The High Cost of Problem Solving

by Dov Gordon

In his book The Path of Least Resistance Robert Fritz outlines the crucial distinction between Creating and Problem Solving.

"Creating is taking action to have something come into being. Problem Solving is taking action to have something go away – the problem."

Creating* is the way of the artist. Beethoven wasn't looking to solve a problem when he wrote his fifth symphony. To the contrary, he toiled to take something truly beautiful -- that only he could see and hear in his mind -- and give it form so he could share it. No abiding masterpiece was ever created by an artist trying to solve a problem or to make something go away.

This mindset is crucial in business.

As with most everything in life and in business, our success at creating depends on the questions we ask ourselves. Consider this:

The January 2004 issue of Scientific American profiled Curt Herzstark who created the Curta, the first mechanical pocket calculator. The Curta was so incredibly functional that it dominated the marketplace for more than twenty years until digital calculators rendered it passé.

Herzstark came from a world where the Marchant Lightweight adding machine weighed an astounding 34 pounds! Adding machine manufacturers knew there was a need to make a smaller, easily portable adding machine. Yet the best they could do was incremental improvements in size and weight.

Along comes Curt who created a mechanical marvel that weighed a mere 230 grams and would fit comfortably in the palm of your hand.

Why did Curt succeed where all the others failed?

Curt explains that while all the other manufacturers asked "How can we take this big adding machine and make it smaller, lighter and more easily portable?" he asked a better question: "What does this machine have to look like so someone can use it?”

“It can't be a cube or a ruler,” he surmised. “It has to be a cylinder so it can be held in one hand. And holding it in one hand, you would adjust it with the other hand, working the sides, top and bottom. The answer could appear on the top.”

What was the weakness in the question asked by the adding machine manufacturers? ("How can we take this big machine and make it smaller and lighter?")

Simple: Inbuilt in the question is a restrictive clause. They wanted to take this machine and make it smaller. By asking a poor question they severely limited their thinking and their business to small, incremental improvements.

Curt's question was completely different. ("What does it need to look like so people can use it?")

He wasn't limited by what was extant today. As he asked the question he got clearer and clearer as to what it should look like. Then he worked backwards from there.

The manufacturers struggled with a problem: "How can we make the darn thing smaller?!" Keeping in mind Fritz's definition above, they were looking to make the problem of size go away.

Curt was focused on creating something that, while it would solve the size problem, that wasn't his motive. It was a natural byproduct of his creation.

The manufacturers were PROBLEM SOLVERS. Curt was an artist, a CREATOR.

If your business has a cash flow problem and you ask "What can we do to get rid of our cash flow problem?" you are taking action to make something go away: your cash flow problem. Inbuilt in your question is a restrictive clause that limits your thinking and your business.

If, on the other hand you ask: "What do we want our business to look like from a financial health point of view?" (In other words: "What do we want to create?") And you follow that with: "If that is where we want to go, what should we do today to move in that direction?"

There is a world of a difference between asking “How can we cut costs and increase efficiencies?” and asking “What does our organization look like when it operates like a lean-well-oiled-machine?”

In the creative orientation we still face problems, but they are just a part of the terrain we must traverse – not a destination (or anti-destination?) in their own right.

This is a subtle distinction. The best way to master it is to use it. So what major problem is your organization wrestling with? What kinds of questions should you stop asking? Which questions could you ask instead so as to change the frame from problem solving to one of creating?

Dov Gordon’s CEO THOUGHT-PROVOKER™ Actions:

1. Close your eyes and picture someone (an employee, client, etc.) informing you of a problem. In your minds eye, see yourself reacting in each of the two ways:
   
   -- You ask: "Ok, what's the problem here?" Notice how you feel when asking this question.
   
   Now try this:
   
   -- You ask: "Ok. What are we trying to create here?" Notice how you feel when asking this question. If you are like most people who've participated in my seminars and workshops, you will literally feel a difference in your gut.


2. Where are your employees focused – on solving problems or creating? If the latter, great. Ensure this continues. If the former, how can you change the focus of questions, discussions and debates amongst your employees to focus more on what you are really trying to create?


3. Read The Path of Least Resistance by Robert Fritz.

*Note: When we refer to creating, we are not talking about "being creative." That is not the same and will be addressed separately in a future article.

Copyright 2008 © by Dov Gordon. All rights reserved.

DOV GORDON helps senior executives make better, wiser decisions and quickly get things done. He is sought after for his perspective and advice on formulating and implementing strategy, developing an innovation culture and cultivating superior team work. His latest white paper on strategy, Spitting In the Wind, has received wide acclaim. Dov and his articles and white papers can be reached via his websites www.GordonGroupEC.com and www.Superior-Strategy.com or via email to dovgordon@gmail.com

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