William Glasser observed that everyone gets into situations where we don’t know what to do. That is a part of the human condition. What really matters is that we can figure out what to do when we feel stuck not knowing what to do. It is this ability that characterizes strong people, as contrasted with those who can’t figure out what to do in those situations. Glasser developed these ideas in depth in his book Positive Addiction.
“Hey, how do I figure out what to when I don’t know what to do?” I was sitting in a Minneapolis workshop with William Glasser when I heard it, and it immediately struck me as a very intriguing question. It “put a hurtin’ on my mind” that has lasted for more than 30 years. I have thought about it again and again, especially when I get into a situation where I don’t know what to do. It was the subject of a chapter in Making Change, my first book published in 1978. It has been the topic of many conversations, and people I talk with often say the same thing – this question does not turn you loose. Having read this far, it will probably happen to you, too. It certainly is a seminal question!
Watch coming postings for more on this.
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Funny you bring this up, I just ordered a new book by Dr. David Jeremiah titled "What to do when you don't know what to do." I will forward my comment after I review the book. - Luis
ReplyDeleteIf interested:
http://www.davidjeremiah.org/site/radio_content.aspx?id=3190
Well, Sam, one way is to involve some or all of the people who will be affected by the decision to do or not do and apply some decision or problem-solving tools (but you knew that).
ReplyDeleteMy wife and I have found that simply writing out life options on Post-It notes and putting them up on a wall brings clarity to a discussion. (It's a little harder at a distance, although some of the latest online tools let you be visual and aural in conversation.) For us, the intuition seemed to work well when we used the Post-It approach -- we didn't need to apply any prioritizing tools.