Forms of rhetoric: use language to set yourself up for success

How we word things can change our perception of them considerably. When we use terms such as struggle and difficult, we are more likely to set ourselves up for failure than if we use terms such as challenge and overcome. Those are success words.

That’s why, now that I am embarking on a six-month raw vegan diet, I am referring to it as an adventure over anything else. Adventure has so many exciting, interesting, positive connotations. In the past I’ve used the word challenge when referring to my new fitness/nutrition regimes, and I think that it is a fairly positive term too. However, I don’t want to feel as though I’m battling myself for an entire summer. I feel that having an adventure will be a better way to keep myself motivated and to inspire myself to keep going with the raw food.

I’m also using phrases like “going vegan” rather than “avoiding animal products” and “eating raw food” rather than “eliminating cooked food.” Rather than focusing on what I’m restricting, I want to focus on the deliciousness that I will be having.

How do you use language to set yourself up for success?