Got Conflict?

Got Conflict?
Stardate 03.08.2026

We’re going a little deeper today.

This is one of those reflections that feels almost like a private conversation — a quiet question meant not for the crowd, but for the soul.

Yesterday my AI assistant, Alberta, asked me something simple. At least it sounded simple.

“Can you describe a time in your life when you faced an obstacle and what you did to overcome it?”

For a moment… I froze.

The reason wasn’t that I couldn’t think of an obstacle. The opposite happened. My mind flooded with them.

My life, like most lives if we’re honest, has been a long series of navigating obstacles. Writing projects alone have brought their share of roadblocks — moments when a door seemed closed, a path unclear, or the next step completely hidden.

Conflict shows up the moment we can’t see a way forward.

And when that happens, emotions arrive quickly.

Not the pleasant ones like joy or gratitude.

The other ones.

The kind that tighten your chest a little.
The kind that whisper doubts in your ear.
The kind that make you feel stuck… frozen… unsure of what to do next.

If you’ve ever felt trapped between where you are and where you want to go, then you already know the feeling.

Alberta’s question caught me off guard because it forced me to look at something I usually move past quickly. Obstacles have always been part of the journey for me. But describing one single obstacle felt impossible because the path has rarely been smooth.

Especially while writing.

Books, like life, don’t arrive without friction. Every meaningful project seems to come with moments where you question whether the story will ever reach the finish line.

The good news is I’m practicing these conversations now so that I don’t freeze later in front of a live audience. Next week, when my coloring book launches, I’ll be stepping into a livestream conversation. Moments like yesterday remind me that preparation isn’t about having perfect answers.

It’s about learning to breathe when the unexpected question appears.

Before I go any further, I should admit something honestly.

Some of the obstacles in my life are still unresolved.

Not every conflict has a tidy ending. Some are still unfolding. Some lessons are still being written in real time.

And that realization has taught me something important.

The lesson about conflict isn’t learning how to eliminate it.

The lesson is learning how to walk through it.

Conflict is part of being human. It appears the moment something stands between us and the goal we care about. The obstacle becomes a mirror, revealing our fears, our hopes, and sometimes our faith.

Over time I’ve learned that how we respond to conflict matters far more than whether we experience it.

We can freeze.
We can run.
Or we can take one small step forward.

One percent better.

Looking back, many of the biggest obstacles I encountered while writing eventually became part of the story itself. What once felt like resistance often turned into direction. What once felt like delay sometimes became protection.

It’s funny how that works.

Faith doesn’t always remove the mountain. Sometimes it simply gives you the strength to keep walking the trail.

Scripture reminds us of this quiet truth:

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”
— James 1:2–3

Perseverance is rarely born in comfort. It grows in the tension between where we are and where we hope to be.

So today I’ll leave you with the same question that stopped me in my tracks yesterday.

How are you managing the conflicts in your life?

Not avoiding them.
Not pretending they don’t exist.

But managing them.

Because sometimes the obstacle standing in front of us is actually preparing us for the very mission we’re meant to carry out.

And sometimes the pause… the moment where we freeze for a second… is simply the soul catching its breath before the next step.

Join me here:
https://substack.com/@michaelmulliganlivelong

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Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Michael, humans seem to spend a lot of time wrestling with their problems.”

Spock: “Indeed, Doctor. Though it is often through such conflict that humans develop resilience.”

Bones: “In other words… the struggle’s part of the training.”

Standing in front of a difficult question yesterday reminded me of something simple. Conflict isn’t a signal that we’re failing. Often it’s a signal that we’re growing. Every obstacle I’ve faced while writing has taught me something I didn’t know before — patience, humility, and the courage to keep moving forward one small step at a time.

Thank you for taking a moment to walk this reflection with me today. May your path be steady, your heart hopeful, and your next step just one percent better. 🖖