Attention follows intention

Attention is concentrating your mental powers on something.

Intention is the course you plan to follow.

Which comes first?

Which influences the other more?

Which can you control?

Your attention is influenced by your intention, and what you pay attention to is everything you know.

You can set your intention to respond, not react.

You can set your intention to listen in order to understand, rather than be right.

You can intend to empathize rather than project.

You can intend to help someone find their own solution, rather than insist what worked for you must work for them.

You can even intend to not judge.