A Middle Path Between Thought and Action

  Have you ever stopped to wonder why it's hard to do what's right when it's clearly known what's right? Many expressions hint at this, and one of my favorite is  the one which goes "you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink". I haven't figured out why there is a disconnect between knowing what is good and doing what is good, and perhaps this is something that a few scientific studies can explore in further depth. But one thing I can suggest is that perhaps there is a disconnect between too much self-consciousness and action. The more one becomes self conscious (conscious about what they are doing, who they are, etc.) the harder it is to act smoothly and from a sensible frame of mind. It is like the story of a donkey that doesn't know whether to drink water or eat first, and ends up dying of both hunger and thirst.
   Many therapies, particularly cognitive-centered ones, start with a well-meaning desire to analyze a person's style of thinking and the cognitive errors one makes which leads to suffering.  The problem I notice is that they often have this underlying tone that the cognitive aspect is separate from the world, as though the brain were a computer processor that just takes in sensations and packages them in the form of thoughts. I wonder, does it sometimes unintentionally create the illusion of a self that is separate from the rest of the world? Sometimes this can trip people up, because they start to think that what they are dealing with is themselves as a kind of thing that is encased in a skull.
   Can too much self-reflection inhibit acting? I sometimes believe so, at least from my own experiences. I think this is because, in one's eagerness to correct their erroneous thoughts or thinking patterns, they might start to forget the messy aspects of planning a course of action or actually committing to specific goals that relate to the world and others. But I suspect that a cognitive-focus might also create a kind of perfectionism. It's as though a person reasons that if only they get the processor in their skull right, then everything else should run smoothly. But what is overlooked is just what is 'running' and how it connects to the brain.
   Is it possible that the way around this is to go beyond thinking itself? I am sure that many cognitive therapists and psychologists would reject that idea, because they might ask, why would anyone want to go beyond thinking? Isn't thinking the source of suffering, and so shouldn't the goal of psychology be to correct faulty thinking? The problem is, I suspect that focusing only on cognition might lead to an attachment to thinking itself, as though correcting our thoughts leads us to an idyllic place. What is overlooked is that sometimes simple doing for its own sake (and with full presence and calmness) can be a very healing source of strength, and might do wonders to align the mind and step out of compulsive thoughts. An example of this might be gardening or doing some kind of art, which is done for its own sake rather than for the sake of an external prize or merit. When I absorb myself in a creative pursuit, I am no longer only using thoughts to guide my actions. I often start to use the whole body and mind rather than only using thoughts to resolve inner conflicts.