Acceptance and knowledge, steps to solve your problems

While speaking of the human spirit, Maya Angelou, the late poetess, brought to notice our everyday habit of saying “all is well” or something equally facetious when asked how we are. No matter what problems we may be facing, we still go about our mundane routines, unconsciously lying to ourselves and others that all is well.

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This attitude is mistaken to be a noble outlook of a martyr who is willing to suffer, even sacrifice their aspirations, to make the life of their dear ones comfortable (and to win the approval, admiration, and envy of friends and family on the side). We're willing to suffer if the returns are good. And there, we give our approval for suffering to be a pre-condition for a good and happy life.

With suffering being treated as a foundation for a stable life, this begets the question - WHY SHOULD I SUFFER? Or, WHY DO I HAVE PROBLEMS?

Problems are solvable. Here are three steps one can take to solve problems.

Acknowledging the problem

The first step to solve any problem is to acknowledge that there is a problem. Denying its existence will delay its rectification. Identifying the presence of the problem is critical to solving the problem. And often the problems we face are not problems really. They are, but, symptoms of an underlying problem.

Ascertain the nature of the problem

Each problem has its own nature, while some hinder our mental faculty there are some which wear us down physically and some our professional life. Ascertaining the nature of your problem is the next step in solving a problem. While it’s easy to tag a problem as work-related or health-related and so on, but what can be difficult is identifying their direct manifestations in our lives.

A work-related problem may soon give birth to a health-related problem and vice-versa. So ascertaining the nature of the problem will make it easier to solve and plug it from trickling down to other aspects of our lives.

Identifying the cause of the problem

The solution to any problem lies in the knowledge of the cause that created the problem in the first place. If the cause is hidden to/from us then our struggle to solve it will go in vain. Perhaps, that's one reason the solutions to problems presented in the age of technology are proving to be just half-measures.

Perhaps humanity's only problem is not knowing what its problem really is. All our problems are inter-connected. If one is keen on solving problems, the only way to go about it is to acquire the necessary knowledge. Einstein said that we cannot solve a problem with the same level of consciousness that created it.

What is consciousness but knowledge? The more we know, the more we understand what we see. He who stands on the edge of a cliff knows that progress is taking a step backwards, as it presents the larger picture. Being able to see your problem in the light of Knowledge is as good as solving them.