Problem Solving Logic Can Be Dangerous

“Make peo­ple think for them­selves and they’ll get bet­ter at it.” — Your Oxy­gen Mask First

When it comes to a busi­ness issue, prob­lem solv­ing log­ic tells us that it needs to be solved but, some­times, it’s bet­ter to leave it alone. We can get so caught up jump­ing in to find a solu­tion that we lose sight about what can have the biggest impact on our project or business.

There are two ques­tions to ask:

1. Does the prob­lem actu­al­ly need to be solved?

For exam­ple: A prob­lem may be a 25¢ issue with a 25¢ down­side (zero risk). Don’t get con­sumed with the issue when there’s a $50,000 oppor­tu­ni­ty you can work on for one of your customers.

Prob­lem solv­ing log­ic makes the issue seem impor­tant and seduc­tive, a fire you want to put out. If it’s close to people’s homes, of course you need to take care of it, but, in real­i­ty, some fires just need to burn them­selves out.

If you take care of every lit­tle prob­lem, you’ll have a neat, order­ly small busi­ness. If you want to grow and progress, you have to pick your problems.

2. Do I need to be involved?

As a leader, your role is to make sure peo­ple are clear on their pri­or­i­ties, and to sup­port them when they need help. Solv­ing a prob­lem can be very sat­is­fy­ing but if you do all the think­ing, you will under­uti­lize your team.

Your role is to grow and devel­op peo­ple into being more capa­ble. Get them to find a solu­tion or get back to you with options.

The Chal­lenge

• What 25¢ prob­lems are you and your team cur­rent­ly putting ener­gy into?
• Are you involved in a prob­lem or oppor­tu­ni­ty that does­n’t real­ly need your atten­tion? Think of these as great oppor­tu­ni­ties for some­one on your team.
• On the flip side, what prob­lems or oppor­tu­ni­ties should you be more involved in?

If you’re not sure, review Chap­ter 12, Stop Being Chief Prob­lem Solver in my book.