[This is one of a series of 30-Day Experiments to do this year instead of New Year’s resolutions.]
Whether you’re after internal change or external change in your life, you’re bound to run into problems and challenges. That’s just the way of the world works, it seems. And what you do with them makes all the difference.
When we run into problems, it can be tempting to let them define the path, to see them as insurmountable obstacles rather than just something to be navigated around. When that happens over and over, we can become obstacle-driven, not only quick to notice obstacles, but also quick to see them as impenetrable barriers.
To counter that, challenge yourself to become a solutionist. It’s a way of training yourself to automatically go into solution mode when you see obstacles. In this experiment, you’ll be using the obstacles you encounter as a solution gym, building mental muscle memory that makes it easy to go into solution mode when you find the path blocked.
Your 30-Day Experiment: Overwhelm your obstacles with solutions.
How do you become a solutionist? The simple answer is this: Overwhelm your problems with solutions. A great place to start is to aim for a 5-to-1 ratio. For every obstacle you identify, challenge yourself to come up with five solutions. Even more, if you can.
They don’t need to be great solutions. They don’t even need to be readily implementable. In fact, if you’re really letting the creativity fly, a good chunk of them probably won’t be. The key is to get your brainstream flowing in the direction of creating solutions.
Over time, the ideas will flow more naturally. And presto! You’re on your way to becoming a solutionist!
Solutions by themselves don’t count for much, of course, unless they’re implemented. So to keep this from becoming an arbitrary exercise with little to no real world impact on your life, aim to implement at least one solution a week. More if possible.
–
Join the Ripple Revolution TM
- Subscribe to this RSS feed.
- Sign up for the Ripple Revolution e-mail newsletter.
Brought to you by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst TM
Time for a career change? Start with The Occupational Adventure Guide