3 Words That Deserve More Attention
by Kinga Lewandowska
Words matter. In every possible context, situation, or circumstance the verbiage we use in dialogue with ourselves and others builds up or breaks down somebody’s dreams, self-esteem, or relationships. We could argue that a lot of what we communicate may be open to interpretation, yet that only makes a careful choice of phrases, expressions, and tone all the more important.
Words bear responsibility. They’re loaded with emotions and they’re the driving force for thoughts, decisions, and actions. Words have the power to alter our world, create new realities, or help us escape the confines of the one in which we’re trapped. Words can be both deadly like knives and warm like blankets. They’re noise and music, shadow and light. A simple yes or no carries so much meaning and consequence that it can put us in more than one predicament.
Might We Have a Word?
If words are so powerful, how could we harness their potency to positively influence our success? What we propose today is word minimalism, a simplification tactic to recenter your focus on efficiency. It’s truly amazing how many possibilities combinations of only three letters may add to our sentences and our lives. For example:
YET
Can you feel the potential enchanted in these three letters? Yet is a promise, a sign of unshaken persistence, and a glimmer of hope all wrapped up in one word. How many dreams became plans thanks to its meaning? How many goals and intentions led to tangible results because of yet?
This short word, usually dangling at the end of a sentence, fills our hearts with enough belief and conviction that hardly anything remains impossible to achieve. It’s an exclamation of deep trust: in yourself, the Universe, the higher power, whatever your source of depth is, yet enhances your connection to it. This word is your friend. It will cheer you on in your endeavors and fortify your willpower. You are one yet away from your best life.
Yet in a sentence:
I haven’t finished my project YET.
I haven’t started the business YET.
I haven’t learned how to code YET.
I have YET to pluck up the courage to reach for the stars, but I will.
The best is YET to come.
NOW
This word is mindfulness. Whenever your mind wanders off too far into the past or into the future, now will always anchor you in the present moment. It will help you ease the pain lingering in memories and the anxiety of the challenges yet to arise on your path. Now is both meditation and a kick in the bum. It will turn chaos into focus, stagnation into positive change, and the tire marks on your heart into pathways for joy.
Now will blow fresh air into your lungs so you can breathe again and it will put you on the right track to success. The time is always now: to start a YouTube channel, to reconnect with a long-lost friend or your inner self, to write the first word of your novel. As if by magic, this word transforms nostalgia into creative drive. Now wants your undivided attention.
Now in a sentence:
The here and NOW is what’s real and what matters.
I can only control what is happening NOW.
If you act NOW, you will set things in motion and reach your goals quicker.
The beginning is always NOW. (said Roy T. Bennett)
NOW is all that we have.
CAN
Brimming with encouragement, this word professes: take the leap because you are capable, you can will anything you want into existence. Provided that it’s used in its positive form (as opposed to can’t), can is courage, perseverance, confidence, and sometimes even audacity. The stubborn energy of this word will keep pushing you towards what your heart desires. It’s an exclamation of intrinsic motivation.
Can is both hopeful and full of potential as well as rigid and unyielding. It’s a high voltage word, it underlines action and focuses on achievement. It sparks our imagination and fuels our bravado. Can gets things done. It shifts our mindset towards growth. This word is very often the subject of various negotiations between our minds and hearts as it has the power to single-handedly rewrite the narrative of our life.
Can in a sentence:
Please trust me when I say I CAN do this.
I not only CAN, I will!
Believe you CAN and shoot for the moon.
CAN we do this? Yes, we CAN.
The world belongs to those who believe they CAN change it.
Three Letters at a Time
Words are packets of energy and meaning, yet, at the end of the day, they carry as much significance as we intend them to. Use language to your advantage. Each of the above-mentioned three-letter options is an affirmation and a mantra in itself. Utilize this free guidance, counsel, and inspiration. If you have yet to believe that you can achieve success, now is the time to trust the right words.