Many of us have great dreams, we have things we want to do, we have lofty dreams. Most of us, I
hope, have our dreams written down in our Planner and are quite clear and deliberate about them.
The truth is that the bigger and more compelling those dreams are, the bigger the obstacles that
come along, and obstacles will come along, that is one thing you can be sure of.

Change how you look at obstacles
As human beings, we were designed to grow, be stretched, withstand adversity. Obstacles are a growth matrix. Look at obstacles as a tough shell, hiding growth, learning and wisdom-gaining opportunities. You need to crack through! When you address the way you see obstacles, you find it easier to get through them to the opportunities they hold. For a long time, I would talk myself down “This isn’t what I want to do” “I’m not ready” and so on because I wanted to keep myself within my comfort zone, but the truth is there is no going forward without first clearing the obstacles. Begin to see obstacles as necessary. Say “This is part of my growth, my learning, my development” “This is good for me. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it!” When you have changed the way you see obstacles, understanding that they are a necessary condition to growth, your orientation is shifted to a problem solving one. Instead of complaining or finding where to put the blame, you think “how can I get through this?” If that’s where you find yourself now, here are a few tricks to help you crush that obstacle.

Manage the drama
Manage the drama around the obstacle. Your emotions are the drama. It is normal to feel a lot of tough emotions when faced with a difficult situation but letting them run out of control will only make the situation seem worse than it is and delay it’s resolution. Remove yourself from the situation till you are calm, then address the obstacle without letting any negative thoughts cloud your judgement. Remember the self-coaching model. It’s not the circumstances that affect your results, it’s your thoughts and feelings. Think about the steps you need to take to get past the obstacle; perhaps a new skill you need to learn, places you need to be and people you need to meet.

Remember that obstacles cause growth in different parts of life
Obstacles can be personal, social, or environmental and facing each type causes you to become better at something. An environmental obstacle could teach you the value of backup plans and a social obstacle could help you understand others better. Personal obstacles always require that you learn, grow, and discipline yourself. For example, as you know, my dream is to become a global coach and one of the obstacles I’ve found is the large online presence that dream requires. But when I got over how daunting it all seemed (managed the drama), I realized that all I need to do is educate myself, and consult with others who have a better understanding of the online sphere. And what I found is that I already knew a lot of people who could help!

Analyze the obstacle
Think about the solutions not the problems. It is easy for anyone to point out issues, but it takes time and effort to come up with solutions. In the end, you’ll find that looking for answers instead of laser focusing on the problem is a key ingredient to overcoming obstacles. A broken plate will remain broken no matter how long you decide to stare at it or to figure out who may have broken it, meanwhile dinner still needs to be served!

Identify and gather resources
Depending on the type of obstacle you are facing, the resources to overcome them may be found within yourself or lie outside of you. So, it is important after analyzing the obstacle to gather the resources needed to fix them. These resources can range from breathing exercises to deal with anxiety to taking classes to learn a skill.

Know when to move on
Differentiating between persistence and blind stubbornness is a valuable skill. The saying “No use flogging a dead horse” sums this up. If you find it difficult to know when to move on, seek advice from a trusted person who will be honest with you. Remember that you haven’t failed, you have learned.

In conclusion, when faced with an obstacle, the best way to make the most of it is to recognize that it is an opportunity for growth, actively work at analyzing and solving the problem so that no matter the result, you come out stronger, better and more knowledgeable.