If You Have No Thoughts in Your Head, You Have No Problems - Grasshopper

That may be a foreign thought to many, but the simplicity of The Grasshopper's message bears further investigation. Problems are interpretations of reality. Problems are mind made manifestations. And problems get in the way of solutions.

Imagine you are walking in the woods getting caught up in the beauty of all the surrounding fauna and flora to the point that you lose track of time and direction.

You're lost!

Where's the problem? The problem is in your mind. Why? Your mind presents a scenario of imagined possible futures - all bad.  You have a problem. Or, do you have a situation?

This is more than Semantics 101. How much emotional baggage goes along with the word "problem"? Remember that math test you failed chuck filled with difficult problems? "Houston, we have a problem."

Notice the word "situation" is more fact based and has less collected emotion attached to it. It doesn't readily take you down the dead end path that problems lead to.

The real problem are the thoughts in your head. Did you ever notice that problems have lots of descriptive adjectives? We have an awful problem." "This is an overwhelming problem." These adjective have their attendant luggage as well. They compound the problem. They add another layer of insolvability to the situation that has presented itself.

Thinking about the problem keeps the problem alive. Each additional thought sets the problem in deeper cement.

I'm not suggesting that getting your mind clear makes the situation vanish. Cleansing your mind with some sort of meditative practice, provides a more spacious environment, allowing more room for a solution to surface rather than when it was crammed with problematic thoughts.

So if problems are thoughts, and thoughts get in the way of solutions, the simple answer is to quiet our thoughts so our problems disappear making room for solutions to our situation.

Simply stated, when you stuff 10 pounds of (fill in the blank) into a 5 pound bag, you have a problem. The problem is there is no space for a solution.

To make this more than a philosophical discovery, take time to clear your mind each day. The benefits are twofold:

1.       The problem disappears.

2.       The situation becomes more solvable.