A Good Problem to Have: The Power of Perspective

A Good Problem to Have: The Power of Perspective

Life’s only constant is change, and with it, the certainty of problems. We often strive to reach a point where our challenges are considered “good problems to have”, issues of abundance rather than scarcity. But the true measure of a problem is not its external size; it’s the mindset with which we face it. A negative perspective can turn a triumph into a burden, while a positive view can transform hardship into opportunity.

The Subjective Scale of Struggle

The difference between a devastating problem and a defining moment is often a single mental shift.

For one person, a crisis might be losing a secure, high-paying job.

• The Negative Mindset: You are ruined, a failure and financially vulnerable.

• The Positive Mindset: This is the forced opportunity to finally start the business you always wanted, to pursue a more meaningful career or to drastically simplify your life, a moment of liberation rather than loss.

The reverse is also true: a colossal, objective success can feel like an internal failure if the mindset is focused on the wrong metrics. Rock legend Dave Mustaine, despite the massive success of Megadeth, famously admitted to feeling like a failure because he never surpassed his former band Metallica. This painful contradiction, of external triumph and internal misery, is why Mustaine’s story has been used to powerful effect by authors like Mark Manson in The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck.

This subjective reality is also powerfully demonstrated by the early career of Walt Disney. Long before Mickey Mouse, Walt’s first major creation was a beloved cartoon character named Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Oswald was a huge success, but during contract negotiations, Disney was not only fired but stripped of his creation and his entire team.

To the outside world, this was a crippling, externally “bad problem”. He was bankrupt, betrayed and forced to start over. Yet, Disney’s mindset was not one of despair. He saw the betrayal not as an ending, but as the painful lesson required to succeed on his own terms. On the long train ride home, having lost everything, Walt and his wife created the character of a simple, cheerful mouse named Mortimer (later renamed Mickey). The loss of Oswald forced Disney to internalise the power of intellectual property and total creative control. The crushing failure was the necessary catalyst that created the global empire that followed. The moment he chose to view the betrayal as a lesson, a launchpad, the “bad problem” instantly became the genesis of his greatest work.

Redefining Your Relationship with Challenge

The severity of the problem itself is less important than your reaction to it. The goal is not to eliminate struggle, but to cultivate a resilient and growth-oriented perspective on all problems.

To truly master the challenge, you must:

1. Shift Your Metric: Stop judging yourself by external comparisons or what was lost. Focus instead on internal metrics like effort, integrity and what you are learning.

2. Find the Gift in the Grind: Seek out the lesson, the forced innovation or the necessary change hidden within every challenge. If life gives you a crisis, view it as a high-stakes workshop designed to make you stronger.

3. Choose Your View: Understand that you, and you alone, decide the emotional value of your circumstances. Your problem is not what happens to you; it’s what you choose to make of it.

Ultimately, the best problem to have is simply one you approach with the right mindset.

Ultimately, some problems are objectively worse than other, but the mindset in which you face these problems can make all the difference.