12/05/2026
THIS IS GOING TO BE HARD
My son said this the other day. He wasn't complaining. He was excited.
And I felt it immediately - that internal response.
Because to me, "hard" means struggle. Resistance. Something to overcome.
But to him? "Hard" means fun. Growth. Something worth doing.
Same word. Completely different meaning.
I almost corrected him. "Don't say it's hard. Say it's a challenge."
But then I stopped.
His map works for him. He's not creating limitation—he's creating excitement.
The relationship is more important than being right.
This is what I see all the time.
Someone uses a word.
We react to OUR meaning of that word. Not theirs.
And suddenly we're in conflict - trying to fix something that isn't broken.
The question isn't "What does that word mean?"
The question is: "What does that word mean to THEM?"
What words do you react to - that might mean something completely different to the person saying them?
Drop a comment. I'd love to hear- and will respond to all of them, personally.