Before You See the Solution

Before You See the Solution

By Steve Pavlina

A simple yet common common difference I’ve repeatedly seen between various friends could be described like this:

Some friends commit themselves to a problem before they’ve figured out the solution.
Some friends try to figure out the solution before they commit themselves to the problem.

By and large the first group makes significantly faster progress while the second group so often gets bogged(bäɡ) down and stuck.

Consider on which side you normally fall here.

Are you able to commit yourself to tackling(ˈtak(ə)l) a problem or undertaking a lifestyle transition before you have it all figured out?

Or do you need to have all of the major pieces figured out first before you can get moving?

I like committing to challenges where I don’t know how everything will work out in advance. Life feels more fun and adventurous(adˈven(t)SHərəs) that way. Risk adds some nice edginess(ˈejēnəs) to life.

Another advantage to committing first is that it upgrades your motivation. When you feel committed to a problem, you push yourself harder to solve it versus when you’re still in pre-commitment. And so you come up with more creative solutions because you have more pressure(ˈpreSHər) to do so.

Some people fear and avoid this kind of pressure, but used judiciously(jo͞oˈdiSHəslē) it can be a tremendous(trəˈmendəs) ally(ˈalī). You find out what you’re really made of when you have to come up with a solution or suffer some significant consequences. You’ll do a lot more to figure out the how-to details once you’re in motion.

Will you always pull through and avoid failure(ˈfālyər)? Probably not. I sure didn’t. Sometimes I over-committed myself and failed. But I still prefer that option because the more I commit first, the more I can fine-tune(t(y)o͞on) my calibration(kaləˈbrāSH(ə)n). I get better at figuring out when I’m really over-committing and when I should lean(lēn) in, stretch(streCH), and trust myself more.

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https://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2020/06/committing-before-you-see-the-solution/