Way Back No. 6
No Try
Twenty-four hours.
No “try.”
That’s the whole practice.
When you catch it in your mouth,
and you will,
make the honest choice
between the two things
“try” was hiding.
I’m doing this.
Or:
I’m not doing this.
Both are honest.
Both are strong.
Both leave your word intact.
“Try” was never a third option.
It was just the place
where your yes and your no
went to hide from each other.
Flush them out.
And when the yes wins,
here is the equation
I run my life on.
Think first.
Always think first.
Then:
action,
plus conviction.
That’s drive.
And drive,
aimed at something true,
is a life worth living.
From chapter six
What usually happens
You will catch it three times before lunch. It hides in the polite places: I’ll try to make it, I’ll try to call.
Each catch forces the real answer up. Some of your yeses will surprise you. So will some of your nos. Both are cleaner than the hiding was.
One line to carry
“Try” was never a third option.
If someone came to mind
Some people read this page and think of one person the whole way through.
If that happened, send them back to themselves. It costs them nothing.
The other Ways Back are in their chapters, one per chapter, all of them free. This one is yours whenever you need it.