Be A Catalyst Of Can-Do

If you think you can’t then you probably won’t.

Can’t is a contraction of cannot.

It’s also a contraction of you. It makes you smaller.

Can’t gets in your head and creates barriers, fences, obstacles and anything it can lay its hands on. It diminishes you by shrinking your ambitions.

Those four letters and that damn apostrophe will hold you back….if you let them.

Seriously, who is going to be bossed around by a few letters and a lousy piece of punctuation?

You can do better than that.

I reckon that can’t is, 99% of the time, an attitude issue.

I like the following poem that illustrates this point.

It’s called ‘Thinking’ and it’s penned by Walter D. Wintle

“If you think you are beaten, you are
If you think you dare not, you don’t,
If you like to win, but you think you can’t
It is almost certain you won’t.

If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost
For out of the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will
It’s all in the state of mind.

If you think you are outclassed, you are
You’ve got to think high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.

Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man,
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!”

Do the Can-Can

You see can’t is an attitude problem. That sounds bad doesn’t it? But an attitude problem isn’t the same as having a bad attitude.

Can’t can be changed. This type of attitude can be worked on and deconstructed to create a healthy attitude of canned can.

To help us edit the word can’t we need catalysts of can-do to inspire us that indeed something is possible.

Walter D. Wintle was a catalyst of can-do. He got us to think. He encouraged us to change.

Catalysts of can-do are canny canners. They do rather than don’t. They will do rather than won’t.

And let us not forget that a canner can can anything that he can!

When you start saying yes you can, then you find that actually, yes you can!

Attitude is a dance and you can either choose to do the can-can or the can’t-can’t.

What can a ‘can-do’ mindset do?

• A canny catalyst of can-do does the can-can
• A canny catalyst of can-do is a can-doer through and through
• A canny catalyst of can-do embodies optimism, resilience, and persistence
• A canny catalyst of can-do believes that whatever needs to be done, can be done; and will be done

It might not always be duck soup or as simple as ABC, it might be DEF, JKL or G,M,Z….but it’s a can-do! It’s realizable!

Cancer is a can-do can too.

It might not seem it but it is.

I reached a stage once during chemo and radiotherapy where I said “I can’t do another cycle, I just can’t!”

But I did. I was on my knees but I did. I got rid of the apostrophe and the tiny letter ‘t’ and swigged from a can of can juice.

I did it because my can-do crept in quietly round the back, tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Just get on with it, you are nearly there. Just one more. You can do it!”

I did it. I activated the can-do and to my surprise, I didn’t put up a fight because I knew it had to be done.

I’m glad I did!

So can YOU!

You sure can-do!

Let someone remark that you are remarkable by adopting those 5 letters.

All it amounts to is getting those scissors out, reframing and making the 3 consonants and 2 vowels of ‘can-do’ part of your make-up and I know you can manage that!

My own reflections about can and can’t do relate mostly to medical challenges but of course they are applicable to any sort of challenge. An optimistic outlook can, and does, go a very long way.

No can do?

Don’t be daft. Self-confidence, poise, fortitude and willpower are called for and you have those in your backpack.

A canny catalyst of can-do would answer quite differently and say “Yes can do!”

Can do, will do, must do. Now get on with it!