Most people know that how you frame a problem will influence how you solve it. This means that you have to carefully choose the words to describe your issue.
If you’re struggling to generate effective solutions, you might change the way you’ve phrased the problem. Specifically, ask yourself two questions ::
- What’s the subject? For example, let’s say you want to change an element of your organization’s culture. A problem statement focused on employees will generate different solutions than one that’s focused on how resources are allocated.
2. How do you measure the problem? The metric you use to define success or failure will influence the answers you come up with. For example, “We only bring one new product/service to market each year” will lead you to different solutions than “Only 5% of our revenue comes from products developed in the past three years.”
So next time you’re struggling to find a solution, try rewriting the problem statement. You’ll likely find that a small change of words can lead to a big change in your perspective.
Harvard Business Review
