The other day I was writing about what I "tend to do" and as I was editting my own text, I made a tiny modification: I substituted the word "intend" everywhere I wrote "tend".

"I tend to challenge perceptions" became "I intend to challenge perceptions."

The difference was subtle and powerful and I keep thinking playing with the idea in my head. Possibility abounds.

A Practice

Based on this observation, I have devised a practice for clarifying what you do. When journaling, make a list of things you tend to do. Then modify it. Now it's a list of things you intend to do. Now read through the list and decide for each one whether you want for it to be true (you will continue to do intentionally) or false (you will stop doing, also intentionally).

Extra Credit

For each thing you write down, also make a note of what you think you get from it (or what negativity you avoid).

Photo Credit

"Commitment" by Mustafa Khayat | Flickr