Why only actions matter in life

                              By Bayo Ogunmupe

In this world we live in, intentions mean nothing. Your actions mean much. This seems obvious during this period of constant political propaganda and lies. So it makes sense to judge people based on what they do rather than their intensions. going further, what matters to me even more than your actions is the consequences of your actions. This means that intensions do matter, but only as far as they cause you to engage in actions that make your life and the lives of others better.

    We are so quick to justify our own worldview based on intentions rather than the actions we are carrying out. Tis most pronounced in Nigerian politics where politicians say one thing but do something else. but rather judge something based on ideology, we should instead examine the consequence of their actions. But we sadly so focused on our intensions and don't pay enough attention to what we're doing with our lives. Having good intensions is important, but our intensions don't interact with the real world. They don't shape society, culture and the planet. While our actions do shape this world.

    It is time we start living our lives based on our actions and not on our intensions. Here are some reasons why you should start focusing on your actions right from now. You're defined by how you treat people, not how you justify your treatment of them. just as every good government has an ideology with which it justifies its policies, you also have your narrative for why you treat people in certain ways. Your narrative may change over time but the way you treat people will live on.

    Two, you are defined by what you are pursuing in life, not by your reasons for pursuing them. You are defined by the people you hang out with, not by your excuses for surrounding yourself with the wrong people. This is a hard lesson to learn. You must consciously make sure that people you spend time with shared your values that actions matter more than intensions. Three, you are defined by your beliefs, not why you believe them. It matters more what you believe than your reasons for accepting that belief. You can't live all your life justifying your beliefs by explaining that your parents gave you the belief or that was how you were educated. You have the autonomy to change your belief.

    Four, you are defined by the way you love, not how you feel when in love. The fairy tale emotion of love is absent from many lives. In fact the actions of love matter more than how it feels. Five, you are defined by the life you create, not by the excuses you make along the way. Nothing defines you more than the life you have created for yourself or your lifestyle. it is the sum total of all your creative expressions, actions, your passions, your beliefs and your choices. Despite that, it doesn't matter what you intended to create. What matters is what happened from your actions.

    In the sacred area of human life, there is a need to think outside labels and old habits, for tradition is the enemy of progress. And the reason for unwarranted optimism by people is because the human mind is unlimited in its capacity to think, create, grow, plan ahead and act for the common good. To strongly believe in something and not live it, is dishonesty. But by refusing to bend to what society  wants you to be; by not changing who you are so other people will accept you, you assert your unique character. By such actions you will never be fooled by other people's words and dissembling.