Everyone Knows Problem Solving Is A Necessity, But Do You Know How To Do It Effectively?
Everybody can benefit from having strong problem solving skills as we all encounter problems on a daily basis. Some of these problems are obviously more severe or complex than others.
It would be wonderful to have the ability to solve all problems efficiently and in a timely fashion without difficulty, unfortunately though there is no one way in which all problems can be solved. Lucky for you, that means there are many ways to get to solve a problem! Certainly, there is a strategy which will work for you.
WHY PROBLEM SOLVING IS SO IMPORTANT?
We all have to make decisions. Whether you're a student, a parent, a businessperson, or the president of the United States, you face problems every day that need solving. Maybe you're trying to save your company, work with a difficult employee, or even end the world financial crisis. Perhaps you simply need to eat healthier or find more time to spend with your family? Regardless of this situation, having strong problem solving skills will help you get through it.
To be a successful entrepreneur you have to learn how to solve the many problems your company will inevitably encounter. Understand why? BUSINESSES FAIL BECAUSE OF POOR PROBLEM SOLVING! The line between success and failure is often thin. An important thing you can do to put yourself on the right side of that line is to maximize the quality of your knowledge and use strong methods to solve problems. In other words, the more you know, the better you are at solving problems.
Don't worry if it feels a bit unfamiliar and uncomfortable at first. You'll have lots of opportunities to practice!
WHAT WILL PROBLEM SOLVING HELP YOU DO?
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Fix Things that are Broken: Problem solving gives us a mechanism for identifying things that are broken or not operating in the way they are desired to work, figuring out why they are broken and determining a course of action to fix them.
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Address Risk: Problem solving can be applied to the anticipated future events and used to enable action in the present.
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Improve Performance: Problem-solving helps us understand relationships and implement the changes and improvements needed to compete and survive in a continually changing environment.
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Seize Opportunities: Problem solving isn’t just about responding to (and fixing) the environment that exists today. It is also about innovating, creating new things and changing the environment to be more desirable.
DIG INTO THESE STRATEGIES FOR PROBLEM SOLVING
Interested in learning more about this topic? Read these 5 interesting articles:
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“Seven Steps for Effective Problem Solving in the Workplace” by Tim Hicks, Mediate.com
“Identify the issues: Be clear about what the problem is and remember that different people might have different views of what the issues are”. -
“Problem Solving Best Practices” by Eller Executive Education
“Change Perspective: remember that there are multiple ways to solve any problem. If you feel stuck, changing perspective can help generate fresh ideas.” -
“16 Practical Tips for Solving Your Problems More Easily”[CS2] by Henrik Edberg, The Positive Blog
“Find the lesson or opportunity within the problem. When you are faced with a problem ask yourself: what is the good thing about this? What can I learn from this? What hidden opportunity can I find within this problem?” -
“Building a problem solving culture that last” by Randy Cook and Alison Jenkin
“Organizations cannot improve unless they consistently seek out and solve their problems. For most, that means undertaking a profound cultural change—which must begin from the top”. -
“Problem Solving Techniques and Tips (That Actually Work)”, by Lionel Valdellon, Wrike
“It's way too easy to shut down and negate ideas by using the word "but." (i.e. "But I think this is better...") Avoid this at all costs. Instead, expand on what was previously introduced by saying "Yes, and..." to keep ideas flowing and evolving”.
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