When Things Don't Work...Melody Beattie

[clean42day]

When Things Don't Work


Frequently, when faced with a problem, we may attempt to solve it in a
particular way. When that way doesn't work, we may continue trying to
solve the problem in that same way.

We may get frustrated, try harder, get more frustrated, and then exert
more energy and influence into forcing the same solution that we have
already tried and that didn't work.

That approach makes us crazy. It tends to get us stuck and trapped. It
is the stuff that unmanageability is made of.

We can get caught in this same difficult pattern in relationships, in
tasks, in any area of our life. We initiate something, it doesn't work,
doesn't flow, we feel badly, then try the same approach harder, even
though it's not working and flowing.

Sometimes, it's appropriate not to give up and to try harder. Sometimes,
it's more appropriate to let go, detach, and stop trying so hard.

If it doesn't work, if it doesn't flow, maybe life is trying to tell us
something. Life is a gentle teacher. She doesn't always send neon road
signs to guide us. Sometimes, the signs are more subtle. Something not
working may be a sign!

Let go. If we have become frustrated by repeated efforts that aren't
producing desired results, we may be trying to force ourselves down the
wrong path. Sometimes, a different solution is appropriate. Sometimes, a
different path opens up. Often, the answer will emerge more clearly in
the quietness of letting go than it will in the urgency, frustration,
and desperation of pushing harder.

Learn to recognize when something isn't working or isn't flowing. Step
back and wait for clear guidance.........M.B.

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Remember, if you always do what you always did, you will
always get what you always got.