What's Your Problem?

"To solve in an hour a problem on which my life depended, I’d spend the first 55 minutes defining the problem. That done, I could solve the problem in five minutes."

Purportedly, Einstein said this. Whether he did is immaterial because the point is valid: Don’t shortchange the effort to identify and frame whatever problem is before you. Unfortunately, "shortchanging" and "misidentification" are the norm even in C-Suites, boardrooms, and on marketing teams for two big reasons:

First: Anyone can easily name several reasons things aren’t progressing. The truth is items on the problem list may be coincidences, correlations, or symptoms of something bigger or excuses. They often don’t properly define the problem.

When I train executives methods to find or update their competitive advantage, or strategically plan for their organization's future viability, I teach them how to identify and frame the problem their initiative must address. I call it the "Essential Challenge” to be solved.

Second: Executives, board directors, and high-level teams are notoriously difficult to align. Some at the table think they're the smartest in the room. Some lack the confidence to speak up. Some fear that if they agree about a problem, their bosses will task them to solve it, and they aren't sure how. Regardless, when people aren't aligned behind the same right problem, it will be impossible to focus on the exact right solution. Any plan to address the problem will fail.

With the pace of disruption, disintermediation, and competitive challenges today, any delay in a problem's resolution could very well damn a company's future or end the career of its leaders.

Aligning business leaders is so difficult that clients often hire me to do it through a workshop. From experience they know that if one colleague is not well-versed in how to identify and productively frame a problem, then finding a solution will be frustrating, and unproductive for everyone. Alignment requires informative research, considerable insight, reflection, and a robust, well-facilitated discussion among colleagues These are among the hallmarks of Lindsay Foresight & Stratagem engagements. Among the outcomes? An essential challenge well defined, a jumpstart on a resolution strategy, and everyone in the room aligned to tackle it, complete with training on the best method to do so.

If you struggle to align colleagues on the essential problem your competitive strategy or long-term plan is to solve, consider a workshop that not only jumpstarts team alignment, but also equips it to solve the problem effectively!

See other problem-solvers' tips in the comments section of my LinkedIn Post.