“Any big problem is a big opportunity…. No problem, No opportunity, No Business…. Nobody will pay you for solving a non-problem.” Vinod Kholsa
Every Business is solving a problem. People are paying for solutions by buying a product or service. Problems are said to be the universe’s way of helping us to learn to accept reality. These problems can help to show our fortitude and energy. We should never see times of adversity as time to complain but as the time to ask:
- What new lesson is life trying to teach me.
- What new skill am I about to unleash in me
- What new contacts is this about to give me.
- Who would be the beneficiaries of my new opportunities
- What problem am I prepared to solve
It is important to always look at the positive side of events that happens around you. You may be refused at a job interview. That job may not be yours at the time. An opportunity may turn up in the same place later which suits better. Shali went for an interview and was refused because there was a better-suited candidate. A feedback for the interviewer revealed, ‘ You did very well and your presentation was the best but for the particular post requirement, we had a perfect match’. Later a new vacancy arose and she was requested for. Her job at the time was going through a restructuring and her post was being suspended. The new job offers more hours and better work satisfaction. A woman tele evangelist once narrated how she began to run her own ministry. ‘I was sacked from one job or the other’. ‘I started running small meetings and it blossomed’ she said. She could have sat complaining and do nothing about her situations.
Some farmers were planting cotton yearly. This was their livelihood. In a particular year, the crops were attacked badly by insects, this destroyed their crop. The farmers repeated this process the following year and yet had the same disastrous results.
In the next year, some of the farmers decided to break with tradition and planted Peanuts instead. They made so much money that enabled them to pay off their debts. They continued to plant peanuts from then on and became very prosperous. Light was available at the end of their tunnel. In the time of great adversity, they had inspirations to do something new. Without the insect problem on the cotton, they would never have dreamt of farming peanuts.
As I write this, I am remembered of the story in the bible about Ruth. Her husband died but she decided to stay with her mother-in-law, Naomi despite many discouragements. Naomi had two daughters -in-law. After her husband and two sons had died, she decided to return to her homeland, ‘I am going back to my homeland and I would like you two to return to your families’ she said to Oprah and Ruth. Oprah decided to return while Ruth refused saying ‘where you go I will go, you people will be my people and you God my God’.
Hugging each other, they went separate ways. Naomi and Ruth went to Bethlehem. Naomi may never have been able to make the journey on her own without Ruth as it was a long journey. Ruth worked the fields as it was harvest time when they arrived and picked up barley that had dropped from the harvesters.
She was noticed by Boaz, the owner of the field as he came to observe the harvesters. Boaz was a relation of Naomi’s husband. ‘Who is this young lady’, he enquired? ‘She came back from Moab with Naomi’. Boaz had heard of her kindness to her mother-in-law.
‘Stay close by, he said and supply would be granted to you as needed’. Her needs were not only met but she ended up marrying Boaz. Her name is mentioned in genealogy of Jesus Christ. What a happy ending to a sad loss. No matter your loss, the Creator is planning a better replacement, can you find it out! Look at every disappointment as a stepping stone on a ladder of Breakthrough! You can turn obstacles into opportunities because obstacles in the path can become the path. Thank your Creator for those obstacles.
Thanks for great blog about universal values. Sometimes we do not understand that Creator has other plans for us. Trusting Universe ad Creator, gives us strength and understanding, that we are not alone in this world. Keep up with this great work, all the best, Nemira
NemiraB, thanks for your input. HE does have other plans for us and they are good all the times.
Hey Kavinah
Your post rings so true to me! Problems are opportunities to learn and grow.
It is simply a question of whether you approach the problem as the victim or by accepting responsibility in one way or another for it.
By labeling one self as the victim, you are saying that you are helpless and this essentially means you are unable to overcome / prevent the problem going forward.
The second we accept responsibility for our problems, is the second we are able to overcome and move forward from those problems.
Your story of the farmers reminded me of a quote from A. Einstein.
‘Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.’
Definitely something worth keeping in mind.
Thanks for the fantastic post!
Cheers
Marc Parsons
Thanks Marc
Your definition of insanity is so profound.
We need to constantly review our habits and patterns of operations in order to make progress.
Kav
Such an inspiring post. I have never really thought of a business this way. What they do is do solve a problem.
If they solve a problem that a lot of people needs fixed they will make a lot of money.
Feels like a lot of people are always afraid of problems while true entrepreneurs love them.
Now it makes sense because the problem is an opportunity.
Do you have any strategy for changing your mental view of problems and see it as an opportunity instead?
Hi Marcus
One strategy is to see the problem as a different entity. See and describe the problem as though detached from you and happening to someone else. Your emotions or reactions to the problem would be more objective.
Businesses are created out of a need arising. This helps to see problems as opportunities.
You are so right about people being afraid of problems.
Thanks. I need another post on how to change our mental view.
Your blog is definitely the truth! When we encounter problems, we are given the opportunity to solve them. I know this from experience. When I ran into problems, I took it as an opportunity to come up with a solution and learned how to prevent that same problem from happening in the future.
Thanks for sharing your positive response and attitude to problems. We surely learn from our problems and it gives us opportunities to become better people.
I enjoyed reading this heartfelt post about learning to understand the possibilities of missed opportunities. It’s very easy to get caught up in the need to know why things happen or what you can do to “do better”. It’s a good thing to step outside your comfort zone and try something different and be open to whatever happens. Thanks for sharing this post.
Life is full of risks and it promotes growth.
Thanks for your comment.
Hi great article and very motivational. You are absolutely correct that setbacks or problems are opportunities for the future. I like your example of the job interview rejection as this has happened to many people. A job rejection has lead to other better opportunities that better suit your skills. My motto is always learn from setbacks or mistakes.
Hi Harjit
Learning from setbacks is indeed something we all need to do regularly. Examples abound where disappointment has been a blessing in disguise.
Thanks for stopping by.
Kav