Rant: I started talking to my plants like they were coworkers and it fixed my watering schedule

For months, I kept killing a peace lily in my home office. I'd either drown it or forget it existed. After the third one started to droop, I got desperate. I read some old gardening forum post from 2009 that said to treat your plants like lazy employees who need a daily check-in. So, every morning when I sat down, I'd look at the lily and say something out loud like 'Alright, Frank, looking a bit pale. Need a drink?' or 'No, Frank, you had water yesterday, you're fine.' It felt completely stupid, but forcing myself to address it verbally every single day made me actually see its condition. I stopped guessing and started observing. The lily perked up in about two weeks and has survived for six months now. Has anyone else tried a totally silly mental trick that somehow worked?

3 comments

3 Comments

michaeld4810d ago

That "forcing myself to address it verbally" thing is key. It's like giving your brain a physical task to lock in a habit.

linda11410d ago

My kitchen is full of sticky notes because I have to say things out loud to remember them. I once told my coffee maker "good morning" for a week straight just to build the habit of starting it, so I get what michaeld48 means about the physical task. It feels silly, but my brain needs that extra step to make things stick. Honestly, half my day is just narrating my own life to trick myself into being a functional adult.

vera_johnson910d ago

Talking to my own plants felt silly too, but it really did make me notice them. My fern needed that daily chat just to remind me it was even there. That small habit stopped me from overthinking and just helped me look.