How to Think Like a Man of Action and Act Like a Man of Thought

How to Think Like a Man of Action

and Act Like a Man of Thought

“Think like a man of action, act like a man of thought.” ~Henri Bergson

In a world where people believe more than they think and think they know more than they believe, we need more people who are capable of deep reflection and decisiveness. Bergson’s quote encourages a harmonious blend of both reflection and decisiveness. Let’s break it down…

Think like a man of action (decisiveness):

“When the why gets stronger, the how gets easier.” ~Jim Rohn

Adopt the mindset of someone who is prepared to take action. Be imaginative and intellectually proactive. Think pragmatically with purpose, clarity, and readiness toward implementing ideas and actualizing goals.

Think courageously. Think with adventurous intent. Think outside the box and then jump back into the box and flatten it for everyone else. Take the glass house of your perceived limitations and shatter it against your otherworldly wherewithal.

Become sharpened mettle. A character forged in the furnace of great adversity and the crucible of risk is sharpened mettle. Use your sharpened mettle like a sword of inquisition. Cut through outdated thought and parochial colloquialism. Outflank your ego’s attachment to cultural conditioning with your Counterculture Soul.

As Leon said in Truth Mind, “A man has to forge himself into a weapon or he will be forged into a tool.”

Do not allow yourself to become a tool unless you are the wielder. The world will try to tell you who you are. It is your responsibility to push back and declare who you truly are with ruthless decisiveness and uncanny discipline. Turn all tables. Flip all scripts. Square all circles if need be. Elevate yourself above the battlefield of the human condition lest it consume you with its triviality, banality, and pettiness.

Act like a man of thought (reflection):

“The exoteric sees things up from below – while the esoteric sees them down from above.” ~Nietzsche

Remember the infinite interconnection of all things so deeply that you are forgotten.

And then within that sacred space of forgetting, act. Act with depth and consideration. Act with nonattachment. Act with neither need nor expectation. Act with aplomb and utilize that sharpened mettle you discovered while thinking like a man of action.

Adapt and overcome. Be open to revising actions based on new insights and changing circumstances, much like a thinker would revise theories.

Be violent against belief but nonviolent against people. What does this mean? It means being ruthless in your circumspection regarding your beliefs, your thoughts and your theories, especially those you codependently cling to, but being open-minded, tolerant and loving regarding the freedom of others, especially in the sense that you are interdependently connected.

As Gustave Flaubert said, “Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.”

Learn how to be comfortable with discomfort. Learn how to integrate fear. Learn to embrace paradox. Learn how to reimagine and redefine big concepts like Death, Love, and God. And then act with acumen and openness, keeping in mind No-mind and the greater effectiveness of flowing through Flow states.

Do not fear absurdity, paradox, or even chaos. Harmony is always humbling. Poise is always an antidote to extremism. Balance is always a sacrifice. As Heraclitus said, “Opposition brings concord. Out of discord comes the fairest harmony.”

Harmony emerges when the tension between opposites is held in sacred alignment. When awe and fascination are discovered between reciprocal dynamics, then you know that you are holding the tension. Balance is key. Poise is paramount. Nonattachment is the secret.

Balancing disciplined decisiveness with deep reflection:

“To make a mistake is insignificant. To play without passion is inexcusable.” ~Beethoven

Mistakes will happen. Live passionately anyway. Live full. Live hungry. Live dangerously. Take risks and iterate through the pain. Transform your mistakes into mastery.

Blur the lines drawn between opposites. Find the middle gray of the Yin-yang and actualize it. Discover the Middle Way of your own way and own it. Pressurize your inner demons until they become diamonds.

Let your thoughts be driven by the necessity of action. Execute with the care and consideration of a thoughtful philosopher. There’s an interplay between thinking and doing where each informs and enhances the other. Thoughts should be action-oriented, and actions should be thought-through.

Avoid extremes. Guard against being too contemplative without ever acting (paralysis by analysis) or acting without thinking (reckless behavior). Utilize a holistic approach to life. This approach can lead you to more effective decision-making, where you not only plan well but you’re also able to adapt those plans through reflective action.

Plant the flag of yourself despite the shifting sands of an uncertain universe. Think on purpose with purpose like a man of action. Act on purpose with purpose like a man of thought. Free yourself to create a life philosophy where you are both proactive in your ideas and reflective in your execution. This will lead to a more meaningful and effective engagement with the world.

About the Author:

Gary Z McGee, a former Navy Intelligence Specialist turned philosopher, is the author of Birthday Suit of God and The Looking Glass Man. His works are inspired by the great philosophers of the ages and his wide-awake view of the modern world.

This article (How to Think Like a Man of Action and Act Like a Man of Thought) was originally created and published by Self-inflicted Philosophy and is printed here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Gary Z McGee and self-inflictedphilosophy.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this statement of copyright.