I consider that an important principle of empowerment is to identify an intention; a technique related to that principle is to write down the statement of intention. I consciously use the principle of intention in all aspects of my work, and express intention frequently with my clients. I also advocate writing down a statement of intention in certain situations.
An intention exists for every thought and every action. It is a given. There is no question whether or not an intention exists; the question is, what is the intention? You might even consider that an intention is the thought behind a thought, or the thought that powers a thought. It can be very enlightening to bring your intention to the surface after an event. It is even more enlightening to create an intention before an event so that the identified intention guides you in more empowering actions.
If you identify an intention that you be “open and appreciative” in a certain situation, you have directed yourself to be in a particular consciousness. This intention suggests certain actions; however, no specific actions are necessary in order to be in a particular consciousness or attitude. Actions follow an intention. And actions follow an intention, whether you are aware of the intention or not.
The act of writing a few words or a complete sentence helps to focus attention more effectively than just thinking about an intention. I often recommend this technique to clients. Some clients tell me that they feel more accountable to themselves when they take a few seconds to write words that capture an intention.
Here are a few examples of Intention. Note the simplicity — you will find it easier to remember a few words than a complex sentence. Note the focus — you want to inspire yourself about a way of being, rather than to delineate specific actions or end results.
* To feel free.
* To approach this situation with openness and eagerness.
* With love in my heart.
* Open and appreciative.
* Fully engaged in the present moment.
* Seeking balance.
After I suggested this technique to one client (Timothy), he began to write down a statement or phrase of intention for each meeting, whether he was its leader, a participant, or an observer. When he was responsible for leading meetings, he knew he could manage certain aspects of the meeting to keep it on track and in alignment with his intention. At those times, he became aware of blending and checking his way of being (consciousness) and his ways of doing (actions).
However, Timothy’s deeper realization of the power of this technique of writing his intention came during the meetings when he did not even speak. He wrote his few words on a pad of paper and kept the pad in his own private view. He watched in awe as the groups of people who had been meeting together regularly for years began to change during one or two meetings. He noticed that they were more communicative, open, responsive, engaged, and productive.
I introduced the power of identifying and writing intention to Timothy several years ago. I recently had a conversation with him. He tells me that now identifying an intention is so embodied into his management and personal life that he rarely writes down a statement of intention. He does write an intention, though, when a situation is particularly challenging to him.
In my view, a technique is useful until it is no longer needed because the corresponding principle is embodied. I identify and/or write a statement of my own intention for being with my clients so that I provide a space for them to move as they need or want. I consider that it is not so much a matter of what I do or say with clients, but how I am with them. My intention is to be fully present, engaged, and listening at all levels.
By now you probably understand how important writing for trade publications is to establishing credibility in the home business world.
On to the first hurdle: how do you get past that HUGE writers’ block? How do you know what to write about, and how do you make it unique, informative and interesting?
Remember how you resisted writing those reports in school, insisting that you would never need to know how to do that in “real life”? Welcome to the real world of business writing.
Your English teacher gave you the bare bones: pick a topic, research, take notes, make lists and an outline, write a rough draft in your own words, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. Don’t forget introductory paragraphs, summaries, footnotes and bibliographies.
Thanks to the internet, you can use a search engine, copy and paste, cut and paste, type, cut and paste edit into infinity, include hyperlinks and add your resource box at the end.
But…you’re still stuck on picking a topic. You feel as imaginative as a two by four. Start with your own home business, internet marketing, or entrepreneurial problems. Better yet, start with your journal. You don’t keep one? Here, you can borrow some of my own entries: (better yet, each of these items is looking for a foster home)
Didn’t want to get out of bed this morning.
Turned on the computer and would rather play a computer game than work.
The quiet is driving me crazy…music would help…now I want to dance…now that I’m up, I could vacuum….wonder what’s on tv…
The noise is driving me crazy, I can’t concentrate.
Ok, I finally got started. Ten hours later, I just can’t stop. I wonder why my wife is glaring at me.
I can’t finish anything–the next new project always looks more interesting.
Friends call and want to chat, the cats want fed, that window needs fixing.
How do I know when to be persistent and when to try something else?
My website has lots of visitors, many don’t stay for more than 30 seconds, few sign up.
I’d rather be __________ (fill in the blank): sleeping, golfing, fishing, watching tv, eating, reading, swimming.
