11 Keys to Great Success in Life and Business: Key 6: ‘Can’t’ Is a Four-letter Word

Most of us learned the four-letter words we shouldn’t say when we were in school. We heard the words in school. We learned that we shouldn’t say those words when we repeated them in front of our parents.

But there’s a really damaging four-letter word that most parents never warned us about—“can’t.”

I have raised 10 children. They all know I can tolerate a bit more of the typical four-letter words than my wife. She has zero tolerance for those traditionally unacceptable four-letter words.

I have zero tolerance for the four-letter word “can’t.” And so should you.

“Can’t” can limit your success. “Can’t” can limit your future. “Can’t” can limit your life.

Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re right.”

Let me encourage you to go through life like “The Little Engine That Could.” It’s one of my favorite children’s books.

It’s the story of a small railroad engine that agreed to take a long train of freight cars over a hill after some larger engines said, “I can’t.”

So the small engine climbed that hill, pulling all those freight cars, repeating to itself, “I think I can ... I think I can ...” Once it successfully climbed the hill, it congratulated itself on the way down saying, “I thought I could ... I thought I could.”

The world is full of people who think they can’t and hope you can’t either.

Like the actress Audrey Hepburn said, “Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m possible.’”