This tool comes from the Landmark Forum. If you’re not familiar with Landmark, it’s a system of education that allows people to create greater possibilities in their lives, beyond what they could have previously imagined.
Funny enough, when I did the Forum back in 2006, I completely missed this tool. It wasn’t until several years later when a friend reminded me of it that I began to recognize the power of this simple shift in perspective.
So without further ado, the way to solve any problem in an instant is….drumroll….
Get a bigger problem!
That’s right. By choosing to focus on something larger than the issue at hand, you give yourself a more powerful perspective. As human beings we need to feel a sense of purpose and meaning in our lives; that’s what makes every day hassles and tragedies bearable. At the same time, we have minds that automatically occupy themselves with finding and solving problems. So in order to transcend the experience our minds would create (of being mired in problems), we need to train ourselves to constantly look for something larger to stand for and something more significant to focus our energies around.
In the comments below, please let me know what your BIGGER problem is. What are you going for in life? Who are you committed to being for others? What is the experience you’re committed to creating for yourself?