Obstacles are road blocks that stands in between you and your goals.
They are aggravating, usually causing stress and are a major source of unhappiness.
The most empowering thing to know when obstacles arise is that you have a choice in how you deal with them.
You can chose to surrender to the challenge and give up on the task at hand.
You can avoid them by changing your course of action.
Or you can overcome them by chipping away at the problem until it is gone.
What you chose to do (or not do) has a direct impact on your happiness and how you see yourself.
It is a guarantee that if you surrender, you will most likely not reach your goals.
Oftentimes those that fall into this category feel like victims.
They are constantly stricken with the feeling of being unfulfilled and blame the world for his or her circumstances.
Relinquishing their powers to achieve true happiness, victims wait for saviors to rescue them from their situation.
If this never happens, they remain in an unhappy state.
If happiness does come their way it is forever tied to the actions of others.
As a result, victims usually live a life that constantly moves along a spectrum with happiness on one end and misery on the other and are never in control of their joy.
I like to call those that change course in the presence of hurdles, survivors.
Survivors learn to fulfill their desires by avoiding obstacles.
When a problem presents itself, they quickly look for a work around plan to reach their goals.
This is commendable because survivors understand their power to change situations and do experience or reach a certain level of happiness.
The problem with survivors is that positive results are short-lived.
Because issues are never resolved, just avoided, they manage to reappear at the most inopportune time, crushing the spirit of glee.
In these cases, survivors do what they know to do best, come up with another work around.
Unfortunately this becomes a vicious cycle and is very costly in the long run.
The best way to deal with obstacles is to tackle them head on.
Doing so will delay your ultimate goal and may result in intervals of happy feeling as well as disappointment, but in the end is everlasting joy.
Those that subscribe to this train of thought are referred to as conquerors.
Because they do not want to run the risk of fighting the same issues over and over for years to come, they take the time to annihilate obstacles.
Just like survivors, conquerors devise a plan but it is not a plan of avoidance but one of attack.
So how can you become a conqueror and overcome your obstacles that stand in the way of you reaching your goals? It's simple.
Your first step is to change how you view the situation.
Examine your beliefs.
Do you see obstacles as permanent or temporary situations? Then answer the age-old question.
Is the glass a half empty or half full? The answer to this question will depend on what you are up against.
If issue is depleting your resources and there is no means for replenishment, then the glass is half empty.
Know that it will only magnify over time and become more of a problem.
In this case, if you can honestly say that you gave it your all, your plan of attach is to cut your losses and take solace in knowing that you did your best.
In there lies your peace of mind.
On the other hand, a glass that is half full means that you have work to do.
Remember the goal is to destroy rather than to shift the obstacle.
Again, examine your philosophy.
This is important because your philosophy determines your attitude.
For example, if you believe that all things are possible, you will forever have a positive outlook on your tribulations.
There is a direct correlation between your attitude and your actions, so you must keep your attitude in check.
Make a list of all the things you can do to rid yourself of the hindrance.
Then think of or research all of the services that are available to you to assist you in this endeavor.
Note the positive and negative consequences of them all then decide on your plan of action.
Ensure that your actions are measurable that way you can accurately gauge your progress.
This process can be time-consuming, depending on the number of activities that you must complete to reach your goal but its worth.
This is also the time when feeling like doubt and the desire to give up rear its ugly head.
The important thing to remember is that you must keep your attitude in check.
When you feel yourself slipping into a negative place, speak words of encouragement or share your frustration with only the positive people in your life.
Whatever you do, stay on track.
Everything is temporary and all beginnings have an end.