Got a problem? Help others solve their's

​Problems.  You know the ones you have that pound on you, pushing you down the way the schoolyard bully does to the little kid at recess?  The ones that spin you around, loom over your shoulder and wrap their arms around you, stealing your breath, throwing you to your knees and leaving you gasping?  The ones that make you stare up at them, a Goliath with low blood sugar and the only thing you can do is stand there, clutching a broken sling, closing your eyes and hoping for the best?  You know, those kinds?

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Yeah, me too.  Big time.  They’ve kicked my ass around the block more than once, but usually with enough persistence, accountability and help, I eventually figure out a way to cut them down to a manageable size.  Not always, but mostly.  One of the ways I do it, is to find someone with a problem that looks a lot the one with which I’m currently tangling and try to help them with it.

Now I want to be really clear; I don’t mean the kind of “Take my advice, because I’m not using it,” person-splaining orgies that are such seductive distractions from facing our own problems.  When you are tangoing with a problem that is tripping you over and over it is not a time smugness or misplaced superiority. It is, however an awesome time for compassion and hope for those whose struggles mirror our own.    

If I’m broke, I give to a charity.  If I’m looking for work, I make connections for other people doing the same.  And if I’m stalling out on making the kind of life I want for myself (in all the many and varied ways I can fall afoul of my aspirations), I see if I can help other people find ways make their own life better. 

I do it for the following reasons:

1. I get to stop thinking about myself for a little while
2. I get to experience the endorphin fantasmagoria that accompanies genuine human connection
3. I get to see myself as capable of being of service to another
4. I get to look at my own problems from the new, more creative perspectives that occur only to us when we’re advising others
5. I get the rush of self-esteem and pride that comes from service
6. And last but certainly not least, sometimes I actually help

It’s a pretty good deal.  And lets be honest, with current shenanigans happening on our little blue marble right now, there’s definitely some(or many, unfortunately)one out there who needs just the kind of help that only you can give. 

With what problem are you wrestling that you can help someone else solve?

Photo credit: InsidePhotography  at Pixabay