Now let’s turn that list into a list of how-to’s. I need to learn how to: get enough sleep; stay focused; identify goals, strategies and action plans; develop credibility among friends and family; identify success (measurable results?); make my website more sticky; encourage prospects to become active affiliates; balance work and pleasure; plan my day; stay motivated… and so on.
First I brainstorm: when have I been able to accomplish any of these things? (take notes) Then it’s off to the search engines. (take notes; bookmarking and copy and paste makes this easy) Now organize your notes: whatever floats your boat, whether it be lists, outlines, mind mapping or freeform writing.
Just keep searching, taking notes and bookmarking until something hits you over the head. “This really might work, especially if you did this first and then tried this…” Be patient, it may take a little time.
Don’t copy word for word what another writer has already written; but on the other hand, don’t worry about inventing the lightbulb either. If you’ve done much surfing at all, you realize that the internet is HUGE, a veritable wasteland.
The chances of two people reading exactly the same articles or websites and coming to exactly the same conclusions are slim. Any bleary-eyed surfer will THANK you for your arduous research.
And don’t rule out your own experiences and thoughts. I once was dealing with a problem and was becoming more frustrated and angry by the minute. I finally just dropped it and went for a walk. (You can substitute any of those things, such as fishing, that you used to fill in the blank above).
While walking I was thinking about another situation in my life, was looking at the part of the natural world I was walking through, and came to a brilliant conclusion. As soon as it occurred to me, I saw that the solution also applied to the problem I was trying to solve earlier. So you see, sometimes it’s good to just follow your instinct and GO FISHING.
I’ll write that all up into an article some day soon. It’s on my list. Meanwhile, I’ve got a few more ideas I’m writing up first. Now I can’t wait to get them all written into articles. So…there’s my topics, my motivation, and my action plan.
If you’ve followed these steps, thanks to your English teacher, the internet, your own experiences, and your stumbling attempts at writing, you’re now an author. But more than that, you’ve learned:
how to set yourself a goal new affiliate signups a strategy: making your name familiar or establishing yourself as an expert action plan: write an article, submit it to dozens of websites, post it on your own website, maybe even add a few guest articles and start up a newsletter.
Then start over at the beginning…and don’t forget how important it is to take time out for fishing.
One of my students came in the other day to ask a question about the research paper assignment in our graduate class in Cancer Biology. In speaking with her I realized that she did not know about bibliographic software that allows writers to create reference lists without typing every single one. That’s when it became clear to me that students may not know what tools are out there to help them with the important and rewarding task of academic writing. These are the tools I can’t do without:
1. A good word processor program. There are a number of popular software packages for writing and editing documents. The important thing is not to use any one specific program, but to find the program that works for you and for the people to whom you’ll submit. Look for a program that has a user-interface that is comfortable to you, that has a file output and formatting options that are useful for your field, and that can accommodate the special symbols you might use. Some useful features to look for include ability to modify document layouts, ability to check spelling and grammar, and ability to work with add-on programs like bibliographies.
2. A good bibliographic program. I could not do without my bib program. The one I use is called EndNote. It integrates into my word-processor so that I can add in references as I write. It has a search function that allows me to search within my library, or to connect to online databases in my field and import new references as I need them. It also accommodates the preferred reference formats of hundreds of academic journals, so it can do all that work for me. It is incalculable how much time this has saved me.
3. A dictionary. Sometimes you just need to look something up. I have a real paper dictionary within reach of my computer both at home and at work. It’s always better to look up a word or usage than to get back a dry comment in reviews about the odd grammatical error you made.
4. Scholarly writing requires some background reading to generate a knowledge base and source for comparison with your own thoughts and findings. For this you need access to reference material – online, physical books, colleagues. Make sure you have the resources you need and that you know the ropes in your library for requesting reprints or additional sources. Cite all of your sources – this is part of writing with integrity.
5. Once you have completed your manuscript the most important resource is a reader. Find a friend or colleague willing to read your paper, article, or grant before you submit it to its destination. It helps so much to have a fresh set of eyes look at your work from a friendly perspective and to provide you with some critical feedback that will let you put the finishing touches on your work before it goes before your professor, your committee, an editorial board, or a grant review panel.
If you have these five tools at your disposal, you will have a great start at doing great things in your academic writing.