Action always beats intention.

One of the ideas I talk about in my new book, which comes out this spring, is that “action always beats intention.”

I spent 30 years doing a lot of talking about my dream but very little doing.

It took me a long time to learn that dreamers are a dime a dozen. The world is lousy with dreamers. Doers? They’re rare. They’re the ones who actually change the world.

The books I wanted to write, wouldn’t write themselves.

The miles I wanted to run, wouldn’t run themselves.

The speeches I wanted to give, wouldn’t give themselves.

I had to move beyond intention and into action, because action always beats intention.

This morning, while reading a book called The Wisdom of the Desert , I saw a thought from a monk that applied to this concept:

“If you have a chest full of clothing, and leave it for a long time, the clothing will rot inside. It is the same with thoughts in our heart. If we do not carry them out by physical action, after a long while they will spoil and turn bad.” 

I hope you have intentions. I hope you have a million dreams. But above all, I hope you don’t let fear convince you to keep that chest of ideas locked and hidden under your bed.

Get it out.

Get moving.

Start acting.

Action always beats intention.

Question:
What’s a small action you could set in motion today?