"I'm trying to" plus a verb says what you are making an effort to do, and quietly admits it is not finished. "I'm trying to lose weight" means the weight is still there. "I'm trying to reach Sofia" means she has not picked up. The pattern is honest without being negative, which is why people use it so much.
It also softens a request or a complaint. "I'm trying to work" said to a noisy roommate is far gentler than "Be quiet", and it gets the same result.
Say it out loud
Tap a sentence to hear it. Say it after the voice.
The negative goes after "trying": trying not to, never "not trying to" (which means something else).
Check yourself
Practice · 3 min
Say what you are working on. Prompt on the left, one natural sentence on the right.
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Say it today
Use it once in a real conversation before tomorrow. Out loud counts, even to yourself.