Solving more interesting problems

Pets add complexity to daily life, but they’re worth it. (Image by StockSnap)

When I consider the common threads in the work I enjoy (and, for that matter, the pastimes I favor), it comes down to problem-solving.

It would be nice if I could enjoy the feeling of strolling down the corridor at the music school I created, listening to the sounds coming from each studio and cherishing its existence. "I made this happen." But no, actually. The magic of simply experiencing it is lost on me. It's not why I do what I do. I'm more interested in how to make it better.

The problem with being really into problem-solving, though, is that you run the risk of creating problems for yourself to avoid getting bored. I have had to learn to seek stimulation from solving other people's problems or taking on challenging creative projects instead of accidentally tying my own life in knots.

When you like fixing things, you look for things to fix. This is a tendency I must intentionally put on hold in order to avoid frustration when, say, engaging in a group activity or having a meal in a restaurant. If I don't have control over the situation, I'm just going to drive myself crazy if I try to think about how it should be or could be.

I used to wait until the last minute on deadlines, stay up way too late only to have to make it to work early the next morning, engage in complicated relationships with difficult people, and take on too much work and do it all by myself.

I still go places without obtaining adequate directions (or programming my GPS) first. I wait too long to call service professionals and book medical appointments. I still say yes to more than I probably should. However, things have definitely improved. I don't have a lot of drama in my life. I am usually excited to take on the day's challenges instead of dreading them. And I get to help solve increasingly interesting problems for my clients.

Now I have a new responsibility, which is to help my clients, their teams, and my own team get out of the habit of creating problems. Many of us are deeply conditioned by school and certain societal ideals to believe that hard work is unconditionally virtuous. We have a hard time leaving well enough alone and recognizing when our effort is actually wasted.

I've noticed that, a lot of us, when offered a choice, make things more complicated than they need to be. "I'll take either one. Well...I do prefer the blue one. But I can take the green one if I have to! No, you know what, I'll go ahead and take the green one. Really, it's fine."

There is a tendency to assume that the thing that is inconvenient or less desirable is better. Even if it might be, it isn't better because it's inconvenient or less desirable. Generally, it's better in spite of that fact.

I had classmates who frequently stayed up late to study for exams in high school. They were probably short on time because they had much more interesting social lives than I did, but I can't help but wonder if that early practice of sacrificing sleep for work contributed to a habit for them later on. Perhaps they came to associate late nights with success or excellence, and then perpetuated the same pattern even when they didn't strictly need to do so. Maybe this explains the behavior of many professionals who take on more than they can do in a day.

In my own life and work, I got to a point at which I was no longer willing to suffer as I had been. The solution for my boredom wasn't chaos, nor was it endless work. It was to seek more interesting work and solve more interesting problems.

I don't just want to keep my mind busy and active. I want to have a rich life. Fulfilling work is vital, along with periods calm and plenty of comfort. Trouble will arise on its own without me creating more of it. However, if I haven't burned all my energy making things more complicated than they need to be, I'll be able to handle the obstacles in my path with confidence and a sense of perspective.