I immediately recalled a conversation we’ve had with our kids
and their Target teachers (Target is the gifted program in
Georgia). In the Target classrooms, the students are not
permitted to say something is “hard”; they say that it’s
“challenging”. This struck me as a bit revolutionary in the use
of those two words. Many of use them interchangeably, but should
we? Definitions (limited to those that pertain to this
conversation): 1. difficult to do or accomplish; fatiguing;
troublesome: a hard task. 2. difficult to deal with, manage,
control, overcome, or understand: a hard problem. 1. offering a
challenge; testing one's ability, endurance, etc: a challenging
course; a challenging game. 2. stimulating, interesting, and
thought-provoking: a challenging suggestion. 3. provocative;
intriguing: a challenging smile. Read them again. I find the
subtle differences fascinating. My “work” is incredibly
challenging, but is it hard? I love that I get to test my
abilities everyday. My work is stimulating, thought-provoki