Goal oriented? Focused on tasks? Time commitments that matter?
How do these collide with inspired action?
I've been reconsidering what it means to be inspired. Usually my inspiration comes from 'nature, people doing amazing things in the world and animals doing funny things.' I came across the notion of inspired action after attending this workshop on emergent communities. It got me to thinking about how I could actually utilize everyday opportunities like tasks, goals or focused work to analyze my ability to be inspired to act not only on what I am doing at that moment but on what I could be doing to be more intentional long term.
So, I decided to look at something as simple as writing my daily 'to-do list' and reframing it as a way to not only accomplish what I 'had to do' but utilizing it to inspire positive action towards how to do it. What does this mean? Okay, let's look at an example:
My To-Do List yesterday:
Write a Press Release
Write and send Staff mtg Agenda
Write an action plan for BIPOC STAHC
Run an errand to the store to get groceries
Give my dog a bath
Clean out my car
This would be my actual list but what would it look like if I were to reframe this list in a way that was inspired by action-oriented positively towards intention?
I came up with this instead:
Write a Press Release that engages people to act on passion
Write and send Staff mtg Agenda that addresses not only updates, or staff to do's but includes an ethical or diversity question that gets folks to know each other at a deeper level
Write an action plan for BIPOC STAHC that encompasses the flexibility for others to include their own plan of action based on their own freedom to be inspired
Run an errand to the store to get groceries and remember to tell the teller that I appreciate their dedication to show up to work so that I could be able to purchase the items in my cart
Give my dog a bath and sing to her at the same time
Clean out my car and be conscious of what I'm using to do it with (sustainable products) and how I get rid of the items I no longer desire in my car (recycling the garbage)
After taking this experiment to the ultimate extreme of what could be possible when I actually put intention into my to-do list, I realized that most of my inspired actions had to do with empathy, awareness of my actions, and slowing down to provide opportunities to actually appreciate others. This exercise started to become something I desired to try every day and to see if I could push the limit of what might be possible in my life when I use inspired action to change my daily life. I know, it takes a bit more critical thinking that most folks may not want to do or know how to do, right?
Then I asked myself this question: 'What is the outcome of inspired action?' or 'What really is the point?' I'd like to propose the following scenario. It seems that the world we are living in has maybe lost the intention or foundation underlying our daily tasks. I think with Covid more and more people are finding their way but for those who are just trying to get things done, this is for you. Yes, to get things done and accomplished is very important, but why is it important to slow down enough to intentionally do things that increase an energy field of empathy or understanding in a very cutthroat capitalist society? My answer is this. At the core of being human means to be empathetic, even in the mundane exercise of writing a to-do list. If I could become really good at being intentional with my smallest actions on a daily basis it seems that it would become easier to amplify this process on a much larger scale in situations like my relationships with friends and family members. If I could get really good at this new intentional practice the energy field around that intention starts to grow vastly throughout my life. As ab ripple effect it starts to amplify and affect the lives of others. To me, that is the true point of intentional action. One that can't be quantified or categorized in one small moment but really on a more global level that ripples into the future. That to me IS the point. Where inspired action becomes a way of life for all beings. Where love becomes the center of intention AND action.