The more problems you have, the richer you will be

Most people don't become rich because wealth comes from creating solutions to problems, yet the primary reflex of most people is to avoid problems (as well as "problem" people). By avoiding problems, we also make sure -- unfortunately -- that we miss opportunities for becoming rich.

Zig Ziglar said that you can have everything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want. In other words, if you help them solve their problems.

Of course, we also avoid thinking about our own problems. It's much easier to pick up the remote control and watch some artificial drama or mindless sitcom.

Yet, the key to becoming wealthy is first to FIND problems, then to SOLVE problems. The more problems you are confronted with, the better you become at problem-solving (i.e. at making money). Professionals like dentists, doctors, consultants, etc. all have a practice through which they meet, every day, people with all kinds of problems.

Stan Davis, in his marvelous little book titled Blur - The Speed of Change in the Connected Economy, suggests that companies and professionals should create "offers" (or solutions) and just let them loose in the market and see which ones attract customers' attention.

But how can you create a solution if you can't see what the problem is? Worse yet, how can you find problems if you don't actively look for them?

(In a future posting, I'll discuss how you can set up your own problem-solving practice on the Internet, using free Web applications).