Intention vs. Impact: Why well-meant intentions do not guarantee a desired outcome

Even though intention is a force that allows the act of creation to take place as Wayne Dyer suggests it, it does not guarantee a desired outcome or that everything will go well.

As a current student of “Mama Gena’s School of Womanly Art”, we have the opportunity to participate in a variety of guest teachers teleclasses in between our 3 live intensives.  Last week, Jess Novak, a queer non-binary activist and educator and JeanMarie Gossard, a community organizer and various campaign manager for LGBTQ communities statewide, discussed on gender identity & expression.

At the end of the call Jess said something that resonated strongly:   “There is a difference between our intentions vs. creating the impact we desire.”

We can have all the best intentions in the world, genuinely want all people to feel included, to make them feel like they matter and are welcomed, but it surely does not mean we are doing it right all the time.  I know I am not.

We human beings are clumsy.  Our view of the world is rooted in our personal experiences from the day we are born, and some will argue even before that.  Nobody views life from your perspective.  Nobody grew up the exact same way as you. Nobody processes received information or stimuli identically.  

I know because I have always been obsessed with how people think, and why they think the way they do.  Hubby affectionately calling me a “brain surgeon without a scalpel” did not come out of the blue.  Nuances of greys in people’s thinking and views of the world are as varied as there are people living on this planet. 

To think that OUR intentional way of being will generate the impact we desire, is exactly like sending a high beam of light to someone that their composure cannot handle. 

Just like the tree in the image, our well-intentioned lights can sometimes be received as a lightning bolt.

So how do you transform your good intentions into generating a desired impact within your organization or your community?

-      Get to know people around you personally

-      Gain deeper awareness on how your behavior impacts different people

-      Think before speaking

-      Learn to say sorry

-      Be willing to do it wrong.  It is better than doing nothing… at first

-      Stay humble and open minded

In other words, practice being mindful of adjusting your well-intentioned beam of light based on who you are talking to. As a result, you will develop greater agility at dealing with people and eventually, see your desired outcome or something even greater make its way through.