Lest my last entry be construed to mean that life isn’t that great and that that is the reason why I look for little things to appreciate… I will say that such is not the case. Life is amazing. Today I share a nugget of wisdom. I’ve heard it said many ways:
“When a problem arises, go within. Get very quiet about it. Use it to learn something.” –Dr. Wayne Dyer
The key to that idea is perspective.
“The problem is never the problem. Most often, the problem is that people don’t even know how to think about the problem.”
–Dan Sullivan, Strategic Coach
Along those lines, recall a recent conference talk:
“Some grow bitter or anxious when it seems that not enough attention is being paid to them, when their lives would be so enriched if only they paid more attention to the needs of others.
“The answer lies in helping to solve the problems of those around us rather than worrying about our own, living to lift burdens even when we ourselves feel weighed down, putting our shoulder to the wheel instead of complaining that the wagons of life seem to be passing us by.
“Stretching our souls in service helps us to rise above our cares, concerns, and challenges. As we focus our energies on lifting the burdens of others, something miraculous happens. Our own burdens diminish. We become happier. There is more substance to our lives.” –Elder David S. Baxter, October 2006 General Conference
I’ve found this to be true. As I shift my attention and energy to helping others, my problems or challenges seem to diminish or are overcome.
Comments
3 responses to “Problems.”
As much as I liked the old ranting Sloanie, I learn a lot from your insightful posts, too. Thanks for the thought today, man.
maybe i don’t understand the context of the first quote. if we become quiet and turn inward, there seems little chance that we will be aware of what is going on around us. in fact, i think that turning inward when we face problems is a good way of fostering depression.
of course, i feel like the quote probably means to ponder your problems and work them out in your mind in order to learn from them. and i definitely agree with that.
i firmly believe that helping others is the best way to overcome our own problems. but we should also make ourselves and our problems available to those who want to help us, even though it hurts our pride sometimes. so, talking to friends and family can be a good companion to going within and being very quiet about it.
Josh –
Yeah. I think the first quote is in reference to meditation and approaching the problem from a spiritual / Godly perspective. Remember the world would try to solve our problems from the outside in, while God works from the inside out. With that context, the quote makes more sense, no? You could consider getting quiet the part where you silence all the other voices of the world to listen to that still small voice. Just stop and listen to how loud your mind is sometime, hehe. It’s always going. You’re right though– depending on your attitude, going inward could be a negative thing if it means withdrawing and simply feeling bad about the problem rather than approaching it from an optimistic perspective.
I think that’s a great point about being humble enough to share your burdens with others. I think there’s a difference, and it’s important to distinguish that difference, between spreading negativity and complaining about your problems (those type of people are really draining to be around), and being honest and open to help– not pretending you have no problems or even trying to fool yourself into believing you have problem.
Heebs-
If it was at all useful then I’m glad. I’d love to hear more about what the Dalai Lama had to say sometime! 🙂