“Find me where the wild things are…” 🌿 ~Alessia Cara
Because clarity is a gift when your calendar’s already packed. (#432)
There’s a scene in Alice in Wonderland where Alice asks the Cheshire Cat which way she should go.
Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?
The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.
Alice: I don’t much care where.
The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn’t much matter which way you go.
That’s what comes to mind when I think about intentionality.
Unlike Alice, most of us care ALOT about where we’re going. We just get so stuck and overwhelmed by all the possible paths that it’s hard to see the one that actually makes sense.
You know the drill: you get home, tired from your job and everything else you handled today, excited to work on your thing…but then you look at your calendar like:
😮💨 Sooooo WHEN exactly am I supposed to get all this done?
I is for Intentionality 🎯✨
(and choosing what works for this season)
Now, intentionality won’t magically give us more hours in the day (if only! 🪄). But it can give us clarity about where to put our energy. And when life feels overwhelming, clarity is such a gift.
For me, the start of that clarity came from an unexpected place: a conversation with my friend Ruth, who created an online diary about pivoting her business. Over several weeks, she documented her thought process in real time as she moved from online courses to design clients.
Not your typical “how-to” course, but that’s what made it powerful. You got to see the beginning, the messy middle, and the outcome she chose.
During one of our chats, Ruth reminded me: “You’re in your zone when you’re doing your newsletter.”
(She’s not wrong. 😉)
I’d been so focused on trying to fit myself into a neat business box that I wasn’t paying attention to what I actually do best: curating resources, sharing what I’m learning, and writing from the heart about real experiences.
So maybe it’s not about building the “typical online business.”
Maybe it’s about leaning into what energizes me: behind-the-scenes sharing, curation, cheerleading, and finding more ways to monetize that. (Like affiliate partnerships for tools and resources I genuinely love and already share.)
Between health stuff, work, caregiving, and after-school auntie duty, my capacity looks different than it did a year ago. I don’t want to always be launching. I want to create when I feel lit up.
And that’s intentionality: choosing what fits this season instead of forcing what doesn’t.
A note on focus vs. intentionality 🧭…
While writing this, I kept thinking about focus too and how I think of it differently than intentionality:
Focus = today. Where your energy needs to go right now.
Intentionality = direction. The bigger picture of what you’re building this season.
They’re cousins. Both important. And they work best together.
A tiny step for you 📝
This week, try this:
Look at your to-do list.
Circle ONE thing that feels energizing (or at least doesn't drain you)
Cross off or release ONE thing that feels forced right now
That’s it. One intentional yes, one intentional no.
Not the “shoulds.” The fits.
—
💬 Over to you: What’s one thing you’ve been forcing that might feel lighter if you approached it differently?
On to the picks!
P.S. You don’t have to do it all. Intentionality is asking what matters most in this season. And letting that be enough.
Note: This email may contain affiliate links. If you click through my link and make a purchase, I may receive “thank you money” at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products that I use and love.
#picks 😍
A few things helping me lean into intentionality (and away from the shoulds)…
📚. The Lazy Genius Way by Kendra Adachi: The main idea of the book is to “be a genius about what matters, and lazy about what doesn’t”. Every season it lands a little differently. Right now it’s reminding me to pause and ask: what actually matters right now?
Also just added this essay about the crossroads of “should” and “must” to my read-later app.
🏄🏾♀️. This piece from Khe Hy has stuck with me. He designed his business so he could surf every morning. One simple but powerful takeaway: schedule thinking time. (I need to get better at this!)
Plus, two $10K questions worth stealing:
If I could only work 2 hours today, what would I work on?
What’s one decision that removes 100 decisions?
✨. Want to be more intentional in different areas of your life?
Writing: A 3-minute journaling app I saw this week: perfect for quick clarity.
Movement: Exercise snacks - tiny bursts of energy that actually stick. (Chicago friends: a good friend of mine is also hosting a Walk & Talk in Lincoln Park on Sept 13: a few tickets left if you want to join!)
Your intention here: Reply and tell me where you’d like more intentionality, and I’ll find a resource for you. 💌
#icymi
😍. Last issue’s top pick: Dance Fit Workout: “Hollaback Girl”
🌟. Feeling pulled in too many directions? Sometimes intentionality starts with one clear step. Let’s find yours together.. get some pocket-sized clarity!
#classifieds 🗞
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(like these? let’s partner up!)
#lifevibes
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