Intentionalism

If you're a self-development junkie then you've probably heard of Minimalism, the art of "living a meaningful life with less", according to Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus (The Minimalists). Or you've heard about Greg McKeown's idea of Essentialism, the disciplined pursuit of doing more of the right things. But what exact are the right things? And in what ways should we pursue less?

All of these philosophies and lifestyles are extremely helpful files in a cabinet I title Intentionalism. Intentionalism is the pursuit of doing, having, and being everything with, you guessed it, intent.

Intentionalism is about understanding why we do what we do. It is reflecting on the what, who, and why of our being. To be intentional with what we do on a day-to-day basis, to be intentional with what we spend our energy on and how we spend it, to be intentional with our pursuits. This is the path to our truest nature.

There are areas of our lives that we should minimize, like negativity, material goods that don't provide value, media consumption, the list goes on. But there are areas that we should maximize, like relationships, friendships, experiences, and fulfilling activities.

But rather than just have friends for the sake of having friends, doing work for the sake of doing work, studying for the sake of studying, we must pursue every task in life with intent.

Be intentional with the friends and people you surround yourself with, whether that be to inspire you, support you, or to fulfill our human desire for true connection.

Rather than study for the sake of going through the motions, try to figure out how you can apply the course material to your life/future career instead of just studying for a test.

Final Thoughts:

Living life is an art, and we're constantly refining and cultivating our craft. Philosophy, Minimalism, and Essentialism are all colors on the paint palette of Intentionalism. Use this palette to create the painting you want.