While it is good to try things like a new restaurant, a new hobby, or finding new friends, it makes no sense to try harder.
To begin with, telling anyone, "I will try harder," is incredibly insulting. It implies you have little respect for the situation or person you supposedly offered to help. It also conveys your uncomfortableness with the conversation and that you probably have no intention of changing your behaviors or approach. Stress builds when we have to talk about our mistakes or failures but responding with "I will try harder" may only make things worse.
Life and recovery are about doing what is necessary to build a life we love. When we get involved with new jobs, relationships, and recovery, we are bound to encounter difficulty, which stops any positive momentum we have established. The reality is, we get stopped more times than not because the task or situation requires a different approach, not necessarily more effort.
The power of recovery is that it teaches us more than how to achieve sobriety; it teaches us how to look for opportunities in every difficulty. The principles of recovery require us to replace our ego and biases with honesty, willingness, and acceptance. These traits are what allow us to navigate the physical and emotional challenges we face on our journey. While 100% effort is a must in everything we do, it cannot get us to where we want to go by itself. To beat our addiction and the challenges of life, we must remove hazardous beliefs and sometimes alter our approach; otherwise, the result of our actions, regardless of the intensity of our effort, will remain the same.
As we have experienced over the past year and a half, the world is complex and constantly changing; if we do not learn from our experiences and adapt to situations, we will fail to evolve. As our lives advance in unison with our recovery, we are bound to make mistakes and bad choices. However, if we take the time to understand the "why" behind these mistakes and choices, we can formulate innovative solutions by adjusting our thinking, decisions, and behaviors. The result will be more predictable outcomes and less need to say, "I will try harder."
FOR CONSIDERATION: It might be beneficial to take a different approach the next time the urge to say "I will try harder" appears. Your audience may react more favorably to you if there is acceptance of the outcome without blame or excuse followed by a synopsis of "why" things went wrong. Then use the "why" as your source in outlining the changes you plan to make. In addition to creating better outcomes, this approach will build more trust among those you are working with.
ABOUT CHOICE RECOVERY
AHCCCS Insurance for addiction treatment is acceptable by Choice Recovery. We offer intensive outpatient services for anyone struggling with addiction. Our program includes morning and evening IOP as well as telehealth IOP. Individuals enrolled in the our IOP program are offered individual counseling and other supportive services.
Serving the East Valley, Choice Recovery is located in Downtown Mesa two blocks from light rail. We accept most AHCCCS insurance plans including Mercy Care, United Healthcare, Banner University, and AZ Complete. For couples, Choice Recovery offers a Couples Workshop and we have an MAT Support group for those strengthening their recovery through MAT services.
For more information please call us at 480-527-0337 or email us at admin@choiceiop.com Build a life you love through an integrated evidence-based substance abuse program.