Solutions Exist (Audio)
If there is anything I can say about myself, I’m always willing to learn something new. Show me an old problem with old solutions and I believe that, given time, new solutions exist. Often solutions to life’s issues are discovered by utilizing our own experiences to find the answer. The less exposure we have to a wide range of experiences, the narrower our possibilities exist to finding a new solution.
The less access to new knowledge often means
the solutions that do exist are unknown
and we turn only to the old way of looking at life.
This is applicable on so many levels – whether it is dealing with a car accident or a rebellious teenager, or even attempting to determine which way to vote on a contentious issue. Narrowed experiences often produce narrowed solutions. This is not always bad, but it does place limits on our possible results. You know,
If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten. Click To Tweet
If no wider range of experiences is sought after, then the narrowed answers you’ve always used will be the only solutions you’ll always have.
We know the old wisdom of saying, “Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes.” This speaks to the empathy we have for another. Before we judge their results or direction, we must consider what it is like to walk their path in their shoes. At the same time, we understand that repeating the same old steps and expecting different results is a common definition of insanity.
Sometimes you have to look at all sides of a situation and view the potential solution from a different angle!
I teach there are 40 sides to every story – one for every generational year we experience. Shades of this viewpoint, shades of that viewpoint. Somewhere in the middle of everyone’s viewpoint is a solution that can be accepted by everyone concerned. Except by the extremist, perhaps.
Additionally, the first possible solution is not always the correct choice, nor the second, nor even the last. A solution may require a balanced approach of accepting something less than perfect or a negotiated option that means sacrificing a perfect answer for something less than perfect.
Centuries after the death of William of Ockham in 1347, the term Occam’s Razor showed up in 1852 in a writing of Sir William Hamilton. The original Ockham was an English Franciscan friar and scholastic philosopher and theologian. One of his major thrust was the concept that “…among competing hypotheses, the one with the fewest assumptions should be selected…“. More simply stated we hear it as:
All things being equal, the one with the simplest solution is probably the best.
Roving through potential solutions often means we need to be exposed to many different possible answers, and those possibilities often come from a wide-ranging viewpoint. And that often comes from varied exposures to other viewpoints that we need to be willing to consider.
Sometimes, in my role as a peacemaker (not the Colt .45 version!), my job is to not to “have” the solution but to help others explore their options. Since you have to live with the choices you make, it is often better to be the one to make the choice you are willing to take ownership of.
The one thing I note, sometimes the number of possibilities are huge. You need to have some parameters to whittle down the number to a manageable few. Part of the solution is knowing the options of what may or may not work.
For example, one solution may require spending a lot of money – but your financial picture may not allow for this. So, you narrow your parameters down to something requiring fewer funds. Or, maybe it requires relocating and the options right now are not conducive to that.
Another way of handling potential solutions is to make a list of Pro and Con’s – For and Against. I cannot tell you how many solutions I have arrived at by a simple “T” chart.
Weighing out one over the other can either make the picture of possibilities clearer, or it can narrow your focus on the being ready and able to make the correct choice.
From one perspective, a solution may be a “Pro” today, and a “Con” tomorrow. You must look hard at the end result to determine which side of the “T” the entry should be on.
With every challenge you face, you may have many “T” charts, and a wide range of experiences to chose from, but there will often be a narrowed focus on which one will rise to the top that will be the choicest of answers.
Now… “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” If you are satisfied that the answer will meet the challenge of the solution required – then grab it and go on for the remainder of your life!
“The risk of a wrong decision is preferable to the terror of indecision.” ~Maimonides
Paralysis of Analysis!
Taking ownership of the solution is really the key to your success! Considering all the options shows deep intelligence!