Life Tactics: Perceive Obstacles as Physics Problems

Life Tactics is a series of compact posts about my methods, tricks and hacks for everyday life, professional trades and mentality.

“The object of pure physics is the unfolding of the laws of the intelligible world; the object of pure mathematics that of unfolding the laws of human intelligence.” -James Joseph Sylvester

Perceive Obstacles as Physics Problems //

Sometimes life gives us a straight line, effortless and smooth operation of functioning – everything just happens without resistance. That is until something slows us down, stops us or even reverses us.

Which happens to us on a daily basis that make up both small and big instances. These obstacles break that straight line until we correct or overcome it.

Most of these obstacles have a negligible effect on our course but some disrupt it. In any case or in between, they can almost always be resolved like a physics problem, because that’s what it usually is.

“I have a rule against saying something is impossible unless it violates laws of physics.” -George M Church

What this means is that almost any problem that you may come across in daily life and work can be quantified mathematically if not chemically. But fu*k that. That’s too complicated and most people aren’t brilliant enough to measure that data and calculate into an actionable way. Myself included.

But it does mean that the rest of us can view obstacles in a less specific but still effective way…

As an engineering problem.

We all do this on a low but active subconscious level anyways, it’s essentially hard-wired into our brains.

This and among other cognizant skills is required of us to function; from navigating a new city without a map to fixing a machine without any prior knowledge of it to executing a fire fight with out any previous training.

The point is that we already have this ability. So the key is to do it more actively and consciously, not on autopilot like a backup subroutine.

Tackling the obstacles and complications of daily life and work like physics problems makes them more solvable. Making the impossible difficult and the difficult manageable.

Perceive problems as puzzles to decipher and obstacles as constructs to dismantle.

[The featured photo was taken from the Taipei 101 Tower Skyscraper in Taiwan.]