The Real Secret To Achievement Is Action
Introduction
Positive thinking and positive action presumably go hand in hand, and thus the term ‘versus’ may seem unnatural.
But, each requires different approaches and each yields different results, no matter the outcome or tangibility.
This topic is naturally divided in to two segments, thinking, and action. However, in order to address the division accurately, we must first address the difference between the positive and the negative, in terms of thought and action.
The Positive and Negative Thought
Man’s thinking process is still the target of endless research and debate, and it still holds the first place as one of the most intricate processes ever discovered in human history.
While the science behind it has reached deep levels of explanation, the effects one’s thought on his mind and body are still the topic of guessing and exploration.
There have been numerous studies and books, which state that our thoughts are in a direct link with our lives and that by changing the way of thinking we affect our way of live.
This presumption is not that farfetched and in fact is probably true, for it is our thinking that controls everything else that happens in our body.
The center of the thought is naturally the brain. As we all well know, humans can think consciously or subconsciously.
Subconscious thoughts are directed towards operating our internal organs and everything that happens in our bodies without our will.
We can or course assume full conscious command over some functions that are otherwise controlled subconsciously, but there are some which require a very high level of concentration, and others that even cannot be controlled at all.
The Negative Thought
To successfully define the negative thought, we must first address the negative effect it can have on our bodies and motor abilities. I
n this respect, the negative will be observed as something, which leads to harm, of either self or others, or something, which leads to the reduction or malfunction of one’s abilities.
The abilities are either mental or physical, are both affected by our thoughts, this is the first point where thought meets action, and the two show their inseparability.
Negative thought in this respect would be a thought that has a result of degrading one’s functionality, in both motor and thinking sides.
The prime example of a negative thought would then be insufficient self-confidence.
A person who is not confident enough in his or hers thoughts or actions, can often display a general tendency to make wrong or pointless actions, and it is then presumed that his or hers thoughts were also the same, and lead towards those actions.
Another example is depression, which can lead not only to the reduced ability to think or act, but can even affect our entire body health and have a negative outcome in our body’s functionality, even on a cellular level.
But, a question that is often asked is precisely this: did our negative thought, in this case lack of confidence, lead to our negative action, or was our negative thinking the product of the negative action?
This is the second point at which we encounter the inseparability of thought and action, and to answer the previously asked question, we must only view a specific problem.
If you are referring to a specific negative action, than it is indeed the product of a negative thought, but if you want to trace the origins of the negative thought, you might find that it was precisely some negative action, which was performed with no previous negative thought and by sheer accident, which has led to the negative state of mind.
This is not always the case, though it often is true.
The Positive Thought
If viewed from the already established nature of the negative thought, the positive thought would then be everything opposite.
It would be those thoughts who better our motor and brain functions, and contribute to our overall health.
As an opposite example to the lack of self-confidence, good and sufficient self-confidence can be taken as an example of positive thinking.A person who has high self-confidence is more likely to make actions and produce thinking which leads to positive outcomes.
Although, it is not excluded that he or she will not produce any excess actions which may be considered pointless, their actions would eventually lead to increasing their or someone else’s well being and happiness.
So, the positive thought can be characterized as the kind of thought, which leads to increased happiness, and well-being of the individual and anyone else it affects, be it through word or action.
The Positive and the Negative Action
As we’ve already encountered the inseparability of thought and action twice, it is not difficult to define the negativity or the positivity of actions.
But, what should we observe as an action? Isn’t thought an action?In this discussion, we will observe only physical actions and only thoughts, which lead to actions, as examples of actions.
Again, if we observe the result of our actions, we would notice that every action we make could be viewed as positive or negative.
Although, some actions can be deemed either, depending on the point of view, we will only deal with those actions, which have an outcome that is without a question positive or without question negative.
Keep in mind that even the most explicit actions can be viewed as both, depending on the circumstances, but this article will not count in those obviously extreme conditions, for the purpose of better explaining the difference.
The Negative Action
An action that is viewed negative in this respect would be the action, which leads to the degradation or harm of self or others.
Here, we immediately encounter the third point at which the inseparability of thought and action is displayed.
Harming others is viewed as a negative action, but if done so for a positive purpose, for instance self-defense or defense of others, it can be positive. Simply put, they again depend on the nature and intention of the thought, which preceded them.
Therefore, a prime example of a negative action would be that action which is harming self or others, but which doesn’t have any positive side to its outcome.
But, to step away from extreme examples briefly, sometimes the symptoms of a negative action can be very mild and illusive. And to take things further, sometimes the absence of any action can be viewed as both positive and negative.
Here, we come across the connection between the thought, which precedes the action, and the actions outcome, which is presumably present in that preceding thought.
The thought once again takes lead here, as it is concluded that the thought must contain within not only the performance of the action and its nature, but also the potential and desired outcome and its nature as well.
The Positive Action
Contrary to negative actions, positive actions taken as examples here are those, which have positive consequences for the self or others, but, we will also include those actions, which are produced seemingly without previous thought and appear as if they serve no purpose.
