Does purposeful action ever end?
The answer to this question is found in the metaphor of the brook. Just as the brook is the flow of water, so too life is the flow of action. Without the flow of water, there is no brook; without the flow of actions there is no life.
Since flow creates the flow of what is to follow, our actions set the stage for future actions. So, considering the question in the title of the post, if you consider actions as continuing through life - and we mean purposeful action here - then these continue. You might argue or ask, what happens when we die? The answer depends on the nature of the action. For example, Mohandas Gandhi’s action to free a nation from foreign occupation peacefully continues through others, as do Mother Teresa’s acts of service to humanity.
This concept of continuing action works lock-step with the concept of continuous improvement, or Kaizen. How can there be Kaizen if the action ends?
Another aspect of this post relates to the extent or breadth of the action being considered. For example, if we consider the action to be simply walking a mile on a certain day at a certain place, the action in and of itself ends. However, if one considers the walk as part of a healthy living regimen, it continues - through its ups and downs as the case might be …
Now, what do you think… and why?
I think that purposeful action doesn’t end. Purposeful action is a continuous process…I agree that leader’s vision and actions have a huge impact on their followers, like Martin Luther King or Mohandas Gandhi’s impact on our lives, as we mentioned before.
Their followers continued in their “journey” through their vision, therefore there was no end of purposeful action; the brook is still flowing… Unfortunately, this also applies to negative leaders such as Hitler or Osama bin Laden.
I think that this post is right in its statement that purposeful actions never end. Let me briefly try and illustrate my understanding. A leader’s vision must have purpose if he or she is to attract and persuade followers. This same purpose gives meaning and context to the leader’s actions and also encourages and inspires others to act in a similar manner.
Mohandas Gandhi is no longer with us but his actions had a huge impact on the word. However one’s actions do not necessarily need to have a huge impact to make a difference and influence others. There was a recent TV commercial (I believe it was for some type of insurance) in which one individual sees another doing a good deed, for example stopping during the middle of a morning run to help the mail man carry a package, and then this person is inspired to carry out some good deed, and so on. These actions are seemingly simple, trivial even, but can have a definite positive impact. In this way a simple act can start a chain reaction of positivity, which in turn can serve to change a person’s thoughts toward doing good - and this can help to start building a foundation on which to act purposefully.
Purposeful action never ends. If there is no purpose then there is no action related to that. No work in this world is ever done without a certain purpose in mind.
There is purpose in action, and its idea is illustrated by the Some sacrifice. Action with a purpose arises because of a close connection between the actor and the objects of life. All purpose has its value, but the final purpose of action is what’s required.
I have to say i agree with Nikki and Jimy. My answer to this question in one word is NO, IT EVER ENDS.
Action itself indicates life, purposeful action indicates a life with purpose. So if company were to stop their operation (action), they will not able to stay long in the competitive market. Lets say there is action or operation in the company, but it is not aimed towards perticularly anything or not achieving anything;then still the company won’t able to survive. To survive purposeful operation or action must continue. Purposeful action is an on going process, its never ends.
Interesting comment, Roy M… PC
You state that a company would eventually go under and fold if it stopped all operations (i.e. actions) and that it is necessary for a companies actions to have purpose to grow and be successful. Non-profits are excellent proof of this. The non-profit’s goal is service and in this way they inspire others to provide support so that the company can continue of its mission.
Perhaps Wall St. is crumbling because there are too many enterprises without purpose.
Human action is purposeful behavior. Or we may say: Action is will put into operation and transformed into an agency, is aiming at ends and goals, is the ego’s meaningful response to stimuli and to the conditions of its environment, is a person’s conscious adjustment to the state of the universe that determines his life.
[http://mises.org/humanaction/chap1sec1.asp]
In this context, purposeful ACTION does end with a person’s life - like the flow of a brook ending when it ceases to exists, either where it dries up or joins the river/ocean. But, the results of the preceeding action is what continues to go on in the form of water being added to the river/ocean that increases its streangth and volume! So, it is furthermore important for every living being to maximize his/her time on earth so that the FLOW and it’s effects never ends even when the brook of life has ceased.
Very well stated, Jimy! PC
Along these same lines, a brook may had dried up decades ago but at some point in time the water that made up that brook fell back to earth as nourishment. If we act with purpose, no matter how small the action, at some point in time someone will benefit, perhaps even after we are long gone. Perhaps this is Karma.
Very interesting, Joshua… whether this is Karma or not we need to discuss further to understand what you mean - perhaps in class next Tuesday… PC
I don’t think Purposeful Action ever ends. Even after a person dies, there are others to continue along their path and strive toward completing their vision. Take Martin Luther King for example, even after his death there are people who still fight for what he dreamed of. Even though we have come so far since he was alive do you really think he would have stopped pursuing his dream if he were alive? Thus, those that truly believed in his vision should not stop fighting for the dream. With any great vision there is always room for improvement. This improvement can be assessed in Phase 3 of the framework of Purposeful Action and the plan Renewed. It is a constant circle of action, assessment, and renewal. Or stated in another way, the idea of Kaizen – continuous improvement. This constant circle of continuous improvement can be applied to our professional lives as well as our personal lives and also to a product or a service that we or our organization provides/supplies.
Interesting comments, Nikki…PC