The #1 question we all need to answer before we make a life change.
Our society reveres progress and achievement. It is almost expected that all people strive for better…a better job, better home, better car, better vacations, better health, better body, and just a better life in general. Social media helps to amplify our cravings for “betterment” as we are inundated with images of what BETTER looks like. I am all for striving for better,but I’ve been on this journey of betterment my entire life and I’ve learned BETTER, in one aspect DOES NOT equate to better in all aspects. I call it the net balancing effect but physicists out there my call it Newtons Third Law.
“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”
Essentially, the universe strives to be in balance and so for all the positive forces out there, there are just as many opposite forces. So what does this have to due with “betterment.” For me it has meant for every step forward, every achievement, and every inch of growth, whatever you want to call it, comes with new challenges or problems.
“More money, more problems.”
This is often a foreign concept for many on the journey for excellence. In my early years, I completely ignored the notion that achieving a goal or manifesting my wildest dreams would be accompanied with a new set of challenges or problems. I would simply daydream, visualize, plot and plan for “better” assuming that my next goal would inherently be problem free. Then I would focus, buckle down, sacrifice, and work hard to reach my goal. Unfortunately, when I reached the “promise land” my joy was short-lived because I was practically blindsided by all the new types of problems I had to face. This would lead me to think that there must be something better out there for me. I would set a new goal and once again begin pursuing a state at which I was problem free. As if such a thing exists.
I was on this cycle well into my early 30’s. I accomplished a lot but I also had more stress and strain that I thought was necessary. I thought I must be doing something wrong. I felt like I, at 30 something years old, still needed to FIND MYSELF. Finally, I had the life changing epiphany. I was talking with a friend who was lamenting about the struggles she’d encountered in pursuit of living on purpose, in truth, and in alignment with universe which had guided her to start a business. She was not satisfied with her progress and just felt like she needed better. I, however, saw things differently. I saw her situation as amazing and inspiring. She had totally manifested her dream in a matter of months. I saw her as heroine, who was living on purpose by sharing her gifts on her own terms. After listening to her talk through all her challenges, I said to her with a slightly annoyed tone…
“These all sound like nice problems to have, so tell me what problems do you want because there are always going to be problems.”
As the words spilled from my mouth, I had an ironic aha moment. I admired this woman for her courage and resilience in pursuing her passion. She was “living her best life” but she didn’t seem to realize nor enjoy it. The problems she faced I was very familiar with as a former business owner myself. They were par for the course. They were the types of problems you get to solve when you decide to be an entrepreneur. My friend laughed and agreed that I was on to something. I told her that I wanted her to enjoy her success and revel in the fact that she had manifested her dream. After our conversation, I knew that I too needed to reflect and answer that very question myself…
What problems do I want to solve?
This is the question that we all need to ask ourselves before we make a life change. Every life change comes with a new set of problems. The good news is solving problems is an important part of the human experience. What else is there to do from the time we are born but solve problems? In its simplest form, life is about solving the problem of survival. I’ve found that looking at life as a bunch of problems to solve allows me to embrace change and experience the joy of being a PROBLEM SOLVER. Many, if not all of the history-makers were problem solvers. They were inventors, politicians, activists, artists, authors, and so on working to solve the problems of their generations in unique and interesting ways. The good news is we are all equipped with the ability to solve problems. So with that I want to challenge you to consider your life and your the next goal you pursue as an opportunity to solve new problems. What problems do YOU want to solve?
Put This Startegy Into Practice
Think about one of the goals you want to achieve in the next year.
- What problems or types of problems will you need to solve while working to achieve that goal?
- What problems or types of problems you will have to solve once you actually achieve that goal?
- Talk with 2-3 people who have achieved a similar goal to find out what problems they solved and better yet how they solved them.
- Then ask yourself, are these problems you want to solve? Will these problems make you want to jump out of bed in the morning or make you want to run for the hills? Will they keep you awake at night or will you sleep better knowing that YOU are responsible for the solution? If you realize that your goal comes with problems you’re not passionate about solving, that’s great! Save yourself the misery and find some other problems you can be passionate about solving!!
I hope this post has helped someone who has been facing a problem with keeping a positive perspective and finding peace in their struggle. I hope that approaching life as a PROBLEM SOLVER will bring this person the same peace, clarity, and joy it has for me.