There is no try. Yoda said it. And yet we’re still taught to do it.
'To try’ is a virtuous verb, right? It’s about application. Growing and reaching. Yet 'trying' doesn’t actually reap results, the doing does. Why put our energy into trying to do when we can simply do - or do not?
Why are we so heavily conditioned to use this word when we teach our children?
The dictionary definition:
Trying = difficult or annoying; hard to endure
Wow. Why don’t we call it out for what it is. Suffering.
It’s the “trying” that takes the stuffing out of us; being in constant survival mode. It's a conjuring of emotion or state of mind that doesn’t yield any results in itself. Hence Yoda's timeless wisdom.
Let’s teach our kids to do. For themselves. All moments contain choices and the earlier we learn to make clear choices with specific action - action that will either succeed or fail - the more we will learn from our outcomes and maintain our emotional wellbeing.
There is no benefit to reach the depths of despair because we have not won through sheer exertion. It triggers us to scream life's not fair. And surely that in itself reveals the hidden manipulative tactic of trying. Perhaps this is the root of our troubles.
So the next time a child is struggling with something, consider are you going to ask that child to try? Or simply make a choice to act?
I know a word that’s dropping from my vocabulary.