From Shane Parrish’s book “Clear Thinking”
The first principle of decision making: Define the problem
- “The first principle of decision-making is that the decider needs to define the problem. If you’re not the one making the decision, you can suggest the problem that needs to be solved, but you don’t get to define it. Only the person responsible for the outcome does. The decision-maker can take input from anywhere—bosses, subordinates, colleagues, experts, etc. However, the responsibility to get to the bottom of the problem—to sort fact from opinion and determine what’s really happening—rests with them.” (p. 125)
- “Defining the problem starts with identifying two things: (1) what you want to achieve, and (2) what obstacles stand in the way of getting it.
- Unfortunately, people too often end up solving the wrong problem.” (p. 125)
- “Perhaps you can relate to this scenario, which I’ve seen thousands of times over the years. A decision-maker assembles a diverse team to solve a critical and time-sensitive problem. There are ten people in the room all giving input about what’s happening—each from a different perspective. Within a few minutes someone announces what they think the problem is, the room goes silent for a microsecond . . . and then everyone starts discussing possible solutions.” (p. 125)
- “The social default prompts us to accept the first definition people agree on and move forward. Once someone states a problem, the team shifts into “solution” mode without considering whether the problem has even been correctly defined. This is what happens when you put a bunch of smart, type A people together and tell them to solve a problem. Most of the time, they end up missing the real problem and merely addressing a symptom of it. They react without reasoning.” (p. 126)
- “The result: organizations and individuals waste a lot of time solving the wrong problems. It’s so much easier to treat the symptoms than find the underlying disease, to put out fires rather than prevent them, or to simply punt things into the future. The problem with this approach is that the fires never burn out, they flare up repeatedly. And when you punt something into the future, the future eventually arrives.” (p. 126)
Why are we always so busy?
- “And because there are so many fires and so many demands on our time, we tend to focus on just putting out the flames. Yet as any experienced camper knows, putting out flames doesn’t put out the fire. Since all our time is spent running around and putting out the flames, we have no time to think about today’s problems, which can create the kindling for tomorrow’s fires.” (p. 127)
- “The best decision-makers know that the way we define a problem shapes everyone’s perspective about it and determines the solutions. The most critical step in any decision-making process is to get the problem right. This part of the process offers invaluable insight. Since you can’t solve a problem you don’t understand, defining the problem is a chance to take in lots of relevant information. Only by talking to the experts, seeking the opinions of others, hearing their different perspectives, and sorting out what’s real from what’s not can the decision-maker understand the real problem.”
- “When you really understand a problem, the solution seems obvious.” (p. 127)
Don’t let people define the problem for you. Figure out what is the root problem.
- The Definition Principle: “Take responsibility for defining the problem. Don’t let someone define it for you. Do the work to understand it. Don’t use jargon to describe or explain it. the root cause principle: Identify the root cause of the problem. Don’t be content with simply treating its symptoms.” (p. 127)
- “A handy tool for identifying the root cause of a problem is to ask yourself, “What would have to be true for this problem not to exist in the first place?” (p. 129)
- “Identifying the root cause of a problem applies in business too. A company might think that its problem is getting too few new sales, so it marshals resources to get new leads. But what if getting new sales isn’t the root of the problem? What if there’s an issue with, say, the product itself? The root cause of any problem like this is customer satisfaction, and that’s not necessarily the same as getting new customers. It could also be keeping existing customers happy. The way you define a problem changes what you see.” (p. 130)
- “There are two ways to safeguard this stage of the decision process against our defaults: create a firewall and use time to your advantage.” (p. 129)
Safeguard: “Build a problem-solution firewall. Separate the problem-defining phase of the decision-making process from the problem-solving phase.” (p. 129)
- “A mentor of mine once taught me that the best way to avoid finding the perfect solution to the wrong problem at work, when time allows, is to hold two separate meetings: one to define the problem, and one to come up with the solution.”
- “The most precious resources in any organization are time and the brainpower of your best employees. Asking for two separate meetings to come up with a solution to a problem that seemed obvious to everyone is not an easy sell. But it’s worth it. I’ve used this safeguard for many years, and I’ve seen it used over and over by people who consistently make good decisions. As soon as they start implementing it, they learn that having a single meeting for both tasks only makes them vulnerable to the social default—either their action-oriented teams will likely spend only a moment or two defining the problem and the rest of the meeting trying to solve it, or everyone will start suggesting solutions to their version of the problem. Either way the meeting won’t be as useful as it should be.”
- “When you spend time trying to understand the problem, you realize that you have a room full of people who have insight that you don’t have. One way to keep meetings short and avoid the signaling that comes from repeating information that everyone knows is simply asking everyone, “What do you know about this problem that other people in the room don’t know?” (p. 131).
- “Creating space between the definition of a problem and the solution to it works at a personal level too. Give yourself time to get clear on what the problem is before you jump into solving it. More often than not, you’ll discover that your first attempt to define the underlying issue is rarely the most accurate.” (p. 131)
Safeguard: “Use the test of time. Test whether you’re addressing the root cause of a problem, rather than merely treating a symptom, by asking yourself whether it will stand the test of time. Will this solution fix the problem permanently, or will the problem return in the future? If it seems like the latter, then chances are you’re only treating a symptom.” (p. 133)
- “Short-term solutions might make sense in the moment, but they never win in the long term. You feel like you’re moving forward when you’re actually just going in circles. People gravitate toward them because finding a short-term fix signals to others that they’re doing something. That’s the social default at work. It fools people into mistaking action for progress, the loudest voice for the right one, and confidence for competence. Time eventually reveals short-term solutions to be Band-Aids that cover deeper problems. Don’t be fooled!” (p. 133)
- “You can put your energy into short-term solutions or long-term solutions but not both. Any energy that’s channeled toward short-term solutions depletes energy that could be put into finding a long-term fix. Sometimes short-term solutions are necessary to create space for long-term solutions. Just make sure you’re not putting out flames in the present that will reignite in the future. When the same problem returns again and again, people end up exhausted and discouraged because they never seem to make real progress. Extinguish the fire today so it can’t burn you tomorrow.” (p. 133)
Tip: “Remember that writing out the problem makes the invisible visible. Write down what you think the problem is, and then look at it the next day. If you find yourself using jargon in your description, it’s a sign that you don’t fully understand the problem. And if you don’t understand it, you shouldn’t be making a decision about it.” (p. 131)