My Three Words: A Strategy for Living With Intention Season 6 Episode 84

Listen to this episode to learn how choosing three simple words can help you to be the version of yourself you like best and guide you in living with intention. 

Show Notes: 

Episode Summary:

We know teachers love strategies. Today we’ve got a strategy that will help you in all areas of your life, so that you are living with intention and finding fulfillment and success in ways that matter to you. Stick around and learn how three words have the power to help you be the best version of the person you want to be and live the life you want to live.

 In this episode:

As always, the following is a summary of the show notes. We always give more examples and stories. For the best experience, listen to the podcast.

Introduction:

At Inspired Together Teachers, we have a personal goal to lead inspired lives and a mission in supporting you to lead your own inspired lives.

Today we are going to share something we have personally used for years and that we have shared with many teachers in our workshops and classes. If you have done this activity in one of our classes, we suggest that you revisit it to see if the words you choose still resonate and having meaning for you today. You loved this activity when we did it with you and you will love revisiting it again today.

Last week we talked about personal measures of success and we realized that we have never dedicated a podcast episode to the activity that we love and that teachers have loved in our workshops, My Three Words.

The story behind My Three Words:

We learned about My Three Words while attending a training with personal development trainer Brendon Burchard in Phoenix, Arizona. We’ve mentioned this before, but as we sat and listened to Brendon and participated in the activities, we realized that people in the business world were spending thousands and even hundreds of thousands of dollars for this kind of content. And more importantly, we realized that no one in the education world was being given this kind of training.

We decided right then and there, that we could be the ones to bring this kind of life-changing content to teachers. You deserve it as much or more than others! That was the start of Inspired Together Teachers and our focus on personal development for teachers.

What is “My Three Words”?

My Three Words is a strategy that allows you to focus on living your life with intention by creating three key words that you can use to remind yourself daily of how you want to live in the world.

Once you choose your three words you can post it where you will see it daily. We often talk about the importance of visual reminders, this is one of the visual reminders you will want to see.

Paula:  I keep mine listed on a note in my phone. It’s in the notes app.  Sometimes i just look at them during the day when I need a little reminder.

Michele:  I have mine written on a small framed chalkboard that is hanging in my home office. They are also written in the cover of my planner.

You could post them on the bathroom mirror or make your words your computer screen saver or your phone cover. The possibilities for where you could write your three words is endless.

It doesn’t matter where you keep them, the idea is to keep the three words in front of you where you will see them often. They are a daily reminder for you to live your life in the way that you want to be.

How to choose your three words:

Living with intention involves knowing who you are and who you want to be. This exercise helps you think through both of these things. Grab some paper and a pen to jot down your ideas. If you are in the car or going for a run, you can go to the show notes on our website to follow these steps at any time. If you do this with a friend, it is even better!

Consider the following:

1. Think about yourself as your best version of yourself or the version you like best. What words would you use to describe yourself at your best? Make a list. You can have as many words as you want.
2. What words would you like inscribed on your tombstone? Make a list.
3. How would you like to interact with others? Make a list of these words.

Go through your words list. Circle the ones that most speak to you. When you see all of those words, which ones are you really drawn to?

Then, narrow the list by half. Keep narrowing until you have three words. Try them out. Speak them out loud. Rearrange the order of the words so they sound pleasant when you say them. Do they speak to you deeply? Do they make you happy?

If not, keep playing around with the words. If your three words excite you or make you feel content and happy, you’ve got them.

Examples:  Peaceful, Joyful, Caring   or  Present, Wise, Leader,   or Resilient, Fierce, Mama

Michele: Inspired, Gracious, Centered

Paula: Loving, Present, Positive

Our company: Inspired, Together, Learning

Using Your three words for inspiration:

Declaring your three words doesn’t do any good unless you do something with them and use them.

Be able to describe your three words and why they are important to you. Think of it as a one minute elevator speech.

What would you change or do if you lived these three words?

What might you go after if you followed your words?

What prevents you from doing or living your three words?  How could you change that?

Most importantly, keep your words where you can see them regularly, better yet, daily. Put them in your journal or planner. Give yourself a regular check-in. Think about your words when you brush your teeth, do some simple everyday chore, or before you fall asleep.

If you have chosen the right three words, You will be regularly reminded of them and start to integrate them into your everyday life. If you do that, you will find yourself living your highest intentions.

We close with a quote from Brendon Burchard:

“Deciding how you want to be in your life is one of the most important things you can do to live an extraordinary life.”

Recap:

The My Three Words strategy is a simple yet profound way to create intention in your life and then focus on that intention every day. It can help you be the person you want to be and live the life you want to live.

Get our Free Guide!

If you would like more help in living with intention, check out our book, The Inspired Teachers Journal: A Weekly Guide to Becoming Your Best Self.  We set you up with some insight and then give you journal prompts and amazing advice from other teachers who are on a journey to live their inspired lives. You can find our book on Amazon and it is linked above.

Quote:

“Deciding how you want to be in your life is one of the most important things you can do to live an extraordinary life.”

Brendon Burchard

Connect with the Inspired Together Teachers Community:

Download our FREE resource: The Inspired Teachers Guide to Taking Back Your Life.

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More About Inspired Together Teachers:

Are you a teacher struggling to balance your best work with your best life?

If you are dedicated and caring but often overwhelmed and exhausted, join us at Inspired Together Teachers. We’ll give you inspiration, strategies and tips that help you navigate life’s challenges as a stronger, more confident, and more joy filled person, both in and out of the classroom.

Inspired Together Teachers will give you practical tools to experience more of what matters most in your life.

Co-hosts Paula Schmidt and Michele Vosberg are award winning educators with the experience and skills to help teachers thrive in life and work. They’ve taught at all levels, worked with thousands of teachers, and conducted workshops around the world. They are also the authors of the #1 best-selling book The Inspired Teachers Journal: A Weekly Guide to Becoming Your Best Self.

Paula and Michele would love to have you to join them on their quest to lived inspired lives.

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