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jump straight to the "Getting to the Source" Exercise
How to Solve Repeating Problems
The first time you encounter a new
problem, what you most need is information and expert
advice. But repeating problems are frustrating, because no
matter how many experts or “proven solutions” you apply,
they just keep coming back.
Repeating problems keep coming back
because they are symptoms of a deeper issue. As long as you
focus on the symptom, it’s just like pulling the top off a
weed and leaving the roots – no matter how much time,
energy, or money you invest, it will just keep growing
back.
For solutions that last, you need to
find the source of a problem, and make a deeper systematic
change. Of course roots are underground, and they don’t
usually look much like the big plants that show up as weeds
in your garden, and it’s the same with problems and the
systems that cause them. They often don’t look alike at
all. So how do you find the roots?
You need to look for patterns. In some
cases, you can sequence the events that happen before and
after a problem. Sometimes you’ll find the source in the
personalities and relationships of the people who are
involved with the problem, including yourself. Here’s an
example:
EXAMPLE
Customers want the product yesterday, production skips
steps to rush the product, someone makes a mistake, the
customer is angry, someone rushes to fix the problem without
documenting what was done, later the customer asks for a
standard replacement and gets the wrong part because
documentation was missing, the customer is angry, someone
rushes to help, etc. etc. etc. In this case:
1. The repeating problems are: Angry customers,
mistakes in production
2. The “repeating but temporary” solutions are
“appeasing angry customers with fast customer service”, and
possibly some form of “training or disciplining
production employees”
3. The
pattern is: Rush, rush, rush to appease
the angry or demanding customer, make mistakes in the rush,
customer gets angrier and more demanding.
4. The
root of the problem is: Rushing
5. Now we look at what causes us to rush around in
response to a customer request. Dedication to the principle
that the customer is always right? The fear that we will
lose the customer? The need for approval?
There are many possible solutions. One might be to brainstorm on ways
to talk with customers about the benefits of waiting one
more day for the product so you can uphold your quality
standards. The important thing is that you are addressing
the issue at the source and changing the system that causes
the problem. Notice that this deeper solution is almost
the opposite of the solutions you would apply by only
looking at the surface problem.
Here is a series of questions you can
ask yourself to help you discover what is at the bottom of a
repeating problem you are facing today:
- Write a brainstormed list of when
this problem has come up for you before:
- In what way was it similar to
the problem you have today?
- In what ways was it different
from the problem you have today?
- What solutions did you
implement then, and how well did they work for you?
- Why would or wouldn’t you want
to try those solutions now?
- If you have tried some of the
same solutions, how were your results different this
time from when you had the problem before?
- What key people, issues, dynamics,
or components are the same every time or most times
you’ve had this problem?
- What thoughts and feelings come up
for you consistently every time this problem comes up?
- When this problem comes up, what
does it make you wonder about yourself, other people, or
the world?
- If you could change yourself,
other people, or the world, what would you change to
make this kind of problem go away forever?
- How much control do you have in
this situation? Do you have complete control over the
problem, some influence over the problem, or no control
over anything except your response to the problem?
- Make a list of possible actions / decisions available to you. Make a
table like the one below to analyze possible solutions.
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Possible Action / Decision |
Worst Possible Consequence |
Best Possible Result |
How
I will handle worst possible consequence |
How
I will benefit from worst possible consequence |
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If you
have identified a pattern in your business or your life and would like to
e-mail me your responses to this exercise I would be happy
to share my feedback and comments:
nahid@aspyrre.com
© Copyright May 2006, Nahid Casazza, Aspyrre, |
