Are you fighting to stay positive during difficult times? It can be hard when life throws a curveball, but having a “bright spot” can be a great way to improve your mental health and outlook. A “bright spot” is a positive experience or outcome that can help counteract negative circumstances, lightening your mood and giving you hope. In this article, we look at how to find, nurture, and recognize bright spots — as well as how to make sure you don’t overlook them. By making a conscious effort to seek out and appreciate these small moments of joy, you can take a step forward and find a brighter, more balanced perspective.
As the saying goes, if you’re a hammer, everything looks like a nail. If you’ve identified yourself as a problem solver — if you view the world as a series of problems to be fixed — you’ll find problems even when they don’t exist.
The saying “if you’re a hammer, everything looks like a nail” might not be immediately familiar to everyone, but it resonates with those of us who tend to identify as problem solvers. Whether we’ve worked hard to cultivate this identity over the years or it’s woven into our DNA, the majority of us want to be the person invited in to fix the problem. If a situation appears unsatisfactory, we think it’s up to us to change it. However, while problem-solving can be a great strength, it can also lead us to make assumptions that might actually be preventing us from seeing a situation in a new light. For instance, a group of friends growing further apart can seem like a problem to be solved, until you look at it from a different angle: what if this is a gradual evolution in the relationship, and instead of trying to “fix” it, it just needs to be celebrated for what it is.
This doesn’t mean the relationship didn’t have value before, or that it won’t continue to hold value down the road. Instead, allowing the relationship to grow and change on its own opens us up to possibility instead of expectation. After all, if we’re always seeing the world as a set of problems to be fixed, we’ll miss out on the beauty of what is. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be one or the other.
It’s possible to wear the problem-solving hat while simultaneously opening yourself up to possibility. This means when we look toward the future, we’ve not just found our bright spot, but we’re actively looking to see what glimmers lay ahead.
To be continued…
