“If You’re Not Part of the Solution, You’re Part of the Problem”

Over a period of a week, my mother’s microwave oven began showing signs of imminent decline.  I checked with my siblings, but no one had kept an extra “nuker” after moving or remodeling a kitchen. The suggestion was made to immediately buy a replacement (one solution to the problem), but I thought I remembered that someone in our extended family had an extra microwave. Trying to recycle whenever possible, it occurred to me that my nephew (who had previously lived in the upstairs bedrooms of my mother’s house), didn’t take his microwave when he moved.  His more powerful and sleeker looking oven now sits solidly atop my mother’s kitchen counter.

This seemingly insignificant situation may not seem relevant in solving major dilemmas, but consider the possibility of using the following steps for tackling any conundrum, large or small:

•Brainstorming barrage – take advantage of great ideas and suggestions offered by others; consider taking “one from column A and one from column B”, freely mixing and matching to change perspectives and bolster novel approaches.

• If this was a perfect world – but it’s not, so aim for the pragmatic and realistic (and more likely to be accomplished), rather than the ideal.
• “One day at a time” – yup, you’ve heard this said ad infinitum, but it doesn’t make it any less true.  Instead of getting immediately overwhelmed, break up tasks and chores into doable segments which can be readily accomplished and attained.
• Recycle – not only goods, but thoughts, plans and proposals, too. Tweak those things that have worked well in the past and re-use them (try dressing ‘em up), in different situations and settings.
• Kudos for baby steps – so what if something takes longer or has to be given more time than initially planned?  Appreciate the effort and realize what is learned along the way, cognizant that it may take time to reach a decision or solution to a problem.
• You can’t please everyone – decisions, regardless of how democratically arrived at, inevitably leave some unhappy campers, as it is impossible to be all things to all people all of the time.
• R & R – research and review by getting all the necessary info from a host of sources (colleagues, experts, books, online news and reports, etc.) to solve problems and solidify accomplishments.
• Don’t look back – once a decision has been made, be confident that it was based upon good information, the best of the alternatives presented, and move onto the next issue which needs to be dealt with.

And remember, taking action is the catalyst for change!