Upset = Set Up

I love to play with words. Whenever I discover a new word, or contemplate an old one for a blog, I first head to the etymology of the word. I check the root which is often Latin and which I studied in high school. But sometimes I look at the word and break it apart and mix it up just to see what new meanings emerge.

Take the word “UPSET”. It’s really two words – UP and SET. Or if you mix it up, “SET UP”. And that’s usually why we are upset – we have been set up or have set ourselves up with an expectation, an assumption, a belief. Next time you are upset, ask yourself what you have set up for yourself or what you have allowed others to set up for you. You will probably find that it was all in your head and that the resolution to your upset is simply a matter of setting up your thoughts differently.