An example of this are some automatic actions we do at certain times, which are not needed at the time, like ducking under a street sigh when there’s plenty of room, or closing your eyes automatically when something sudden happens but your eyes were not in danger.
These automatic actions, although seemingly with no purpose, are performed as a reflex and serve the purpose of protecting oneself from potential harm, no matter if it was eminent or not.
They serve the purpose of self-protection, and are thus deemed positive, no matter the outcome.
Willing actions, which are deemed positive in this respect, are again those actions, which lead to positive consequences for one self or others. A good example of those is medical care.
When you treat someone medically, your own willing actions are aimed at preserving and restoring that person’s health, and are thus contributing to their positive outcome.
The Inseparability of Thought and Action
We’ve encountered the inseparability of thought and action a few times already, but the simple explanation for this connection would be the following: conscious thought controls the action, but action yields consequences, which are already present in the initial thought, even before it produced action.
Therefore, thought produces action, which in return produces more thought, which then leads to more actions, and so on.
From this definition, we can extract two rules.
- The first is that if the thought is positive, it yields positive action, or if the action is positive, it yields positive thought, and so on.
- Second, if the thought is negative, it yields negative action, and again if the action is negative it will lead to negative afterthought, and so on.
This simple explanation sometimes eludes people, and we may find that it is precisely this multiplying nature of thought and action, which leads to the spread of positivity or negativity inside ourselves, similarly to the spread of a virus.
If one is to make a single negative thought, which leads to a single negative action, that action will then produce multiple negative thoughts, which will lead to multiple negative actions, and so on.
Therefore, here we can conclude that the positive and the negative spread with the spread of thought and action, throughout our bodies and minds.
It is with this presumption that many religions justify some of the rules of restraining from negative thought, or only performing positive actions, stating that even a single negative action can be enough to taint one’s soul, but also even a single positive action can redeem it.
However, the logical question is what happens with the negative or positive thought if they are not transferred in to actions at all?
Now we are entering the plane of the metaphysical, and although the subject is pretty close to the subject of this article, it is a topic that still eludes concrete definition.
The only definition which is offered is precisely the one we came to when defining the inseparability of thought and action, and its multiplying nature.
The Separateness of Thought and Action
If we go back to the example given for the inseparability of thought and action, one can conclude that there are no actions that are separate from thought, only thoughts which are separated from actions.
Thus, we’ve concluded that the thought can be born with no previous action, but the action cannot be born out of nothing, and requires thought, conscious or unconscious.
Therefore, the thought again takes the lead, and shows that it can exist separate from actions.
However, isn’t thought in and of itself an action? Isn’t that the action of the brain?
The brain’s muscles move and neurons fire up and only then as a result, the thought is born, but which thought tells the brain’s muscles to move and flare up in the first place?
Does this mean that only thought can produce thought?
But, even before conscious or unconscious thought, when we are still inside our mother’s wombs, what controls our body’s growth and functions?
It is our mother’s conscious and unconscious thoughts, and something we still haven’t talked about, our own DNA.
It is no surprise that sometimes we may discover that we are having exactly the same thoughts or habits, and perform exactly the same functions in exactly the same ways as our parents did.
So, to stay on our subject, we will only address the thoughts and actions that occur in a certain individual, from the time of birth to the time of death, not counting their respective genetic code or anything they may have inherited from their parents.
The Product of Thought versus the Product of Action
Although the thought was always in the lead up until now, we will now discuss the situations in which the actions take the lead.
Namely, we will refer to those positive thoughts and positive actions aimed at the prosperity of one self, for instance getting in to shape or losing weight.
When an individual decides to begin working out and lose weight, he or she has produced a positive thought, as explained in this discussion so far.
But, this positive thought will have no effect at all if it only remains a thought.
On the other hand, if we perform actions, which lead to better shape or loss of, weight, without even thinking about it, these actions will have their respective outcomes, regardless of the thoughts, which preceded them, if any.
A good example of this is when a human being is being forced in to labor, be it out of some necessity or otherwise and starts skipping meals because the work takes precedence.
We can safely say that this person is not producing any positive thoughts towards getting in to better shape and losing weight, yet precisely that will happen.
So, we can now see how action can also be in the lead, over thought, and even doesn’t always require previous thought to have an outcome, positive or negative. In fact, any accidental situation can be viewed the same.
Conclusion
It is a fact that no matter how we view thinking and action, they are our primary tools in our lives, and should be utilized together, equally and efficiently.
One should always practice those disciplines and actions that lead to better understanding of one’s thought and action, which will in turn produce more thoughts and actions we will understand, and as a rule have control over.
The purpose of this article is not to say that we must be in control of our thoughts and actions at all costs, but to address the symbiosis of the two, and to suggest that similarly as growing a plant, the positive thoughts, and actions can be grown inside oneself, if one knows how to plant and cultivate them.