You did it – you made it to Step 5. How are you feeling? Did shifting your feelings and enhancing your gratitude help? Are you excited to try out your intention of the day?
As a final step, choose an action you will take that aligns with your intention. Maybe like me, you choose to wash the dishes with joy. Or maybe you are more like Janet who decided to really savor family time or Pam who refreshed herself with a daily walk on the beach. Is there anything you’ve been putting off? Now could be the time to complete it. Committed action is anything that helps you align with the life you want.
Action takes us out of our heads and into our bodies. When we take committed action we are signaling to the Universe that we can receive more. When I live in joy I am telling the Universe to send me more joy – I am capable of handling it. When we set an intention but then don’t take any action, we are sending the message that we don’t really mean it. Sure I’d like to experience joy, but I don’t want to have to do anything about it….
One of the easiest and most powerful ways to enhance our lives is to give out what we want. If you want more love, try sending loving thoughts or taking loving actions to those around you – including strangers. The payoff is not in their reaction (they might not even realize you sent love) but in the way you feel when sending it. When you send love (or any other positive emotion like peace, joy, etc) imagine it coming through you rather than from you. Picture Source sending that love with you as the messenger. As you send it out, you are also receiving it. Win-win.
Actions do not need to be overwhelming. In fact, it is much better if they aren’t. When we pick overwhelming goals, we almost always fail and that can set us backwards towards anxiety. Pick an action that aligns to your intention, is meaningful to you and completely manageable. If you want to clean out your closet, you can choose one shelf or 15 minutes. If you want to start exercising, take a walk around the block. And if you don’t complete your action, be kind to yourself. Being kind to yourself is a great intention and can be turned into a wonderful action of saying loving words to yourself.
Suzanne wanted to improve her relationship with her boyfriend: Suzanne was tired of all the anxiety that came from fighting with her boyfriend. She wanted to experience more peace and less tension. As we looked at her patterns, it was clear Suzanne didn’t share her feelings until they were at the boiling point. We discussed different options and she committed to writing down her feelings in her journal every day so she would be aware of her anxiety. But by sticking with her committed action she noticed the communication with her boyfriend rapidly improved.
Taking action shifts you out of anxiety.
What action are you committing to taking?
