Do you ever feel STUCK?

Stuck-ness happens when we run out of answers, options or opportunities.  We have two choices; we can see this as a problem and feel terrible that we don’t know what to do OR we can focus on future solutions.

When there is a problem, many professionals spend a great amount of time thinking, talking and analysing the problem whilst the suffering goes on. Rather than focusing on what is wrong, it is much more effective to talk about solutions, just starting to think about what you ‘could do’ can help you feel better.

Think about the following example:

“It is Thursday morning and you have a small pharmacy with only 3 members of staff.  Two of these employees have called in sick today and the final member of your team has now told you that they will be unable to come in tomorrow also!”

I am sure your initial thoughts will be to scream in your head and wonder what you did to deserve this!  But that won’t help.  You need to shift your focus ASAP to see what solutions you can come up with.  Who could possibly help you?  Can you reduce your services? What commitments do you need to cover tomorrow?  As soon as you start to think with a ‘solution approach’ you will start to feel like you are doing something to help.

Solution Focused Thinking in Action

This is the story of Jamie Gillentine – in 2007 he dove head first into the ocean and hit a sand bar – he lost control of everything from the neck down and doctors told him it was very unlikely any movement would ever be regained. But he refused to believe this and focused on what he could do. Press play to watch the video - it’s an emotive video but shows the power of attitude.