Have you ever had a time when you had absolutely NO problems? No challenges to be solved, no quandaries in search of solutions? And if you did, how long did it last?

You’ll never be free of problems! Accept it! BUT you can greatly REDUCE your problems both in volume and intensity. Start by asking yourself “Why is it a problem? And if it is a problem, why is it my problem?” If you wish to increase your peace of mind, you must understand what it is that is IN YOU that is engaging you, hooking your emotions, about a situation. All too often we overreact (I know I do!) and in doing so, risk becoming part of the problem or escalating the situation. As we grow in self-awareness, do the work of introspection and learn more about our triggers, our motivations, which are often driven by dysfunctional coping mechanisms from the past, operating below our levels of awareness, we are able to create space between stimulus and response and thus become much, much more effective.

Closing Quotes:

“Eventually you will see that the real cause of problems is not life itself. It’s the commotion the mind makes about life that really causes problems.” – Michael Singer, The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself

“We fail more often because we solve the wrong problem than because we get the wrong solution to the right problem.” – Russell L. Ackoff, 1919-2009, organizational theorist

“If you can solve your problem, then what is the need of worrying? If you cannot solve it, then what is the use of worrying?” – Shantideva, 685-763, circa, Indian Buddhist monk

As always, I share what I most want and need to learn. – Nathan S. Collier