Problem solving
I think this is the single most important skill that any of us needs to develop over time. Everything is around solving problems in some or the other way, whether its cleaning clothes(washing machines, detergents) or commuting(cars, planes) or managing a business(accounts, crm software) etc…
I want to talk about a few important factors that come into play when solving problems and how we should make the most of them.
- Understanding: No significant problem, when it first appeared to mankind, was so simple that it could be understood immediately. When man first saw fire, he was absolutely amazed that how could that happen. It was a complex problem then. The important point here is that most of the times we solve or try to solve a problem without a complete understanding of the same. We need to accept that in all sincerity and realize that as we probe further we will gain more knowledge. Additionally this probing is also a part of the problem solving process and lack of understanding should not deter us from probing further, on the contrary it should be the stimuli for probing.
- Instincts: We all have a gut feeling about things, some of these being strong feelings while others not being so strong. It is important to realize that instincts help put together some parts of the puzzle which lack of understanding and knowledge left hanging around. As Malcolm Gladwell points out in his book Blink, our first hunch about certain things and the innate ability to thin slice an issue at hand can come in very handy. It’s important to pay attention to our instincts and more important to know when to put them into use.
- Experience: Repetitively doing the above will help us accumulate experience. Over time, it will also help us put together some pieces of the puzzles which understanding or instincts cannot really help us with. Its a two way road where our experience increases as we solve more problems and our instincts and ability to understand increase with more experience, hence increasing our problem solving skills. It’s smart to learn from the experience of others who have solved same/similar problems as that narrows down the range of error and helps as a guide to begin with.
- Resources: Today’s world does not suffer as much from lack of resources as much it does from over abundance of them. The onus is on us to carefully select the criteria to select the resources and then select the appropriate resources. Everything from research papers and lab equipment to team members and software are resources. What needs to be used when and how is the crucial issue.
- Measurement: There has to be a way to know how are we doing so far as we try to solve the problem. We need to measure ourselves against some standards, tried and tested metrics which have worked in the past etc… Selecting the right metrics and revising the list (only if necessary) is something we should pay sufficient attention to.
- Planning: Scheduling events is something we learn from nature. Day followed by night followed by day. Scheduling events, managing resources and measuring progress or failure are absolutely important to solve a problem. It helps you know the direction you are headed in and decide when/how any diversions are necessary. It is also important to realize that the goal is to solve the problem and not create/maintain the perfect plan.
- IDEAS: Above all, I consider this the most important factor that can aide us in solving problems. We have to realize that creativity rules. New and interesting solutions are always welcome, ofcourse if they work. Aeron chairs redefined office chairs and Google redefined search. Ideas lead to innovations. To be creative or to have creative people on the team is extremely important. There are many problems out there which have been solved but not all solutions out there are the ones that necessarily interest the consumers. There are few new problems to solve but many existing ones could definitely benefit from an innovative idea. I personally value creativity and ideas more than anything when it comes to problem solving.
Problems make our life, problem solving is pretty much all we do all our lives. There are no golden rules to solve problems but the few factors I mentioned above go a long way in developing the skill.
Feel free to leave comments on what you consider important or what has worked out well for you.
Update: Leo from Zenhabits added a link to this post on his Tumblr Blog. Thanks Leo.
