We as people have a tendency to over complicate problems in our lives. Turning mountains out of mole hills. A few posts back, I talked about inner-conflict, which is a subject I wish to touch on again briefly, because many of the problems we are trying to change, are created by the very thing we are trying to change it with. And it only takes a little understanding to begin to change perceptions around pull back on bad habits.
We as people have a tendency to complicate matters because we define ourselves as intellectual beings. We define ourselves as creative thinkers and problem solvers. We measure our intellect by how well we can creatively think, and solve problems. We look for the complexity in things, because that is what we are used to looking for. But not everything is as complex as it first appears. In-fact, I would say that most problems aren't complex problems at all, it's just how we've been raised to look at things.
There is a quote that led me to really look at this in a different light, it goes "The one with the most rules, will lose". I'm not entirely sure who said it, but it implies that rules are conditions, and conditions complicates matters, effectively turning mole hills into mountains. Another quote is, "Argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they're yours" (Richard Bach). Which in the case of this post, may be as simple as thinking about the difficulty of the problems you face. Many people feel overwhelmed by mounting problems and issues in their lives. And a lot of it has to do with taking them as mountainous problems, especially when they begin to pile on and suddenly, you feel over burdened and don't know where to begin.
I can't give any fool proof ways around this, I can only give out some advice. Which is simply, don't. To first try and see how we have a tendency to over think things, thereby making things more complex then they aught to be. Once we perceive them as complex, we feel we must rise to the challenge by overcoming the problem as we see it, and not as it actually is. The idea of trying to turn what appears to be a big problem into a little problem, just by changing our perception a bit, feels too good to be true, so we often deny ourselves that option.
Once we let our emotions out of the bag, they have a tendency to build these mountains. Creating such height that we can't see past this shadow that is cast by them to see how in-fact they are quite small when looked at objectively. A wise old woman once said to me, and I'm paraphrasing because I don't remember it exactly, "There is no reason to worry. If there is something you can do, then do it. If there is nothing you can do, then it is out of your hands. Either way, worrying does you no good.". I thought those words were wise, because they imply a simplicity to things. To do what you can with what you got; but worrying doesn't make the problems go away, it only tortures you.
Since then, I have taken a hard look at my life and realized I had made my life much more complex then it needed to be. I kept trying to beat my problems on their own turf, instead of undermine them. Always trying to find a complex answer for what I thought was a complex problem. But the answer wasn't to go bigger, as it turns out; it was to go smaller.
So in short, try seeing any problems you may be facing as easy and simple to deal with. Chances are, you do know how to handle them, and probably have faced many similar problems in the past, and handled them just fine. All it takes is a little breathing room and some perspective.
I think we could all use a little more simplicity in our lives. It's just a matter of granting it to ourselves.
Hope you enjoyed!
