The ability to turn problems into opportunities is one of the most important that you can train and, also, one of the ones that will help you grow in the personal and professional levels of your life.
Think about it for a moment. It is inevitable to encounter obstacles from time to time in almost all areas of life (at work, family, partner, friends …), so it could be said that almost the only decision we can make about this is how to deal with them .
Yes, there may be privileged people, although there will undoubtedly be very few of them, who will be lucky and live all their natural life without encountering any noteworthy difficulty. Does such a life seem desirable? From the outset it might seem so, but … as they say, everything that glitters is not gold.
Things are not so simple: a simpler life is very comfortable, no doubt, but it also deprives you of opportunities to learn, to harden yourself, to grow as a person and face the next challenge with greater force, with better vital “weapons” . A simple life, in short, often breeds unprepared people.
If you are like most people, you will probably encounter conflicts and problems in your day to day. And this brings me to what I said above: almost the only decision you can make is how to deal with them. How you do it, from the solutions you find, it will depend that this problem ends up becoming an opportunity. In something that, in short, will make you stronger.
So, how to transform a problem into an opportunity? It will not surprise you to know that there are no infallible formulas -there are none at all in life, I am afraid-, but there are several fundamental principles that will help you to take into account. For example:
- Do not avoid the problem. Nothing to postpone, look the other way, find shortcuts, alternatives … the first, the most basic, is to accept and take the bull by the horns. Be patient, be courageous and think that a problem can actually be seen as a challenge, as a way to prove yourself. It is not something unresolvable, it is a test, perhaps very hard, that will make you better and from which you will be victorious. Turning problems into opportunities implies, first of all, looking at them head on.
- Isolate, relax and reflect. Put distance and observe the problematic situation from outside. Imagine what was happening to someone else and try to reflect objectively on what you would advise. Use a notebook, make sketches, drawings … whatever you need.
- Lean on the experience of others. It’s your challenge, but nobody says you should solve it by yourself. Even if you do not want to ask for help, you can look for information in books or on the Internet about how other people have faced similar situations. Think of celebrities or people who are a reference for you.
Transforming problems into opportunities is not always easy, I know. But, as I was saying, it is one of the most important skills you can train in life. It is an attitude, a matter of breaking down mental barriers and adopting a new way of facing challenges. It’s worth it, do not you think?
