What did you just say?
Do you have pet phrases that you use without thinking?
Have you ever asked a business owner how things are going for them and they respond with the phrase, “I’m flat out!” They say this phrase with pride. It’s as if the only way to do business is at full pace. If you’re not completely stretched and have every minute filled with activity, you’re not really in business. I find it a strange thing to say and it leaves me imagining them lying prostrate on the floor causing customers to step over them as their business goes on around them.
Obviously working “flat out” leaves you weary because the next thing they often say is that they “need a break!” They are referring to a break in their routine so they can break away from working and take a holiday. My reply is always, “Oh no! I want your bones to stay in tact. I don’t want you to break anything!” I then request that they ask for a rest or time out instead, which is far more enjoyable!
Our words create our world. We need to take care in choosing what we say.
The Universe takes what we say literally.
When we repeat it, the Universe obliges and delivers it to us, over and over again.
No wonder we continue to have the same experiences in life. We keep asking for the same things!
We repeat phrases like “I haven’t got time” or “there’s not enough hours in the day” then wonder why we are left with unfinished tasks and incomplete projects at the end of each day. We get frustrated about life and exclaim “It’s always like this” or “things never change” then wonder why we can’t find the solutions we need to move forward.
We use phrases without realizing the power of the words in those phrases.
We create how we experience life in the words we use. FOCUSING ON THE NEGATIVES or the “problems” in our life, puts our body into a state of stress.
We can be unconscious about the phrases handed down to us by our family or those we pick up from our friends and work associates. In the work environment, when the team focusses on what’s not working, it creates a negative atmosphere. We feel it and our customers can smell it from miles away!
If we want things to change, we need to change the words we say to ourselves and to others.
Once I became aware of the impact my words had on my life, I caught myself saying the phrase, “my poor, little brain.” I was astounded that I used these words regularly. My brain is not poor. It is rich with ideas and full of wonderful memories. It certainly isn’t little and I want my brain it be healthy and productive. Why would I condemn it to being anything less than that?
Please watch what you say, especially to yourself.
Let's catch each other out when we unwittingly use damaging language. We can act as a sieve for each other and gently but persistently take the thoughtless language out of our daily conversations and begin creating more positive, dynamic and productive experiences for ourselves.
Sheridan Morris
Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash
