Intention

CHAPTER 5Intention Is Trainable

“The greatest discovery of any generation is that a human can alter his life by altering his attitude.”

—William James

Being intentional leads to higher performance, both on an individual and group level. It makes us better (and perhaps more importantly, happier) managers, parents, friends, citizens, and humans because we are more engaged in our lives. And so, the argument for becoming more intentional clearly makes sense, especially since it was also our competitive advantage as a species. However, as we've seen, intention can be a double-edged sword. Our ability to grab onto ideas and execute them can put us in situations where we become slaves to the very things that are meant to express our intention.

This is where we might find people, who have spent their lives chasing status and money, suddenly waking up to the fact that they never wanted those things in the first place. Or people who make decisions to please someone in their life, realizing that nothing they do seems to satisfy that person. The issue isn't that these people are not acting with intention—it's that they've learned to act on someone else's intentions.

On the other end of the spectrum, we may find folks who seem naturally wired to act on their own accord and live with agency. People who are the cause, not the effect. People who live by their own principles and seem to radiate meaning to those around them. Our work and research have shown us that the difference between these ...