There’s More Than One Way to Skin a Cat…and Other Bad Clichés.

We’re often talking about resolutions and fresh starts at this time of year. So, I’m going to go off on a little philosophical side-trip through a problem that I see happening a lot and it has more to do with mindset and misinformation than anything else. And, it doesn’t just happen in the debt and financial world, but I see it with almost every industry out there. The tendency for people to say things like: 

“That’s not how things are done.” 
“That’s not how we do things.”
“You can’t do that, no one else does it like that.” 
“I can’t do anything about it because I don’t have any other choice.” 

Many of our blog posts come from recent news or client experiences. This particular blog post comes from my own recent experience and the realization that there are a lot of people out there who do not realize that there is more than one way to do things, including dealing with debt and credit problems. 

Have you ever posted something on Facebook that you thought was a great thing and just wanted to share it with your friends? Then, someone comes in and tells you whatever great thing you posted was not the way things should be done and there is nothing you can do to convince him otherwise? At first, I wanted to be annoyed with the comment, but then realized that I deal with this every day. I hear all day, every day, that there are no options, no one to help, and that even if there is an option, it’s the end of the world. 

What if there are other ways to do things? What if there are other options? Would you want to know about them? Here are a few tips when your mind tells you something is impossible or can’t be done because blah blah blah: 

1. Stop. Pause for a second. Stop jumping to “this won’t work.” This is one of the hardest things to do. I still catch myself immediately trying to come up with reasons something won’t work and have to stop my brain from running away with reasons. 
2. For each suggestion or idea, try to come up with a way to make it work, even if it feels a little silly. Instead of making excuses for why something won’t work, try to think of any possible way it could work.
3. Look for others with ideas and solutions. Don’t look for others who are making the same excuses or avoiding trying new things. To be a bit blunter, get out of your bubble. I know it’s comfy there, but the tendency to fall back into the notion that things have to be done a certain way is much higher in the bubble. 
4. Finally, when you do find out your options and realize that there is more than one way to do something, keep moving forward and make decisions. It’s easy to try and hide from difficult situations, but the stress of not doing anything about the problem is way worse than the hope you feel when you start acting on your options. 

So, I realize this post has very little to do with the technical aspects of solving debt and credit problems, but what if? What if there is someone out there who can help you? What if thinking about doing something differently would help your business succeed? What if finding others who don’t think things have to be done the way they’ve always been done helps you move forward?

This is just a basic overview and is not legal advice specific to your situation. If you have questions about your rights when it comes to debt and credit, you should speak with an attorney in your area for legal advice. If you live in California or North Dakota and would like to speak with Jen Lee Law regarding your situation, please schedule an appointment.