Is Trying Really That Bad?
- Image via Wikipedia
The following is inspired by a conversation my wife and I recently had….
We’ve all heard the famous Yoda saying “There is no try, there is either do or do not.” And at first glance there seems to be a lot of truth in this.
I often like to take different perspectives on things and look for an empowering (or positive) aspect. So let me run this by you….
Is trying something really so bad?
After all if we didn’t “try” something new we’d never experience the grandeur of life. The problem comes in when people think the word try is the end result. The word try is part of the process…it’s not the end result.
Think about this….you’re at the starting line of a race, the gun sounds and off you go.
What are you doing?
You’re TRYING to win the race. The race is now over…you either won the race or you didn’t. But you never would have finished if you didn’t try.
Try is action in motion…it is NOT the final result!
Looking at the synonyms for try we find:
- Attempt
- Endeavor
- Struggle
- Strive
- Seek
- Make an effort
- Take a crack at
What a second! Did you see that?
“Make an effort”
WOW…so to try is the same as making an effort…this means taking action!
I think way too many people are so afraid of “trying” anything for fear of the wrath of Yoda descending upon them.
If more people would try something new, different and even crazy, they’d experience life in a brand new way and create a fulfilled and exciting life!
So, trying isn’t so bad after all. It’s only bad when a person doesn’t have the mental strength to speak the truth and say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to something, or ‘I will’ or ‘I will not.’
By coming down so hard on the ‘try’ we’re throwing out the baby with the bathwater.
I would argue, I guess I am already am :-), that the word itself is not as important as the intent behind the word. If is person intends to give a task their full attempt, then this type of ‘try’ is great. If a person uses this phrase to crate an escape clause, well then…that’s a different story.
So let’s all go a bit easier on the word try and actually encourage ourselves and others to try more things. Who knows…it actually could improve your personal performance and personal empowerment.
I’d love to hear you comments on this subject below.
