Insight, Intention, Inspiration
Sometimes the self-motivation we need comes from motivating others, and an SSA (seasonal service announcement)
How’s your January? If you’re like me and most of the folks I’ve been talking to, the year is off to a slow start which you’re either easing into peacefully (mostly me) or fighting the urge to resolve and plan and know and do all the things we’ve been indoctrinated to believe you’re “supposed to resolve and plan and know and do” (also, sort of me) in a season, Winter, that screams the opposite. As
reminds us in Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times:“Plants and animals don’t fight the winter; they don’t pretend it’s not happening and attempt to carry on living the same lives that they lived in the summer. They prepare. They adapt. They perform extraordinary acts of metamorphosis to get them through. Winter is a time of withdrawing from the world, maximising scant resources, carrying out acts of brutal efficiency and vanishing from sight; but that’s where the transformation occurs. Winter is not the death of the life cycle, but its crucible.”
"Winter is not the death of the life cycle, but its crucible."
What a powerful sentence and idea, that we are gifted this season as an opportunity, a trial and window of time to rest, ponder, restore, and alchemize the elements inside ourselves courtesy of Nature providing the space to do so. It’s just up to us to be attuned and accept the invitation of this beautiful offering.
The darkness is scary. Slowing down, or being slowed down by forces outside of your control, is scary (despite the fact we’re never really in control anyway). A period of time that has amorphous components is scary. I know many folks who really struggle during the winter months and I’ve certainly had mine. My experience shows me that when I fight the facts less, surrender to the possibility of what may be here for me, the quicker I am released from my dis-ease and a whole new set of circumstances, or at a minimum acceptance, opens up for me. It’s not a quick fix, but it doesn’t cost anything but your time and attention.
Insight, Intention, Inspiration … a presence practice for your day, week, month, current project, team meeting, or year if you so choose.
Building on the above, instead of ideas of grandeur for the new year or even just employing the same rituals I normally do, I began the year by flowing with the Januaryness of January. Just as I began to get restless with my inaction to strive for something greater than what I’m doing (which is more than enough btw) in these first few weeks of the year, I was asked to facilitate a call for an alumni group I’m part of (shoutout to my Berkeley Exec Leadership Coaching cohort 37).
I don’t know about you but when I have to drum up something for myself it’s a slog (working on this), but when it’s for someone else I find motivation, an endless pool of ideas, and action plans. Case in point, in thinking how to best reconnect and usher in the New Year with presence, not pressure, with this magical group of people three words, and ultimately questions, came to mind as our ice breaker for the meeting: Share your Insight, Intention, and Inspiration of the moment.
What’s a current insight? What is a key nugget or learning from a project, relationship, personal development goal, etc.
What’s your intention? Where is your focus, your desire, your aim, right now? What word(s) defines that?
What’s inspiring you? What/who is a source of inspiration for you right now, and why?
I jotted mine down before the call (shared below) and found it an unexpected and potent force to organize my thoughts (which until that moment had been in the washing machine cycle of my mind), make clear my current focus, and think more critically about a source of inspiration that found me.
This was further reinforced on the call as I listened to the diversity in everyone’s shares, the conversation it prompted, and how the questions give a simple frame to look back for a lesson (insight), look ahead with focus (intention), and look to a beacon as we move forward (inspo).
So, in the act of having to give structure and guide a conversion a new presence practice was born giving me a new way to approach my own weeks and months to come (maybe yours too). We are better together and muses can be found in the most unexpected places. I plan to use this each week as a journal prompt on Sunday mornings. Here’s my Insight, Intention, and Inspiration of the moment.
Insight—The problem is never the problem. I have said this for a very, very long time, but it’s been magnified in my work as a consultant and coach. What someone comes to me with, whether a communication or personal development challenge, asking the right questions always leads to unearthing a different problem or root of the problem. This insight was a great reminder for me on several levels, and helped me look at my own “problems” through a different lens.
Intention—Build. I quit my corporate career 5 years ago and launched my own communications consultancy. I’m now formalizing what has been incidental to my work for almost my entire career and life: communications and personal development coaching. This requires a build phase which I am very much in, so my intention is to recognize the new aspects of this and to focus on the build; the literal assembly and joining of the parts and materials required to grow.
Inspiration—”The best chance to be whole is to love whatever gets in the way until it ceases to become an obstacle” -Mark Nepo from The Book of Awakening. Naturally, fear and ego seep into my light and challenge my direction and intention. They tell me I have no business doing what I’m doing and that I can’t and won’t. While my history tells me nothing but otherwise their power can pack a punch and so I try to love them. Operative word, try.
I appreciate you reading this and always love hearing from you so feel free to drop a comment or message—tell me your insight, intention, inspiration or just one of those. Wishing you self acceptance, love, and contentment wherever you are. <3
A few other sources of Inspo for ya …
If your relationship to and with social media is complicated,
nails so much of why I’ve stepped away with more frequency and longer breaks over the last few years.
In the Restful Houses of Women Who Live Alone by
. All the feels on this one. It resonates at the mother/daughter level, my mother expressing the very same to me over the years, as well as the desire to have my own nest that is mine and mine alone despite also enjoying living life with someone.
Jewel on Creators with Guy Raz. Lots of gems from Jewel in her journey and a comment about imposter syndrome being inauthenticity syndrome that I’ve been thinking about ever since I heard her say it. Is imposter syndrome really just us acting inauthentically or trying to show up in a way we think we should vs. who we actually are, in whatever context? In many ways, I think so. Fear and IS are different things.
Lisa thank you again!!!!! I love the three I’s and you my friend are an inspiration which inspires me. Your readings have my thoughts dig deeper then I can even articulate with words . My intention is to continue on that journey from the head to the heart which you are helping me have insight into.
🙏❤️🐻