Have you ever noticed how people will complain about a difficulty, and when you proffer a suggestion or offer to help, they turn it down with a dismissive comment.

They dismiss the problem (which they may have been moaning about for months), I don’t mean they dismiss you, though it has the same effect.

Of course, it may be that they don’t want to be offered a solution, they just need to talk about what’s troubling them.

When presented with someone else’s problem a sensible first step is to ask them what they hope for in sharing it with you, then you can respond accordingly.