You can never solve a problem at the same level as the problem. - Albert Einstein

Problems can be divided into two main categories: mental and physical.
Of the two, the mind exerts the greatest influence on most of us. Unless we are gravely ill or deprived of necessities, the physical aspects of life usually play a secondary role. The mind registers every event.

Many are familiar with the story of Florence Nightingale and how. in the dreadful conditions of the Crimean War, she upgraded hospital standards, improved patient care, enhanced sanitation, and promoted nursing education. The dedicated efforts of this Englishwoman transformed hospitals to places of hope and healing. Florence Nightingale faced a double challenge. Her own ill-defined illness restricted the activities of her adult life. However, she was deeply committed to meeting the challenge of caring for those who were injured and sick. Her heart was filled with love and compassion for her fellow human beings.

After incredible experiences of saving lives with her contingent of trained nurses, Florence Nightingale returned to her home in England. Although ill herself and confined to bed, this brave soul somehow managed, at the age of forty, to establish the Nightingale School and Home for Nurses in London. She created a medical revolution from her bed and continued to mastermind and direct those efforts until her death at the age of ninety

Often, a successful problem-solver is one who is able to stand back from the problem. If you focus on the details of the situation it's easy to be distracted. From a detached perspective, you may be able to examine the situation in a new or different light.

A good road?
An aid group in South Africa once wrote to missionary and explorer David Livingstone asking, “Have you found a good road to where you are? If so, we want to know how to send other men to join you.”
Livingstone replied, “If you have men who will come only if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come even if there is no road at all.”

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