Hello everyone! Welcome back to our exploration of personal development, emotional wellbeing, and the power of the mind. Today, we delve into a topic that many of us grapple with: the role of difficulties in our lives. The way we perceive and manage life’s challenges is a key aspect of our mental health and overall happiness. So, let’s embark on this journey of understanding and growth together.

Difficulties as Features

Imagine life as a puzzle game. Studies have shown that people who didn’t view failure negatively made almost two and a half times more attempts to solve puzzles before finding success. They exemplify the belief that ‘difficulties are features, not bugs.’ These are not glitches in the system of life, but integral parts of our growth and development. They’re the ‘features’ that shape us and push us to expand our horizons.

In “The Practicing Mind,” Thomas M. Sterner highlights this concept beautifully. Everything in life worth achieving requires practice, and life itself is one long practice session, a relentless effort of refining our motions. Difficulties are opportunities for us to practice and to learn.

The Super Mario Effect and The Trained Incapacity of Experts

Now, let’s talk about something called the “Super Mario effect.” If you’ve played Super Mario, you know it’s a game of trial and error. You focus on the goal, and you’re not afraid of failure. This approach leads to more success and learning.

As we delve deeper into our fields of expertise, we sometimes develop tunnel vision. This is what economist Thorstein Veblen referred to as the ‘trained incapacity’ of experts. It’s a phenomenon where our expertise and specialized knowledge in a particular field can limit our problem-solving abilities and creativity. We become so accustomed to conventional methods and ideas that we forget the Super Mario effect and fear failure, hindering our ability to solve problems and innovate.

The Role of Loneliness and Acceptance

Loneliness is a common difficulty that many of us face. It’s an emotional feeling of loss, despair, and emptiness that can heavily contribute to various mental health issues.

Acceptance and commitment are powerful tools to combat loneliness. Acceptance doesn’t mean resigning to a state of loneliness but recognizing it as a part of life that can change and evolve. Commitment refers to the resolve to make changes in our lives in response to that loneliness.

The Power of Adversity in Relationships and Life Gamification

In relationships, conflicts and difficulties are opportunities to understand each other better, to strengthen the relationship through conflict resolution. Buddhists have a beautiful teaching: “taking adversity as the path.” It means that difficulties present us with the opportunity to develop coping skills.

Here’s where life gamification comes into play. Like in a video game, the concept of life gamification can make challenges and learning feel natural and enjoyable, leading to a desire to keep trying and ignoring failures.

For example, Mark Rober spent three years building a dart board that could track a dart in mid-air and move the board to catch a bullseye. This shows the dedication and perseverance required for complex engineering projects, a testament to how reframing challenges can have a significant impact on the outcome.

Wrapping Up

As we navigate the game of life, it’s essential to remember that our response to failure can significantly influence our ability to grow and learn. In a game, we see failure as a learning opportunity and strive to improve. In life, we should strive to do the same.

Difficulties are not bugs in our lives that need to be fixed. They are features, integral parts of our journeys. They’re opportunities for growth, understanding, and learning. As we continue to navigate the challenges of life, let’s remember to embrace these difficulties, learn from our failures, and never stop trying.

Thank you for joining us today! We hope this perspective shift encourages you to approach life’s difficulties with a new sense of positivity and resilience. Until next time, keep growing and keep practicing!

Published by Content.app