

Taking a moment to ask myself:

What am I here to do today?

Not just, “What do I need to get done?”

But, “How do I want to feel while I’m doing it?”

There is a (not so) subtle difference.

One is a list.

The other is an intention.

And I’ve found that intention changes the way I move through the day.

The same has been true in my relationships.

I’ve shared a home with my partner and best friend for a long time now and I think there is something very beautiful about loving someone while still honouring boundaries and healthy limits.

When you share a life with someone you love, it can be easy to assume that because they are always there, they will always be available for you.

But I’ve been learning that closeness still needs intention.

To put the phone down and really listen.

To make space for a conversation instead of squeezing it between two other things.

To notice when the person you love needs tenderness rather than solutions.

To remember that being together isn't the same as being present.

And perhaps this is what intention really means to me.

Presence with purpose.

A conscious choice to meet each moment as the moment it is.

Even the small ones.

Especially the small ones.

I think about this when I make jewellery, too.

There is something about working with my hands that naturally asks me to slow down.

A piece doesn't become beautiful simply because I want it to.

It needs time.

Attention.

Patience.

One bead after another…

A certain willingness to notice the tiny details.

And sometimes I wonder if our days are much the same.

Maybe they don't need to be filled with more.

Maybe they simply need to be met with more attention.

Making breakfast can be a ritual.

Getting dressed can be a ritual.

Getting settle at your working station can be a ritual.

Walking outside for ten minutes can be a ritual.

Taking off your jewellery at the end of the day and placing it somewhere safe can be a ritual.

None of these things are extraordinary on their own.

But that is the point.

We don't need to wait for extraordinary moments to feel connected to our lives.

We can create little moments of meaning within the lives we already have.

Lately, I've been trying to ask myself a simple question before moving from one part of my day into another:

What is my intention here?

When I sit down to work, my intention might be to create with patience.

When I am with someone I love, it might be to be fully present.

When I am resting, it might be to allow myself to rest without feeling guilty.

When I am creating, it might be to enjoy the process rather than rush towards the finished piece.

And when I wake up in the morning, sometimes my intention is simply to move slowly.

I don't always remember.

I don't always get it right.

Some days still become messy.

Some days I still answer emails while eating breakfast and realise at 10 pm that I never really stopped working.

But perhaps intention isn't about getting it right every day.

Probably it is simply about noticing when we've drifted away from ourselves...

and gently choosing to come back.

There is something comforting about that.

We don't need to redesign our entire lives.

We can begin with one moment.

One breath.

One conversation.

One boundary.

One decision to put the phone away.

One decision to stay a little longer in the moment we're already in.

Maybe a more intentional life isn't necessarily a slower life.

Maybe it's a life where we stop rushing through the things we actually care about.

Where we give our work the attention it deserves.

Our relationships the presence they deserve.

Our rest the permission it deserves.

And ourselves the same kindness we so freely offer to everyone else.

I think this is what I'm learning now.

And maybe, little by little, these tiny choices become a life.

A life that doesn't just happen around us...

but one we are consciously participating in.

So, if you feel like it, tomorrow morning, before the day begins, take a little moment for yourself.

Ask:

How do I want to move through today?

And see what changes.

With love,

Ina