“I GET TO” versus “I HAVE TO.”
Reframing these words has the ability to change your mindset.
“It’s Monday and I HAVE TO go to work today.” This feels heavy and dreadful which makes me want to avoid it even more.
“I HAVE TO go to a lot of meetings today.” There is powerlessness and agitation in this way of thinking which will make me far less productive in the meetings.
I want to encourage you to replace HAVE TO with GET TO.
I GET TO go to work today and make a difference in people’s lives. I GET the opportunity to learn new skills in this all-day training.
How many things did you want and choose that you now think of as an obligation? How many things really are obligations that you could re-frame as “I get to…?”
Unfortunately, there’s no magic switch you can flip in your brain that suddenly makes you see all your challenges or tasks in a better light. You won’t necessarily say with excitement, “Great! I get to deal with my depression again today” or “Yay! I get to be a divorced single parent.
However, if you want to shift your perspective, you’ll have to take the time to dig deep and retrain your brain. We can choose how we view our life and what happens in it. It may mean it’s time for you to make some bigger changes. It’s not about what we have to do. It’s about what we get to do.
We act as if we don’t have a choice, but we do get to choose our thoughts, attitudes and actions.
What do you GET TO do today?
Carrie
