The imagination is so delicate that sometimes even words wound it

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Stop trying

The phone rings. The voice on the other end asks "Do you have that report yet?" You answer, "No, but I'm trying to get it done."

Stop. Rewind. Run the scene again.

The phone rings. The voice on the other end asks "Do you have that report yet?" You answer, "I'm working on it right now. You'll have it in the morning."

Notice any difference? In the first example, you're trying. In the second example, you're doing. Which one seems more likely to result in a completed report?

Trying... Have you ever thought about that word and its implications? When you tell yourself, or anyone else, that you're "trying", that strongly presumes the negative -- that you're not actually doing. Even worse is when you are "trying hard". Think about those two words, "trying" and "hard." Not exactly confidence builders, not exactly full of action. We refer to people in dire circumstances as leading a "trying" life, or as going through "hard" times. So what does trying hard get you?

Stop trying. Start doing. When you think of yourself, or refer to yourself, as trying, the lack of commitment is glaring. So stop trying. Go beyond "giving it your best shot" and make the commitment to get it done.

Replace "trying hard" with "doing whatever it takes" and see how much more effective you become.

3 inspired and motivated:

Anonymous said...

I'm printing this post, and sticking it on our noticeboard for others to read!

In the environment that I work in, the constant criticism is that people are not "productive" enough, regardless of how hard they are trying. This could mean that either they are just not the right people for the job, OR it could mean what you said - they are focusing on the effort that they are putting in as opposed to ACTUALLY concentrating on the task at hand!

This is motivational!

Americanising Desi said...

i get inspired and i try to inspire or forward the inspiration, tthis is just one of the few moments when i was deeply touched!

Anonymous said...

@AD
Thanks for sharing - it got a couple of "interesting piece" comments! ;)

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