The other side of that is that sometimes you just can't win, no matter what. You may end up wasting your life trying and trying anyway. Recognizing when to stop trying is just as important, I think.
It's like the fly who keeps buzzing at the window pane instead of giving up to fall six inches to the open windowsill.
What has worked for me is getting ahead of my brain and setting myself up for success before it gets there.
I’ve also completely given up on the idea of thinking before speaking. My solution for this is anticipating mistakes before I get into a conversation and not making the same mistake twice.
How is that not thinking before speaking?
It’s mental training done days or weeks before an event, not hours.
During conversations my short-term memory is frequently overloaded to the point I miss words people are saying. There is no room to actively remember what not to say.