“Action without Thought is careless.

Thought without Action is meaningless.

  But when Thought and Action align, quality of life is born.”   - B. Manhart

What if your next "great day" didn’t come from a new idea, but from taking action on something you already know?

I opened my email inbox and found what I expected: More emails.

I wondered…
What good was any of it?

It had limited meaning and very few action steps. Will any of it actually IMPROVE my life?!?!

Then I thought about what my wife, Jennifer, has said so many times:

“Can we stop TALKING about it and just DO something about it?”

I went back to my inbox.

More Stuff...

• A training about _____.
• A seminar about _____.
• A resource on how to talk about _____.
• A survey about how I felt about what I had just read about _____.

Essentially, it was all more “things” and “stuff” about “things and stuff.”

Nothing had changed in my life.

“What Are We Doing?”

I’m a huge advocate of life-long learning. And I can appreciate entertainment.

But I think we become an “overly-entertained” society that leans into constant amusement to prevent us from facing reality.

I thought about a quote from Catholic Franciscan and author Richard Rohr.

“We do not THINK ourselves into new ways of living; we LIVE ourselves into new ways of thinking.”

That line stopped me.

What if I didn’t need more to THINK about?
Rather, I just DID more of what already matters?

So I Tried Three Things

✅ End every meeting or interaction with one clear action step.
✅ Read and write everything with one question: How does this help me, or others, move the needle in life?
✅ Prioritize action over ideas.

I feel better.
I sleep better.
I laugh more.

This past weekend...

I bought a small motorbike with my 17 year old. (Jennifer loved that, btw.)
I went fishing in a creek with my 13 year old. (And accidentally fell in.)
I spent time in church intentionally praying. (And less time looking around at what others were wearing.)
I watched a meaningful movie with my 11 year old. (That made our eyes "watery.")

“Action without thought is careless.

Thought without action is meaningless.

But when thought and action align, quality of life is born.”

Your Turn

Think about it. Take action. And go create something wonderful.

At Lone Oak, we’re not just a place to eat, sleep, and play.

We’re on a mission to help you ignite your energy, restore relationships, and rediscover your life.

Then we’ll send you out the gate—to lead with what you’ve just uncovered.

Remain Encouraged,

Brian