What do you do when trouble rears its head? Are you mystified that it came? How do you feel? What do you do? Do you run for cover? Do you blame others? Did you have contingency plans determined before you began this particular venture? To expect that you will live a life free from problems and troubles is ludicrous. Along with death and taxes, trouble is always a potentiality and in some cases a probability.
What’s your mindset? Do you think that ‘trouble’ will prevail? Or, will you attempt to skirt all possible problems? (And is a life without trouble spelled boring and bland?) Perhaps you are the sort that will attempt to mitigate the impact of trouble? Has anyone ever considered using trouble to your advantage? If trouble presents itself, what can you do… not just to eliminate it but to use it effectively as a potential action? Trouble may just get you out of your complacent thinking and force you to look outside the box.
Personally, I never go looking for trouble – in my opinion that is stupid, but if it is coming on the horizon, I typically don’t run from it either. I may look to see if there is an ‘escape’ route but hopefully I typically try and see how I can use the trouble to find a new response. Trouble is a way of letting us know that what or how we are planning on doing (fill in the blank) simply may not work. It’s an early alert warning! Obviously, it’s our response to trouble that is the most important consideration. But I’d like to posit that trouble may not always be a negative.
Trouble comes in different packages. Sometimes it’s people… sometimes resources diminish… sometimes there are new and unaccounted for challenges and obstacles. When we have sufficient warning we can consider the trouble in a more reasoned way. However, many times it’s as if trouble simply blindsides us and we have to react quickly. I would suggest that how we define and interpret the word, trouble, will make all the difference. It can be a threat. But it can just as easily become a new opportunity.
