Jonathan Fields recently shared that while speaking with a COO of a public company, that COO had identified one single quality that makes someone “precious and indispensable.” That quality? He initially called it “the ability to create” but as he went on to describe more fully what he meant, it was “creative/problem solving.”
Problem solving, creating solutions, is the essential skill that can make you precious and indispensable.
You Need To Be a Problem-Solver
If you’re a solopreneur or a business owner, you know that you need to be a problem solver. Whatever service or product you’re offering needs to solve a problem for your clients and customers.
But what about those fires that keep coming up in your business?
You know, the glitch that comes up again and again.
What Do You Do?
Being terribly busy and since you’re juggling so many balls in the air, you patch it up. You get the thing going again and run off to the next problem or the next thing on your to-do list. At least, you move on until the problem crops up again.
Now you’re frustrated because it’s happened again and you thought you fixed it. But you fix it again. You fix it the same way you fixed it last time.
And it happens again. This time, at the worst possible time it could happen. Now, you’re in the middle of something big. And since you have no time, you fix it the same way you fixed it before.
The problem with that is that the core issue at the heart of the problem isn’t being fixed. You’re not really fixing it, you’re just getting it running again.
Or maybe you’re trying a whole new thing. That last productivity tool didn’t help, so maybe this other one will. But since you don’t know what the cause of the problem really is, you can’t really solve it. And you keep spinning your wheels.
And over the long-haul, you’ll end up spending more time than if you’d taken the time to fix it to begin with.
Look For Problems
When we talk about problem-solving in business, we shouldn’t just be looking for the things that are obviously broken. We should constantly be looking for problems.
We should constantly be looking for problems and how to fix them at the place they’ve taken root, in our businesses, in the marketplace, all around us.
Why?
Not only is that where you find the opportunity to make your business stronger and make it thrive. It’s also the way you end up saving time in the long run.
More than that, though, it’s also the place where you just might find another solution that your clients and customers need.
Why I Love Apple
As a proud member of the Cult of All Things Mac, I can’t tell you how many times they’ve come out with something only to have me make the comment, “Wow! They solved a problem I didn’t even know I had!”
I didn’t know I needed a tiny mp3 player to go running with. Or a phone that does so much that thing I’d actually use it for the least was....as a phone. (OK. Maybe I don’t need those things, but they sure do make my life more enjoyable, and that’s worth something.)
But I’m Just Me
I know. You’re thinking, “But it’s just me. I’m not that big and I don’t want to be that big.” That’s okay.
But consider this. Who would you rather be? The person chasing down potential clients trying to convince them your latest thing is the greatest thing ever?
Or would you rather have people clamoring at your door-step with a waiting list a mile long of people dying to work with you because you solved the problem other people haven’t solved yet?
The Problem With Problem-Solving
The problem with problem solving is that most of us aren’t taught how to do it effectively. We aren’t taught at school or when we enter the workforce. (There are companies who teach problem-solving to all of their employees, and even their suppliers. But they are few and far between.)
So we don’t know how to look for problems, how to begin to find problems We don’t know how to get ahead of the curve and solve problems before they become a crisis. (And once it’s a crisis, we’re be to reactionary mode, slapping a quick fix together again.)
Really Fixing It
The other thing we aren’t taught is how to get down to the core of the problem and fix it where it’s taken root. We only know how to fix it on a superficial level. This is why we fight the same fires over and over again.
Ahead of the Game
Businesses, and entrepreneurs, that get ahead of the game are the ones who learn how to problem solve in a big way. You may not be the COO of a publicly owned company, but effective problem solving is still the precious and indispensable skill you need to learn.
So, are you a fire-fighter? Or a problem-solver? Which would you rather be?
All the best!
deb
Photo credit: Deb Owen
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