People, as a species, are naturally lazy. We tend to avoid difficulty and gravitate toward what feels good, what’s easy, and what’s automatic. This means that our default mode is often reactive – instead of proactive and creative.
In our professional lives, reactive behavior is responding to things as they arise, scrambling around to put out fires or deal with the latest interruption, being pulled in different directions or constantly pivoting to a new strategy or project…
In our personal lives, it’s fast food, getting sucked into the latest mindless entertainment, getting frustrated by traffic, letting others determine your priorities for you, and generally moving through your days without intention.
This kind of reactivity keeps us from doing our best work, and in many ways, keeps us from even being able to THINK about our best work. We get so caught up in reacting to all of the things life throws our way, we lose sight of our goals – or never get around to generating them in the first place.
The opposite of a reactive mode of operating is intention and creativity. This approach to life and work means knowing what you want to generate, and taking clear steps in that direction regardless of the noise around you. It’s actively choosing your thoughts and actions, even when it’s hard, to align with what matters most to you.
In practice, this is having tough conversations with underperforming team members, instead of the easier path of avoiding the issue. It’s protecting your time from unimportant meetings and calls to maintain creative focus on big ideas. Intentional thinking is choosing to eat meals that nourish your body and spent recreation time in ways that nourish your mind and spirit. It’s opting for education over entertainment, focus over distraction, and deep work over “busy work.”
Now, because we’re naturally reactive, living with proactive intention is something to be learned and practice. With time and repetition, you can strengthen this ability like a muscle. Eventually, it can become the new default, but getting to that point will likely mean some faltering, getting distracted, losing focus, and falling back into old habits.
This is to be expected, and actually contains a lesson about intentionality within it…
You see, creativity isn’t about rewards. It’s about desired outcomes. It’s not about getting everything right the first time, but instead about the patience to iterate, recalibrate, and keep trying – all while remaining open to the possibilities that emerge. Proactivity and creativity don’t mean ignoring external things, but they do mean tempering your reactions and striving for an objective observation before making any hasty (reactive) decisions.
When operating with intention, even during the process of learning to operate with intention, you won’t be dissuaded or dejected by setbacks. You’ll see them as a natural part of the process and choose, actively, to stay the course toward what matters most.
As you change your patterns of thought and behavior away from knee-jerk reaction and doing what’s easy/convenient, you’ll find that you make clearer decisions, make more progress, and feel more in tune with your sense of purpose. Your creative ideas will come to life, the time you spend with friends and family will be more fulfilling, and you’ll move from moment to moment with clarity.
This isn’t just for your business, your next launch, or the next strategy you want to implement. It’s a way of life that applies to every thought, every decision, and every action.
Consider the power of intention, creation, and proactivity – and consider the frantic, unproductive, stressful, unhealthy alternative that is constant reaction and always taking the easiest, most automatic path. Which one would you rather have as a guiding principle?
