The Old College Try

‘I’ll Try’ has become the biggest improvable lie that we all blurt out on a daily basis. Why? Because telling the truth can be harsh.

• I’m not coming to your party.
• I don’t want to watch your kids play soccer.
• I’d rather spend time on facebook than help you with your report.

Yeowch! Tough to look someone in the face and say that, right? It’s easier to say ‘I’ll try to come, I’ll try to be there, I’ll try to help out’. And if you say it with a hint of emotion it is entirely believable! Another benefit is that even if the person doesn’t get the ideal result, they’re not mad at you because you tried.

But really, how often do we give something the old college try? It’s so much easier to hide between the promise of effort than the promise of results. No one can prove that you could have done something and chose not to, so it’s easier to say you gave it all you got and have it just not work out.

The amazing thing is, we play the same mind game with ourselves. Will I start eating healthy tomorrow? I’ll try! Am I going to make it to the gym today? I’ll try!! Can I change my body into something I feel really good about? I’ll try…. And we almost believe that we will really give it our full effort!

But it’s just another lie.

I ‘tried’ to start eating healthy last week. It felt like my millionth attempt, and my subsequent millionth failure. So I’m vowing to never ‘try’ again. From this point forward, my goal is to ‘do’.