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We all wish we could get rid of our problems and difficulties, but as Norman Vincent Peale once said: "I visited a place where there were a hundred thousand people, and not one of them had a problem it was the cemetery. "Problems", he concluded. "Are a sign of life." It could be argued that the more problems you have, the more alive you are.

If you think about it, problems are what keep us going. All business is transacted by solving a problem for somebody, and most of our entertainment revolves around people solving problems in exciting and dramatic ways.

Inventor, engineer and businessman Charles Franklin Kettering kept a sign on his wall that read: "Do not bring me your successes; they weaken me. Bring me your problems; they strengthen me."

The biggest obstacle to solving your problem is worry , a word derived from Old English which means 'strangle', causes anxiety and all kinds of associated issues, such as lack of sleep.

The reality is, however, that a problem only becomes a problem when we ignore it. Think about that for a moment. Worrying about a problem, and feeling anxious about the problem, is not paying attention to the problem and your failure to understand the problem.

Step 1: Get to know your problem

Explore, examine, research, consult, take advice or meditate on the problem so that you get to know it. Ask:

What exactly is the problem here?

What are the facts?

Is it even a problem?

Why do I have this problem?

What circumstances or behaviours are causing it?

Why is there a risk this problem will continue?

When you do not analyse a problem and try to understand it in other words confront it head on it assumes a level of difficulty out of all proportion to the facts.

Knowledge of your problem is the key to success because out of that knowledge will come solutions.

Step 2: Put emotion aside, calm down and apply logical thought

Feeling ill, unable to sleep, disturbed stomach? That's emotion at work, and it's getting in the way of a calm, logical and factual approach to solving your problem.

When thinking through your problem, begin with the question: "What's the worst that could happen?" sometimes it's not nearly as bad as your emotion fuelled anxiety pretends.

As Stanley Arnold once said: "Every problem contains the seeds of its own solution."

Step 3: Belief

You have to back yourself. You have to believe in yourself, because if you don't everything is going to be a real struggle (read stories or watch movies about people who overcame impossible odds because it will help inspire you).

As Norman Vincent Peale puts it: "I Can + I Will = I did!".