Which well-known phrases summarise well how you approach your life?
We all have our favourite motivating phrases, some are handed down to us as we’re growing up and some we just seem to pick up along the way. We might shout them to ourselves or find ourselves repeating them to our own children to prevent them giving up on something.
“Never give up!” and “Try, try and try again”, are great mantras to live by to ensure when we start doing something we give it a good enough go. They help ensure we don’t give up at the first knock back or just because we don’t like something when we first encounter it.
Do you use them universally?
But what happens when we live too rigidly by these rules and keep battling on and on when we’re in the midst of an unwinnable battle?
In those cases we might be better served by recalling some different phrases such as “It’s no good flogging a dead horse” or if you’ve become exhausted as you battle to help someone else make the changes they need to make you might consider if “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink” is applicable?
Context is everything
In truth all these phrases have endured over time because they’re really apt, when used at the right time and in the right context. What’s really important is that we become more adept at being aware whether we’re in a situation which would be better served by the “Try, try and try again” variety or the “It’s no good flogging a dead horse variety”?
And to do that can sometimes involve taking a big mental step back and considering what about the situation is within our control and what isn’t and accepting we can’t do it all. And then we can decide whether it's time to "throw in the towel" or to "pause and regroup" before "going back into the fray".
If you feel rigid beliefs are holding you back then why not get in touch to see how Hypnotherapy can help?