The Will to Act

Will is the capacity to make something happen. The will is conventionally associated with the intellect, but Visionmakers take a broader anatomical view of the matter. It is an energetic interplay of the Four-Chambered Heart (open, full, clear and strong), the intellect, backbone and "guts."  

The heart funds full engagement; the intellect provides discernment; the backbone is the home of character without which the will lacks fortitude; and the gut supports courage. These are all necessary for the correct engagement of the will. Without this complex of physical structures, the mind alone cannot propel the body to act.

The products of the will are energy, power and timing.

Energy

The business of the will is to convert the dialogue of the heart and mind to energy. Will is like a flint when it partners with emotion and intellect; it creates an ignition that produces an energy source for action.

When the fire to act seizes a human being, one becomes lively, vigorous, enthusiastic, compelling and fully engaged in what they are doing. This is the energy required to generate purposeful acts. Without such fire there is no ignition point for action.

The Swiss writer, Henri Amiel suggests:

"Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of iron before it can give forth its spark."

Power

Power is the force that creates something from nothing. It is revealed as the impact a Visionmaker has on the status quo through the directed energy of the will. The more effectively thoughts, emotions and feelings transform to energy, the greater the fire generated.  

The greater the fire, the more generative power is available; and with more power comes greater impact. As result, a Visionmaker can break free of the confines of the status quo and pursue an original and meaningful path of action.

The conventional definition of power is the ability to control or influence other people and the environment that we operate within. The Visionmaker is not interested in control such as this. He or she is focused on the specific actions that will help cut a path of heart and meaning.

A Visionmaker is concerned with what that path can contribute, not what he or she can gain.

Timing

The third capacity on which the power of the will depends is timing. Right timing in the execution of purposeful acts is every bit as important as energy and power.  One can be clear as a bell about the heart's direction and have all the energy and focus in the world, but miss the proper timing for action...and completely miss the mark.

A Visionmaker is vigilant, disciplined and patient in expending his or her energy on action.  With economy and efficiency, he or she seeks the best moment to act– to pluck the future from the fingers of chance.

The energy, power and timing to act with purpose is the contribution made by the will to the dynamic partnership with emotion and intellect. It is this partnership that is required to deliver vision to form.

© Patrick O’Neill 2009. All rights reserved.