17 Dec 2025 · 0 min
Brian Johnson explains how swapping "should" for "could" shifts you from self-criticism to possibility. "I should have gone" becomes "I could have gone." Try noticing the difference in how it feels.
You're listening to Optimize with Bryan Johnson More Wisdom in Less Time this is a mini chapter from Brian's book A Philosopher's Notes. You can find it on Amazon.
Shoulds to Coulds Speaking of shoulding on yourself, Luis, founder of Hay House hey has a great idea here as well. She tells us to pay attention to how often we're dropping the should bomb and see if we can swap out those stinky shoulds with a more empowering could. She doesn't quite put it that way, but you get the idea. So feel into this. If I say I should have gone to that party or I shouldn't have said that, there's a much more disempowering energy to it than if I swapped out that should with a could. Like so I could have gone to that party and I could have chosen not to say that. Can you feel the difference there? It's subtle but strong. The should implies you're basically an idiot and you totally screwed up, while the could carries a much more empowered well, yeah, I could have done it differently. Maybe next time I will. Mojo, yeah. So if you're excessively shoulding, you might want to try out the should to could swapping game. It's fascinating to see how often the shoulds come out, and a lot of fun to see how easy it is to slide into a more empowered perspective.
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