Problem Solving

How many times have you caught yourself saying that there could be no other solution to a problem - and that the problem leads to a dead end? How many times have you felt stumped knowing that the problem laid before you is one you cannot solve. No leads. No options. No solutions.

Did it feel like you had exhausted all possible options and yet are still before the mountain - large, unconquerable, and impregnable? When encountering such enormous problems, you may feel like you’re hammering against a steel mountain. The pressure of having to solve such a problem may be overwhelming.

But rejoice! There might be some hope yet!

With some creative problem-solving techniques you may be able to look at your problem in a different light. And that light might just be the end of the tunnel that leads to possible solutions.

First of all, in the light of creative problem-solving, you must be open-minded to the fact that there may be more than just one solution to the problem. And, you must be open to the fact that there may be solutions to problems you thought were unsolvable.

Now, with this optimistic mindset, we can try to be a little bit more creative in solving our problems.

Creative thinking exercises can also help you in your quest to be a more creative problems solver.

Here is one example.

Take a piece of paper and write any word that comes to mind at the centre. Now look at that word then write the first two words that come to your mind. This can go on until you can build a tree of related words. This helps you build analogical skills, and fortify your creative processes.

So, next time you see a problem you think you can not solve, think again. The solution might just be staring you right in the face. All it takes is just a little creative thinking, some planning, and a whole lot of work.

Taking Steps To Achieving Success

Success is more than economic gains, titles, and degrees. Planning for success is about mapping out all the aspects of your life. To succeed you must do the following.

1. What Is Your Starting Point?

Every map has a starting point. Before you start your journey on the road to success, you first have to have some idea of how you’re getting there.

2. What Can You Do To Start?

It’s important that you know yourself so that you have a clearer idea of who you want to be, the things you want to change such as attitudes, habits, or points of view. If you hardly know yourself, then your vision and targets for the future will also be unclear. Your destination should cover all the aspects of your being: the physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual.

3. Set A Goal

Without a goal you don’t even have a starting point. We all need a purpose in life and something to aim for, so set a goal that you know you will be very passionate about achieving.

4. Use Your Knowledge, Skills and Attitude

You bring with you certain knowledge, skills, and attitudes. These determine your competence and help you in attaining your vision. Given such, there is a need for you to assess what knowledge, skills, and attitudes you have at present and what you need to gain along the way.

5. Have A Realistic Timeline

In planning out your life, you also need to set a time for your goals to be realized. Start with goals you can easily obtain in a week, then a bigger one for a month and so on. Once you start seeing results you can aim for the bigger goals.

6. Be Prepared For Obstacles

The purpose of your life map is to minimize hasty and spur-of-the-moment decisions that can make you lose your way. But oftentimes our plans are modified along the way due to some inconveniences, delays, and other situations beyond our control. One thing you need to achieve success is persistence, so don’t give up, no matter what the challenge.

Tips For Success

Everything that happens to us happens on purpose. And sometimes, one thing leads to another. Instead of locking yourself up in your cage of fears and crying over past heartaches, embarrassment and failures, treat them as your teachers and they will become your tools in both self improvement and success.

Have you ever watched “Patch Adams” the movie? It’s one great film that will help you improve yourself. Hunter “patch” Adams is a medical student who failed to make it through the board exams. After months of suffering in melancholy, depression and suicidal attempts – he decided to seek medical attention and voluntarily admitted himself into a psychiatric ward.

His months of stay in the hospital led him to meeting different kinds of people. He met a catatonic, a mentally retarded, a schizophrenic and so on. Patch found ways of treating his own ailment and finally realized he had to get back on track. He woke up one morning realizing that after all the failure and pains he had gone through, he still wanted to become a doctor. He carries with himself a positive attitude that brought him self improvement and success. He didn’t only improve himself, but also the life of the people around him and the quality of life. Did he succeed? Needless to say, he became the best doctor his country has ever known.

So, when does self improvement become synonymous with success? Where do we start?

*Stop thinking and feeling as if you’re a failure, because you’re not. How can others accept you if YOU can’t accept YOU?

*When you see hunks and models on TV, think more on self improvement, not self pitying. Self acceptance is not just about having nice slender legs, or great abs. Concentrate on inner beauty.

*When people feel so down and low about themselves, help them move up. Don’t go down with them. They’ll pull you down further and both of you will end up feeling inferior.

*The world is a large room for lessons, not mistakes. Don’t feel stupid and doomed forever just because you failed on a science quiz. There’s always a next time. Make rooms for self improvement.

*Take things one at a time. You don’t expect black sheep’s to be goody-two-shoes in just a snap of a finger. Self improvement is a one day at a time process.

*Self improvement results in inner stability, personality development and …. SUCCESS. It comes from self confidence, self appreciation and self esteem.

* Set meaningful and achievable goals. Self improvement doesn’t turn you into the exact replica of Cameron Diaz or Ralph Fiennes. It aims to develop an improved and better YOU.

*Little things mean BIG things to other people. Sometimes, we don’t realize that the little things that we do like a pat on the back, saying “hi” or “hello”, greeting someone “good day”, are simple things that mean so much to other people. When we’re being appreciative about beautiful things around us and other people, we also become beautiful to them.

*When you’re willing to accept change and go through the process of self improvement, it doesn’t mean that everyone else is. The world is a place where people of different values and attitudes hang out. Sometimes, even if you think you and your best friend always like to do the same thing together at the same time, he/she would most likely decline an invitation for self improvement.

We should always remember that there’s no such thing as ‘overnight success’. Its always a wonderful feeling to hold on to the things that you already have now, realizing that those are just one of the things you once wished for. There’s an old quote which says that “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” We are all here to learn our lessons. Our parents, school teachers, friends, colleagues, officemates, neighbors… they are our teachers. When we open our doors for self improvement, we increase our chances of living a life of success.