Face Your Problem, Do Not Escape It
I used to have a friend that, each time he is faced with a problem or a challenge, he would try to stylishly dodge it, thinking that it will go away after a while. Ironically, after a while, the problem would have compounded and he would be faced with a far bigger problem. You do not solve a challenge by trying to run away from it, but by being intentional to face it squarely. As long as you live, then you will be faced with life challenges at some points - which may come unexpectedly or silently. The natural human instinct might just be to run away from the challenge, but that will not solve it. No matter how you run or how you distract yourself from a problem, it might not get it solved, but it might even multiply it. What you need to do is to face it head-on.
There was a time, in the place where I stayed before, one of my neighbours had a pen house where he raised livestock. So one day, as we were talking, he told me that the roof of the pen was dropping water each time it rained. So I quickly told him to fix the leak. He simply responded that it was too small and that it was manageable. After a few weeks, he casually said that the roof is still leaking, but that the raining season was almost over, so that it did not matter. I tried to encourage him to fix the leak, but he did not. The raining season passed, and he thought that the problem had gone away, so he did not see any need in getting the roof patched because he thought it had stopped leaking.
After the dry season, the raining season came back again. Unknowingly to him, the roof was already weakened by the crack and he did not know because he did not check. The first day that it rained, it was heavy and it carried so much breeze as was expected with the first rain. After just a few minutes into the rain, part of the roof gave way and the pen was almost waterlogged. He thought that he was able to solve the problem by dodging it, rather he multiplied it. If he had fixed the problem when he noticed it, it would not have degenerated up to the point of collapse. In the same way in life, if you try to escape from a problem without facing and solving it, it may become multiplied and difficult to handle.
It is worthy to note that facing problems does not mean that you have an automatic answer to it, rather it means that you have recognised what you are going through and that you would confront it. That is, knowing that there will always be a solution to any life challenge, and that you can solve it. This will build the confidence that you need to face the problem. Courage will always precede the solution to your problem. This also bestows on you the knowledge to admit that even if you are faced with challenges, you will not hide. Trying to deny an obvious challenge will weaken you. You have to accept the situation, then make a move to change it, not trying to run away from it.
In life, you may have tried something and it looks like you did not succeed at it, you need to know that it is not a dead-end because there must be a solution. Take the example of Thomas Edison; it was documented that he tried and failed multiple times. Someone else may have become fed-up and run away in frustration that the invention would not work or that time will settle everything. Yet he continued, he kept attempting, and he kept facing each failed attempt with determination. When he finally achieved success in his invention, he was asked about the numerous failures he had, but he replied that he never saw them as failures but as how not to make it work. Each time you face a setback, you will build up the required confidence for a better comeback.
When you learn to face your problems, it will help you to build character, make you to develop wisdom, it will also teach you resilience, and the ability to keep going. One of the things that I have learnt in life is that challenges are not meant to destroy you, rather they are meant to reveal the strength that lie within you.
Thanks for reading
