Improving one’s life is a process of identifying one’s misunderstandings and mistakes rather than proving oneself right. I am still correcting my own.
Recently, I experienced one such example. Let’s talk about it.
How to succeed in helping others
Sometimes, we want to help someone in need. Making someone happy brings us joy, especially if we have an empathic nature.
After I resolved my inner confusion by cultivating rationality, I started to help someone else voluntarily. Since rationality has improved my quality of life dramatically in the short term, my desires for myself have been fairly satisfied. That led me to start paying attention to my surroundings close to me: my parents and my brother.
In other words, I began to experience helping others for the first time after finding my fulfillment.
Among those new experiences, helping my brother’s pastry shop taught me many things.
One example is that identifying critical issues takes time. Today, I will explain it with my experience. This perspective might lead you to successfully solve others’ confusion.
Identifying the critical problem
Identifying essential problems requires time and concrete information. That tells us that we don’t rush to solve others’ problems. We can start by helping gradually with the superficial issues.
Rationally speaking, we cannot immediately identify what the critical problem is. Suppose we are thrown into a cluttered room. Although we soon understand the necessity of organizing, we don’t know what the problem is. We need to know what specific things there are, why they stopped being managed, and how to tidy up.
Learning about each specific item enables us to organize.
To make it easier to understand, let’s look at my case.
I wanted to help my brother when I was asked for help from him. However, when I first learned about the terrible way he handled his shop, all I could do was lament and blame him. I could only perceive it as chaos.
How I identified the problem
Then, I gradually began identifying areas for improvement as I helped him and learned more about the work process.
For example, I learned where the cookie bags are stored last weekend. They were located between the store sales area and the backend factory. Since wrapping takes place after production and before sales, it was a reasonable arrangement.
That told me where things should be placed. Ingredients ought to be placed at the back of the factory, followed by the factory, which should be an area for tools and equipment. Next comes the wrapping area, and it ends in the sales section.
Realizing that principle enabled me to point out mistakes in the shop. For example, I noticed that a hand mixer and colorants, which are used for baking cakes, were placed in the wrapping area. That is inefficient. I understood that those placements can be modified.
That was one factor that created confusion.
Applying the method to invisible things
The same goes for invisible things, such as information. Reservation orders received in the selling section were conveyed to the factory.
However, there was no place to store the information. They conveyed it verbally without writing it down. That made my brother, who was usually baking cakes in the factory, repeatedly confirm the number of orders with the sales staff member. That was also a factor in the chaotic situation.
Learning the location of the cookie bags enabled me to identify the principles of the shop and correct problems.
The same would go for consultants who solve others’ mental troubles. To address someone else’s inner confusion, it is necessary to understand their specific thoughts and behaviors. Then, we identify principles and correct them.
Conclusion
That is why identifying critical issues takes time.
We don’t need to rush to solve others’ problems. We can start by helping gradually with the superficial issues.
This perspective might help you successfully solve others’ confusion.
Thank you for reading this article. I hope to see you in the next one.
