It's All About

Do you struggle to resolve problems? Or find yourself in a situation that you can see no way out of? You don't know where to start, or who to ask, and the more you think about that problem, the worse it seems to get...

You may think through it over and over again, but you can still see no light at the end of the tunnel. You feel pressured, frustrated and stressed, which makes it worse, until you feel as if you're just banging your head against a wall... getting nowhere!

Don't worry, there may be a way through this...

You might just need a different approach, such as some "lateral" thinking, or "thinking out-of-the-box" techniques... which may throw up a broader range of potential solutions.

The thing with "unsolvable" solutions, is that they are very, very, rare... It is only because of our "conditioning" from prior education (or lack of it) that restricts many people to the narrow focus of only spotting obvious routes to problem solving, without consciously opening their minds to other possibilities.

So, if we can look at a problem with an open mind, being receptive to "out of the ordinary" solutions, things can start to look a little more optimistic.

First of all, we need to identify the problem... Now, you are probably thinking that you know what your's is, because it's obvious, maybe you can see it! But... I'm talking about our "perception" of a problem. As a very simplistic example... If you asked someone standing in the rain "what's the problem?" They would probably answer "I'm getting wet", but that's NOT the problem...the real problems are being "uncovered", "outside, and "it's raining", getting wet is the "result". Resolve any one of those problems, and you change the result!

It may help to write a problem down, then look at contributing factors... and write those down. That will give you a bigger list, but possibly much smaller problems, which will enable you to spot alternate routes to resolving your main problem. So, see if the contributing factors are easier to resolve individually, than together as a whole... If you still can't find an adequate solution, look at ways to minimise their impact on you, such as financial cost, time, or other personal difficulties.

Write down your remaining issues... and next to each one, write down the impact it will have on you if unresolved. Hopefully that is now a VERY small list! Now, take a fresh look at the page... Is there anything there that you can't work around? or maybe improvise a temporary solution until you are better placed to resolve permanently? Unlikely...

Remember to break down any given problems into smaller parts, and take note of how each of those smaller parts relate to each other, and the "main" problem. Cross out the smaller problems as you go, and then see if your main problem is still relevant. It may not be...

Also, you need to understand a problem... If it involves a subject that you know little about, find out! Information is available everywhere, especially easily accessible on the Internet. Do your research... you may find a solution within minutes!

Don't forget or be afraid to be a little "creative", there is often "more than one way to skin a cat" (not that I've ever tried any of them, I like cats!). There is nothing wrong with putting these seemingly "strange" ideas on the back-burner for further appraisal... funnily enough these "odd" ideas frequently lead to a solution.

There is also nothing wrong with seeking advice... It doesn't mean you have to follow it if you don't agree. Hearing someone else's view of a problem may open your mind to possibilities that hadn't occurred to you previously... And a whole new set of potential solutions!

It may seem a lot to "get your head around" at first, but don't panic, stay calm, look at all the issues as described above, and take it one step at a time... Concentrate on the issues that YOU can deal with quickly, then take a step back and look again at the problem. It will become second nature to you with practice, I promise you.