I should call that person. I should do the washing. I should do more. Sound familiar? In this She Short, Rachel Russell of Quiet Frankly Coaching zooms in on a word most of us use without thinking — and shows how it quietly drains our energy and makes us feel wrong for simply being where we are. Her solution is disarmingly small: change the first two letters. Swap should for could, and suddenly you’re not failing at a list of obligations — you’re a person with choices. It’s one of the fastest shifts Rachel knows, and it gives you something back that’s easy to lose sight of: your own empowerment.

In This Short

Rachel explores:

•       Why should equals wrong — and how a word we barely notice can leave us feeling heavy, obligated, and like we’re never quite enough

•       The power of changing just two letters: from should to could — and how that instantly returns a sense of choice and lightness

•       How could opens the door to negotiation with yourself — I could do that, but I’ll do it later — rather than the silent verdict of I’m wrong because I haven’t

Quotable Moment

“It’s just giving you your empowerment back and it’s giving you your choice back, and that is going to make you feel heaps better.” — Rachel Russell

Something to Try

Pay attention to how often should appears in your thinking today. You might be surprised. Each time you catch it, try the swap: I could do that. Then notice what follows. Maybe you still choose to do it — but now it’s a choice, not an obligation. Or maybe you give yourself permission to do it later, or not at all. Either way, you’ve moved from being wrong to being in charge. That’s no small thing.