Moe catches up with Ryan to discuss how overcoming obstacles is a discipline that anyone of us can hone.
The Way to Defeat Your Obstacles
One of the most consistent and reliable problem solving tools that I’ve used throughout the past decade has been – The Strategy Circle. It’s a very simple thinking tool designed by the mastermind behind The Strategic Coach Program, Dan Sullivan. Dan built this tool from the premise that all obstacles are opportunities in disguise. Think back to a moment when you had a great idea – chances are, your excitement carried with it some doubt, and despite that being a normal thinking pattern, it’s what most often paralyzes you from taking action. It’s at precisely that moment where The Strategy Circle will help transform those obstacles into great decisions, communications, and actions.
Once you identify your goal and the desired result, list all the obstacles that are likely to get in the way of you achieving that goal, and be very specific. Next, review each obstacle, one by one, and identify a simple strategy that could help you overcome and move beyond it. What you’ll quickly notice is the pattern that clearly demonstrates why all the things which oppose your goals will actually be the raw material for achieving them. Sullivan calls it, VOTA – Vision, Opposition, Transformation, and Action; which is almost identical to the Stoic philosophy that Ryan Holiday describes in – The Obstacle is the Way. In it, you’ll be convinced that overcoming obstacles is a discipline that anyone of us can hone, but you always have to follow these three steps —–