When Bad Things Happen...Use the Difficulty

Inspiration can arise at the most unexpected times. I was scrolling down my Instagram feed and saw a video with Michael Caine on it.  If you know me, you know I am not big on watching lots of videos. I find them time vacuums that steal my day.  I can read way faster than I can watch.  Strangely, I paused this time and decided to give it a look.  

Caine talks about a time early in his career where the actors in a scene threw a chair and it lodged against the door he was supposed to enter from.  When he said he couldn't get through the door, he was told to USE THE DIFFICULTY. The person then went on two describe three separate scenarios where he could use the chair in different ways depending on what the scene was about.  

This had a profound effect on him. He took it to heart in all areas of his life. When struggles arose, instead of having a pity party or walking away, he tried to use those struggles to move himself forward to look for the hidden treasure. He taught his children the same. I have heard of learning from the lessons our struggles and failures offer, but the idea of using them as a tool to move forward was a new idea - one I am still am considering.

I suspect truly grasping this concept fully will take consistent effort and constant repetition.  However, there are memories arising where hitting a difficulty sent me in an entirely different direction that proved to be the right place for me. Caine offers encouragement, saying even if you only use the difficulty 1/4 of 1 percent you still doing great. Personally that will be hard for me to embrace. If I am going to use it, I want to rock it totally.  I want the results to be spectacular and mind-blowing.  However, that likely isn't reality.

So what can we do in the 1/4 of 1 percent moments of using the difficulty.  Find one small lesson, one small gift, one small step we can take forward, and do it.  Let go of what we have no control over. In the case of the chair that blocked Caine's stage entrance, he was told he, "If it's a comedy, fall over it. If it's a drama, pick it up and smash it." Now that I've heard this I can think of other ways he could have picked up the chair and used it. What he couldn't do was ignore the chair.

The hard part is opening our eyes to looking at difficulties differently.  We have to let go of the idea that what we are facing is insurmountable, or that there is a simple solution. There might be elements that are unchangeable, such as if you broke your ankle, you'll have to wait until it heals to compete at sports.  Within each difficulty is also a door to open, a bit of wisdom to find, an empty space of time offering the freedom to try something new, or a chance to rethink your direction.

The next time you face a difficult barrier, pause and take a moment. Quiet the raging thoughts of doom and gloom. Then calmly open your mind to see what arises. Let your creativity run rampant. Try looking at this experience from several different angles. Find a way to use something within that difficulty to your advantage. Be open to what the universe might be trying to show you. And what you cannot change, release.