When faced with the title sentence, which word do you normally use:

  1. Like
  2. Love
  3. Am indifferent to
  4. Hate

Seriously, think about how often you phrase something like this, how often you make a bold declarative statement, and if you use of the above words more than the others.

Are you thinking?

Let’s start with like.  I know we all “like” things.  I expect a bunch of you to “like” this post…we write so that others read our words, and get some sort of feeling about what we have written.  But I don’t mean social media likes.  I mean, how often do you utter the words “I like _________”?

I’m going to give you some examples:

I like using cloth napkins when I’m eating.  I think they cover my lap better, are softer when I wipe my mouth, and are better for the environment because I don’t throw them away.  I like cloth napkins.

Love.  How often do you use the word love in a day?  5 times?  50 times?  None?  I tell my daughter that I love her every morning when she walks out the door.  I love hot tea with milk and sugar.  Count your loves.

Am Indifferent to.  I rarely use these exact words on a daily basis, but there are things I have absolutely no opinion on.  Coke or pepsi?  Doesn’t matter.  Are there things around you that you don’t care enough about to form an opinion?

Hate.  How often do you use the word hate?  I hated that book.  I hate that movie.  I hate _______.  Seriously, how often do you use the word, or think the word every day?  How many things do you feel so strongly about that you use the word hate?

Take five minutes.  Tabulate your results.

How many times did you use each word?  Is there anything that stands out?  Have you used one word more than another?  Does anyone have Hate leading the pack?

We all hate things.  We all are allowed to hate things.  I hate anchovies- really can’t stand them. And that’s fine.  Hating something is fine.

But do you hate more than you love, like or are indifferent to?

Now, before you get crazy, I’m not advocating becoming “Susie Sunshine”, or “Polyanna”.  I’m not handing out rose colored glasses, or handing anyone a bucket of sand.  I just want you to think about what words are filling your thoughts, dreams, prayers and your time.  I want you to think about what words are making up your life.  If the majority of your words are words of hate, how do you think you are going to feel inside?

Try to have a balance of those four basic ideas as you are going about your day.  If you find yourself constantly repeating the same thought, try thinking again.  If you write a post about something that makes you mad, or that you hate, try to balance out the next post by writing about something you like.  Or, as a spin, write about how to fix the problem of the thing you hate or that makes you mad.  There are negative things in life: how do you make them into a positive.

Are we clear on this weeks homework?  First, we analyze how often we use these words.  Then we figure out how to balance our thoughts out.  I’m not aiming for positivity awards:  the goal is balance.

Whop wants to win the first “Balanced Thought Award”? (don’t get too excited- I don’t create memes…)

 

 

 

40 thoughts on “I ______________ That”

  1. Balance has actually been a theme of mine I’ve been working towards in my life, especially recently. I have found I am at times too critical of my own work and much too harsh on myself. It’s hard to be impartial on one’s self (at least for me). You’ve given good advice and I look forward to noticing my own patterns today. Have a great rest of your day! ~Kelsey

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  2. I hate this weather. 😛

    I think it depends on the week. There are weeks when definitely hate trumps much of my day (trivial, stupid things). But we use love too, especially toward the kids.

    This is a good reminder to consciously speak the words you say, especially the positive ones, rather than just hurl them out randomly without thinking.

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  4. I think my hates, loves and likes are pretty balanced. However my indifferent’ s far out weight them, although I tend to say I don’t care either way.

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  7. I have to confess that I use the word “hate” the most. I have to remind myself that God wants us to love and not hate. I always ask God for forgiveness when I use this word. Especially when it is directed towards my husband.
    This was a very good post!

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  9. People (like me) love to criticize The Power of Positive Thinking. They hate to think it might actually work; think they are indifferent to negative thoughts and stimuli in life. Positivity works, though. I guess we just need to find an honest positive to avoid feeling Pollyanna-ish.

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  10. Interesting topic.

    “Love” and “hate” smack of hyperbole and not thinking things through, so avoid whenever possible. (Am wary of others using them too.)

    “Indifferent” sounds like there’s a lack of information.

    “Like/dislike” are reasonable (degrees) of “approval/disapproval” and good first approx of opinion. If possible always qualify and nuance.

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  11. Context always matters. I will always prefer more summer weather than winter for example.
    Balance is not always what I seek.
    The attitude I encourage is thankfulness. It seems to keep life in perspective. Life doesn’t have to be all green lights sometimes I can still relax and not be annoyed with red lights.
    Always there seems to be something to be grateful for.

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  12. I’m actually indifferent to a lot. My recovery forces me to be that way about lots of things, because I can work myself into a very unhealthy state if I allow myself to stew in strong emotions like love and hate. I also realized that a lot of the stuff I used to feel strong emotions over? Had not one thing to do with me, it wasn’t my turd to deal with.

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  14. It takes too much energy to hate. Put it to better use by learning something new or exploring a new hobby or gaining new information. Knowledge is power. Find out as much as you can about what you hate and you will conquer.

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    1. I think it becomes really easy to overuse words without thinking of their significance or impact. We hav3 so many ways to communicate our thoughts, I just think w3 have to think more and speak less, or at least speak with intent

      Like

      Reply

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