There are different ways of knowing how to do something - you can think you know how to do it, and understand everything about how you should do it properly in your mind, but when it comes to doing it, it doesn't actually work out that way. This is important because it shows different ways of understanding how the world works, one way is a practical one and the other way is an internal one that you can think about to yourself.
For example, when you are doing something that you know how to do, you might do it automatically without thinking, or you may pause and think about how to do it or what you are doing throughout the process.
People seek reasons and explanations for their intentions. When you intend to do something, you usually know why you want to do it, however you might also seek additional reasons and explanation. Sometimes you are in a state of mind where it is more appropriate to seek reasons. If you are intending to do something, then you might be looking for additional reasons why you want to do it.
When you intend to do something, some combination of beliefs and facts goes through your mind. You have reasons to do it, and you are thinking about the beliefs and facts that you will use when you do it. For instance even something simple, like turning on a light switch, you have the belief that switching it on will turn on the light, and you have the fact that almost every time you did that before the light did indeed turn on. That is a simple example, there are much more complicated and even unconscious beliefs and facts that you understand before doing certain actions.
-
Actions, simple or compound, are events. For instance, anything that happens takes a certain amount of time to happen - this is an event. People label a certain complicated number of things happening into an 'event'- such as a game or a meal or a party. Every action can be a part of a larger whole - drinking is a part of the event 'meal'. The 'meal' is part of the event 'visiting friends'. Everything in life is part of something larger, and everything has its own smaller components. Practically people keep this simple and don't overly analyze the details, but it can be done.
-
One action may have many significant properties. This would be the different ways of describing events or the parts in them. So for instance while drinking is a part of a meal, the drink tasting good is a property of the drink or 'drinking'. Furthermore, there is a certain relationship between the descriptions - 'tasted good' - and the events - 'drinking'. The relationships are always casual, conventional and circumstantial. In the casual case the drink tasting good is made true because drinks are liquid and liquid often tastes good. In the conventional case drinks taste good because of a rule - all food or liquid has a certain taste. In the circumstantial case the drink tastes good because you happened to find a drink that tasted good. So, as you see, there are these different ways of looking at and analyzing how the properties of an event or action relate to the event or action. Also, these properties are ways of describing the action.
-
Actions are events that are intentionally performed by agents. Actions are events that are brought about immediately by the agent. If they aren't brought about immediately, then something else is doing the action, and it isn't the action of the original agent, it is the action of the second agent or third or fourth, etc, agent. An action is performed intentionally if it has one intentional description - you can describe how it was the intention of the agent. If you foresee that you are going to do an action, it still wouldn't be intentional unless you desire to do the action (have a pro-attitude about it). If you don't desire to do an action you might knowingly be doing the action, but that doesn't mean that you are intentionally doing it. When you do something with intent, you have a better understanding that you are doing that action - there are many things you could do with little understanding that you are doing it, but then it isn't really intentional. If, on the other hand, you have a desire to do the action, then it is probably more intentional.
-
Actions may be intentional under various aspects. So one action may be the best option for you, it is more intentional than other things you might have intended. An action might also be partially not intended, for instance some of the action you are doing could be a more automatic process (such as the movements of your muscles), and if viewed that way that part of the action isn't as intentional.
-
Any intentional description can be quoted in explanation of an action. Explanations are relative to background knowledge. Explanations may start off more basic and simple, and progress towards more complex ones or the final, satisfactory explanation that shows the goal.
