Three birds are sitting on a telephone wire. Two of them decide to fly south. How many are left? Nope. It’s not one. The answer is three. Deciding to fly south is not the same as doing it.

How many times have you had a great idea and failed to pursue it? How often have you had the thought to call someone you care about and let them know—but somehow time got away from you and you just didn’t make the call? How about the times you’ve noticed someone doing an especially great job and promised yourself you’d drop a letter in the mail praising the individual, but you just never got around to it? Big or small, the truth is it’s much easier to think a good thought than to act on it. On the surface it would seem that good intentions are pretty benign! After all, how bad can it be to have a good thought? But I think that there are two types of risk that arise from the practice of thinking about doing good things and not doing them. The first risk is to our character and the second to our culture. The risk to our character is that we may think ourselves more virtuous than in fact we are merely because we have good thoughts. Now, don’t get me wrong: it is certainly better to think good thoughts than bad ones and we get a gentle, warm feeling inside when we think about how nice it will feel for the recipient to receive a greeting, thanks, praise etc. But the bottom line is that the truer picture of our character is drawn by our actions. If actions speak louder than words, then their volume surely drowns out the whisper of good intentions that reside comfortably inside our head and never make it past our pearly teeth. The second risk arising from the land of good intentions is that we lose the opportunity to make impact in ways both small and large. When we fail to praise someone who has done a job with excellence, that person does not benefit from the confidence boost and personal pride that our words might instill. And in turn, that person may be less likely to pay the compliment forward next time he witnesses excellence. When we conveniently ‘forget’ to make that uncomfortable call of apology, we allow a relationship to diminish and possibly disappear. Unspoken thanks for even a small courtesy interrupts the ripple of positive energy inaugurated by the generous person who showed you a kindness. So, the challenge is to commit to intentions that are meaningful to us and to follow through. If an idea flits across your mind that falls into the realm of good intention, subject it to the following 2 questions: 1. Is it important to me to make this effort? If the answer is yes, go to question 2. If it’s just another of those ideas that pass through our brain a zillion times a day, let it go. 2. Do I have the time to follow through? Clearly some intentions take no more than a 5-minute commitment. Others, like “I’d like to mentor this individual” are a whole different kettle of fish. Be clear with yourself on the time something requires and on the available time you have. Don’t embark on a journey you are unprepared or unable to complete. If the intention is important to you and you have the time to turn it into reality, then take Nike’s advice and “Just Do It!”