Welcome to the Classy Problems weekly mash-up for Monday, November 4 – Sunday, November 10, 2024.
Classy Problems is a daily post of thinking in motion by Dan T. Rogers. Each post stands alone as a thought-provoking piece, yet together, they create a puzzle of ideas. They invite you to see things from a different angle, rethink what you thought you knew, and explore what’s beyond your current understanding.
November 4 – Securing Certainty
Useful quantities of certainty don’t exist. Actual certainty can only be found in the extremes – in the profoundly trivial and absolutely critical. It doesn’t exist in the middle.
Certainty is a mental construct, a tool we use to comfort ourselves and feel safe. It doesn’t make life more predictable. It does help us feel more secure.
Is seeking certainty securing you security?
November 5 – Confessions of a Recovering Control Freak
Along the way, I would hear things like, “Let it go. Turn it over. Let go and let [fill in the blank].”
When you are in the misery of being under the order of control, all of those will bring relief, but they won’t solve the problem.
If you want to solve the problem — the problem of being under the order of control – you have to KEEP IT.
Look, I am going to level with you. IF I ever had control of you or anyone else, I would NEVER let go. Maybe I would give you an afternoon off every once in a while, but I would never let the control go.
Fortunately, thebossissupergenerous and has provided us with very little control. Unfortunately, we are overflowing with the delusion that we have control over people, places, and things.
A delusion is a lie I tell myself.
What I need to let go of — what I need to turnover — is the lie that I have control.
And that’s putting things in their proper order.
November 6 – Aligning Clarity
Recurring classy problems are usually caused by one of two failures:
The failure of clarity in vision.
OR
The failure to act in alignment with the clarity of vision.
How can clarity and alignment solve your classy problems?
November 7 – Tis the Season of Too Much Toomuchness
Retailers are already decking their halls with holiday decorations. Many of us are buying presents for future celebrations at the cost of missing out on the present.
‘Tis the season when we push so far ahead of ourselves that we fall behind.
Where are you pushing so far ahead that you find yourself behind?
November 8 – How We Think About Stress is Backwards
It’s unrealistic to think we can entirely avoid stress. It’s inescapable in the toomuchness of life. Opting for off-grid or simplifying one’s life doesn’t eliminate stress — it just changes the type of stress encountered. Escape is a wishful idea, or we what call precious thinking.
Precious thinking leads to focusing on the wrong thing: stress as an event or an occurrence rather than what we do after the event.
That’s the backwards part — the key to dealing with stress is not the before in avoiding or eliminating it, but the after in ensuring sufficient recovery from the impact of the stress.
How can focusing on strategic recovery change your experience with stressful situations?
November 9 – Missing or Hiding
All lies originate from a false story created by either missing details or hiding truths — in both cases, our vision is distorted.
Are you missing something you’re hiding from?
November 10 – Stress Is Not The Problem
Stress is not the problem; it is always part of the answer.
All development of any kind begins with stress. Some form and quantity of stress are necessary to build capacity and develop competency. No process of building or developing results in less — always more.
Avoiding or minimizing stress, while often considered solutions, are oversimplifications and impractical. Such strategies, even if successful, would lead to an ever-decreasing life.
Where are you oversimplifying your development?
SPIRITUAL GANGSTER: Welcome to the ‘Spiritual Gangster’ wing of The Sober Curator, a haven for those on a sober journey with a twist of spiritual sass. Here, we invite you to plunge headfirst into a world of meditation, astrology, intentionality, philosophy and spiritual reflection – all while keeping your feet (and sobriety) firmly on the ground.
A Disco Ball is Hundreds of Pieces of Broken Glass, Put Together to Make a Magical Ball of Light. You are NOT Broken, Friend. You are a DISCO BALL!
Resources Are Available
If you or someone you know is experiencing difficulties surrounding alcoholism, addiction, or mental illness, please reach out and ask for help. People everywhere can and want to help; you just have to know where to look. And continue to look until you find what works for you. Click here for a list of regional and national resources.
