For a lot of my life, I’ve run into obstacles and gotten derailed, either getting a bad attitude or giving up. I’d ask, “Why me?” or look for someone or something to blame. Usually, I’d feel discouraged or uncertain in the face of an obstacle. My responses are a typical and unfortunate reaction to a roadblock. Luckily, I’ve found a better way to respond to obstacles.

This better way entails seeing obstacles as green lights instead of stop signs–as challenges that promote growth rather than personal attacks or condemnations of my abilities. Seeing obstacles as the way forward instead of as in the way helps me feel less disappointed when problems arise and re-orients me from victimhood to a warrior mentality. I want to be the kind of person who answers the call to clash with an obstacle and grows enough to overcome it, and seeing obstacles with this uncommon lens helps me respond better to them when they arise.

How can obstacles, impediments, roadblocks, and challenges be the way forward? They present a defined arena for growth when they materialize (and they will materialize if I’m trying new and difficult things). They are specific problems to solve. Obstacles require growth to overcome them. If growth is what I seek, obstacles create the conditions for growth if I engage with them rather than run from them or begrudge their existence. I find that I must see obstacles as opportunities to avoid instinctively withdrawing from them. I’m more willing to struggle against challenges when I believe they exist to help me grow.

How can I more frequently respond to obstacles with “game on” rather than “game over”? How do I integrate a new mental model (seeing obstacles as opportunities), especially if it feels unnatural? Practice and coaching. 

When I am discouraged by a slowdown or a seemingly insurmountable challenge, I pause and try to remember my ultimate goal – to grow into the best version of myself. Would the best version of myself give up when things get challenging? Would he look for someone to blame when things don’t go as expected? No to both. I re-orient by remembering that growth comes from engaging with challenges. I ask, “What do I want?” and “What will I do?” in light of an obstacle. These questions put me back in warrior mode, ready and willing to fight to overcome.

Behaving as if I believed obstacles were opportunities is a good way for me actually to believe it. When I encounter a problem, I like to say, “Bring it on” or “Let’s go!”, ask the orienting questions above, and take immediate action to demonstrate I’m not cowed by the problem. Each repetition of responding to challenges in this way helps me engage, grow, overcome, and believe in the approach. 

As I conquer more obstacles, I gain confidence and trust in myself. New obstacles become variations of past obstacles that I’ve beaten. Granted, the difficulty level of new obstacles will likely be higher than past challenges, but that’s as it should be. For something to even register as an obstacle, it must be beyond my comfort zone, and challenges will have to be harder as my comfort zone expands. Being able to contend with tougher challenges is my goal and a marker of actualizing my potential, so it’s a good thing that conquering obstacles will lead to bigger obstacles. The bigger they are, the harder they fall, and the more growth will be required to win out against them.

Each of us is the product of the obstacles we’ve overcome. Babbling, crawling, walking. Kindergarten, sixth grade, graduation. First day of college, Bachelor’s, Master’s. First date, going steady, marriage. We are shaped by growing through the stages of life and grappling with the unique, sometimes-scary challenges that accompany them. I’ve grown in response to challenges I’ve accepted and shrunk from avoiding obstacles that scared me away.

My future growth will depend upon how I respond to obstacles. Seeing obstacles as opportunities is an important perspective because it helps me muster the courage to confront what I might otherwise run away from. Obstacles being opportunities is one of the most powerful ideas I have for living a good life. I hope the idea is useful to you on your journey to become the best you can be.