Solving Problems Gives Life Meaning

Scott Peck's book, The Road Less Traveled, deals primarily with personal responsibility. The book’s opening sentence, "Life is difficult," introduces the theme that each day we face a series of challenges.  

Solving problems gives life meaning by enabling us to grow mentally and spiritually.

 As we grow in discipline and love, our empathy grows and our thoughts become broader--we begin to think critically, we make up our own minds about events, people, and ideas.  Without growth, we tend to define our worldview too narrowly becoming judgmental, narrowminded, inflexible, fearful, and dependent.

Avoiding problems produces emotional illness.  Since all of us tend to avoid the uncomfortable feelings engendered by problem solving, all of us to a greater of lesser degree lack complete emotional health.  All of us benefit from learning the value of facing our problems directly and experiencing the pain of solving problems.  
Constructive problem solving consists of four characteristics: delaying gratification--doing the most difficult things first, accepting responsibility by avoiding blaming and excuse making, telling the truth even when the truth causes us to suffer, and avoiding enmeshment by taking the risk of facing difficult tasks without being rescued by others.