Solve the Problem or Manage It

What do you do about problems that can't be solved/

It's not that you can't solve them or that you haven't found the person who can solve them, some problems simply can't be solved. They must be managed instead.

The best source of help and information I've found on unsolvable problems is the book Polarity Management - Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems by Barry Johnson.

The book includes valuable insights about spotting and managing unsolvable problems. He calls these polarities: "sets of opposites which can't function well independently." Within each pole, or opposite force, are upsides and downsides - things we would want to keep and things that we could live without. So often we do not get to choose one or the other - in order to keep the good aspects of a force we must live with the bad. To live with the bad, we must manage the forces in action.

We do not do that by eliminating either side. We manage both sides. We make peace with the reality that faces us while still not giving in to dysfunction. Instead, we seek high performance results by skillfully using what's available in optimal ways.

A simple example from the book is breathing: In one phase we inhale to intake oxygen. In the other phase we must exhale to clean out the carbon dioxide and prepare us for the next inhale. The two are opposites and yet interdependent. You can't really have one without the other.

I like breathing as an example because it is such a crucial part of operating as a centered leader. When we face troubling situations, when we work on unresolved problems, when we deal with strong personalities we must remain to breathe skillfully, mindfully. Taking the time to manage that breathing (even for a few seconds) allows our natural systems to operate more effectively. We'll breathe no matter what (when we are alive!) and yet we can influence the quality of that breathing through intentional, practiced actions.

Similarly we will have unsolvable problems no matter what - yet we can manage them and achieve our best possible results when we skillfully, mindfully apply high performance management techniques and practices.

A problem that can't be solved can be managed. The future is always open to re-design.

I'm all about solving problems and achieving goals. But, when the problem is really a polarity to be managed, that's the path to take.

What unsolvable problems are you wrestling with today? Could it be that they include polarities (opposites) that could be regulated or managed? What's your next step?

-- Doug Smith

Comments

Creating Alignment

What is the connection between your actions and goals? How do your goals connect to your overall mission and purpose? Do you have a sense that what you do matters and gets you closer to accomplishing what is most important to you? High performance leaders align their actions to their goals and their goals to their mission. It's how they get things done that matter. It's the filter of success. Does that task that someone is asking you to do contribute to your purpose? Then do it. If it doesn't, negotiate another path, another step, perhaps another set of hands to get it done. Our time is too valuable to spend it on anything that does not contribute to our happiness, and our happiness is largely dependent on doing what matters most to us and that contributes to the well-being of others. We can run, we can hide, but without that alignment of action, goals, and mission how will we ever reach our potential? Alignment creates that guidance that w...

Success Starts With Action

What will you DO about it? Have you ever asked anyone that question? Have you ever asked yourself? People may complain. People may document faults and shortcomings. People may expect more than they are getting -- but nothing happens without taking action. Success starts with action. All success depends on action. What can you do right now toward achieving your goals? Sometimes we have finely crafted plans for achieving our goals, and yet miss acting on those plans. And, sometimes we miss the plans altogether and simply hope for the best with our goals. Plans, and hope are important but what matters most is action. What you DO to achieve your goals. Actions matter because they place us in motion. Then thrust us toward our vision. Even when we make mistakes and miss our targets, the energy created by action propels us forward. We can correct mistakes. We can change direction. We can accomplish great things. But first we must place our selves in motion through action. Wha...

Work Your Way There

Big goals need little goals to build momentum. -- doug smith

A Useful Question

A useful question: what would be an even more creative way to make this better? -- doug smith

Solving Problems with the Highest Payoff

With so many problems to choose from, which do you pick to solve first? Some people like to build momentum by moving from smallest problem to biggest problem. If this works for you and you're happy with the results, keep doing it. Other people find that once they start with small problems or easy to do tasks that they get stuck there. It becomes too hard to move forward. If this is you, you're probably ready for something different. How about going right for the biggest payoff? When I worked at GE we used a tool called the Payoff / Effort matrix. With so much to work on, we used this tool to determine where to start. Should we put extra effort into something that would provide little payoff? Clearly, not when the same effort could produce more payoff in another area. Solve the problems that provide the biggest payoff first. Not only will you get your biggest problem solved, but you will likely find that you now have more resources and energy to solve other problem...

Solving Problems Requires The Courage to Tell The Truth

Can a problem be so tough that we deceive ourselves about solving it? In any problem there is a temptation to soften the edges, smooth the rough spots, to paint a better picture than we see. Sometimes we take sides and spin the truth in favor of our side, even when that contributes to a conflict or problem. We can do better than that. Solving problems together requires the courage to tell the truth as you see it. Not our version of the truth. Not our ideal of the truth. The truth as it exists, weak spots and all. If we want to clearly analyze a problem, we must be willing to see, and tell the truth. -- Douglas Brent Smith

Shine That Light

Are you looking to reveal your problems or seeking to hide them? Hidden problems don't go away -- they just get harder to solve. If you can shine a light on your own problems you have a fast start in solving them. And, you DO want to solve them, right? -- Douglas Brent Smith

You Matter! Dave said so! by David Spiegel

Here's another guest entry from my friend and fraternity brother, David Spiegel. Late yesterday afternoon, as I was finishing my last run of the day, my daughter Becca called me. She was having one of those "I think you need a Snickers" days. Without rehashing each and everyone one of the multitude of things that were annoying her, suffice it to say she was less than a happy camper. As she ranted on and on, barking about the challenges of the day, each description ended with her saying "what does it matter?" She was not questioning the event itself. She was questioning why she bothers to make the choices she does, trying to create the life that she wants. What does it matter if I watch what I eat....the scale doesn't move! What does it matter if I workout as much as I do? The damn scale still doesn't move. What does it matter that I get blood work done? The doctor doesn't care to understand my lifestyle. He has pre-f...

It's About The Cause

The art of leadership is keeping the ego out of the play. It's not about you. It's never about you. As a leader, it's about the cause. -- doug smith

Lead On Level Ground

How does it feel to be stuck in the middle? Maybe you know what I'm talking about -- stuck in the middle of your organization with tough customers above you, tough team members below you, and fascinatingly frustrating peers beside you. The life of a supervisor is one surrounded on every level by challenges. It may be the toughest spot in the organization. Supervisor may be the toughest job because you can always be over ruled from above, undermined from below, and ignored from your peers. What's the solution? Lead on level ground. Find ways to leave everyone's title at the door. Think of people as peers -- no matter where they sit in the organization. Your boss is a person with needs and dreams. Your direct-reports imagine themselves as critically important (and they are). Your peers want and need your help in more ways than they can express. It's all much more easy once you believe -- and behave -- as if titles are must less important than goals. People a...

High Performance Leadership

Search This Blog