Dealing With Problems

“Your problem isn’t the problem. Your reaction is the problem” is a quote by an anonymous author. After reading this quote, my first thought was - what? If I have a problem then it’s a problem. But on further examination and considerable thought I realized this quote is trying to tell me that how I respond or react to my problem is more important than the actual problem. 

If I am confronted by a complication or difficulty how I deal with the situation determines if I am stopped in my tracks or merely presented with a bump in the road. As I have told my children on numerous occasions, step back and survey the situation before you go ballistic. Whatever is the current issue will you even remember it in a week, month, or year? Typically, I have found that stepping back and actually looking at the problem in many cases is half the battle towards solving the complication.  

Rather than reacting immediately to what you might currently view as a problem, step back and look at the entire situation. Taking this action will help you determine how best to handle the dilemma.  Stepping back or counting to ten before reacting will allow you to proceed to work to eliminate or solve whatever issue is causing concern. Many times looking at a problem from various angles will allow you to see different solutions to the same problem. If this is the case, then you just have to determine which solution is the best for what you would like to accomplish. 

Do not allow what potentially is only a bump in your road to escalate into something which will stop you in your tracks. By taking the time to react to your problem with a positive attitude and careful consideration should allow you to reduce many major detours into minor bumps in your path. This thought corresponds to the saying “Do not make a mountain out of a mole hill”. Take the time to analyze what you consider to be your problem before you instantly react and end up with a mountain stopping you in your tracks rather than just a mole hill which you should easily be able to step over as you continue on your way.

  Submitted by Kathy Shrader