The Vocabulary of Success
One of the most transformational tools I have found to work in my life is to consciously choose words that will empower you and make that your habit.
English contains over 500,000 words, yet what’s so interesting is the fact that our habitual vocabulary is minimal. If you describe an incredible experience as being “pretty good,” the richness of that experience loses and becomes flat due to your limited use of vocabulary.
Words form most beliefs, and you can change the way you think, the way you feel, and the way you experience life simply by improving your choice of words.
For example, imagine three people who just lost $500 gambling. Here are the words that each person used to express how they felt.
Person A uses words like “furious” and “enraged.”
Person B uses words like “angry” and “upset.”
Person C uses words like “peeved” and “annoyed.”
While person A & B were completely filled with anger person C kept their cool.
The idea is that if you choose different words to describe your emotions, you can alter how you perceive the experience. Each person translated the incident and gave the experience a label that transformed their emotional state in the situation.
Here’s another example, if you use words like “hate” a lot, you will begin to raise the intensity of the negative emotional state.
Another essential tool to utilize is to be conscious of the phrases you use to communicate with yourself and others.
Instead of saying things like “I hate waiting in line,” “I hate my job,” or “I hate this song,” use a phrase like “I prefer <something else>.”
Take action
Here is a list of phrases you can use right now to change the way you experience life.
- “No worries/problem” | “You’re welcome” 👉 “Of course, always happy to help”
- “Just wanted to check in” 👉 “When can I expect an update?”
- “Hopefully that makes sense” 👉 “Let me know if you have any questions”
- “Sorry for the delay” 👉 “Thank you for your patience”
- “I think we should do it this way” 👉 “It’d be best if we do it this way”
- “I have to workout” 👉 “I get/choose to work out”
✅ In Summary
- Realize that words shape our beliefs and impact our actions.
- Take conscious action in your word choice.
- Use words that will empower you and make it a habit.
Words for the thread on which we string our experiences. — Aldous Huxley
