Put Your Problems in Perspective

“What is true by lamplight is not always true by sunlight.”
Joseph Joubert (French Writer, 1754-1824)

It’s imperative that you put your problems in perspective otherwise they will consume you and your life. Do not let your problems define who you are.

➤ Remember, you are not the problem, your whole life is not the problem and all is not a disaster. You may feel this way at the time, but be aware that it’s just not true. The problem is one element of your life; put it in perspective and keep it there. Focus on the things that are going well in your life too to enable balance.

 ➤ Set boundaries for yourself in terms of the time you spend thinking about/working on the problem. Don’t let it consume all your time and energy. Balance is important or you will experience ‘burnout’.

➤ Do not talk incessantly about your problem. Talk about something else. Anything else.

 ➤ Do not identify yourself in terms of the problem. Identify yourself as you. What are you good at? What are you reading/ watching/learning/doing/enjoying at the moment?

 ➤ You may find it helpful to visualise boxes in your mind. Your mind stores lots of boxes with lots of different subject labels. If a problem is consuming you, create a new mental box and label it ‘problem’. Open the lid and put the problem inside the box. Close the lid and know that the problem is safely stored until you choose to access it.

 ➤ Learn to remain calm in the midst of a problem. Panic lets your problem hold you to ransom. Ask yourself some quality questions to help put the problem in perspective from a ‘big picture’ viewpoint.

 1. How will this problem affect me one year from now?
2. How will this problem affect me five years from now?
3. What is the worst case ‘scenario’ for this problem?

Always remind yourself to put your problems in perspective and to keep them there!