Boundaries

You cannot control what others do. You can request, suggest, hope, influence—but ultimately, their choices are theirs. This is obvious intellectually but difficult emotionally. We want people to behave the way we think they should, and we suffer when they do not.

Someone lies to you. Someone betrays your trust. Someone acts selfishly when you needed generosity. These hurt, and the hurt is real. But beneath the hurt often lies an unstated expectation: they should not have done that.

But should is a demand you cannot enforce. They did do it. The action is complete. Your choice now is not whether the action occurred—it is how you respond to it.

"Where are you expending energy trying to change someone who has clearly shown you who they are?"

First three words are free. No card required.