Be Better

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”

As a child you probably used this phrase over and over again.  The meaning behind this saying is that words don’t hurt.  The truth is that words only hurt if you allow them to hurt.  I have said it before and I’ll say it many more times.  You are in charge of your own feelings.  Nobody else can hurt you because hurt is a feeling and you get to decide how you feel.

I used to be skeptical about this.  My argument was that if words don’t hurt, why do people get upset when someone tells them they’re fat or smelly or short or tall or whatever word upsets them?  The real answer is that they are upset because those words trigger how they feel or a fear they have.  But the word itself cannot hurt you because it’s only a word.

With that being said, it’s not okay to say words you know will trigger certain reactions from people.  When you use those trigger words, it’s usually to be mean and mean is not a good look for you. 

Instead of tearing someone down, why not try to build them up?  It takes the same amount of energy and will make you feel good in the long run.