A Clear Intention

Free will means choice. To make a choice, I must have an idea in mind, an intention. If that intention is vague, muddled or conflicted, I will be ineffective. I will end up frustrated and hurting.

This necessity for a clear intention shows in our every action. Simple physical tasks make it readily apparent. If I reach forward with my arm, but I simultaneously lean the rest of me back, does my hand actually move forward in space? No, or certainly not as well as if my total body movement supported my intention.

When I walk into a room and meet a new person, I may well reach out to shake hands. If I am nervous, part of me will possibly be retreating, pulling back. This could be done by the large muscles in my back, including the ones that pull my arms down and back. That puts me in conflict. I am reaching up and forward to offer my hand, but I am simultaneously pulling down and back.

My handshake now is tentative, shaky and awkward. I will likely be perceived as guarded and ineffectual. My muddled intention has caused me internal physical discomfort and cost me socially!

When I walk into the same room with a quiet confidence, I lean fluidly forward extending my hand in a graceful gesture of meeting. I engage directly in connecting with this new person and he or she immediately knows this on some level. I am comfortable, at ease, and available for further connecting. My body is happier and my social action more successful.

Whatever I attempt, clear intention gives me better odds of accomplishing my goals.