What You Don't Know Will Help You at Problem-Solving

What’s your approach to problem solving? There are several frameworks available which you could use to give a better structure to your problem-solving process, but that’s not what I’m referring to.

Some weeks ago, speaking with a colleague about a specific problem, her approach to solving the problem we had at hand surprised me. Unconsciously, she limited herself to solutions she could implement all by herself. Which were, of course, limited.

Some people limit their solutions to what they think they can achieve with what they already know. The solutions you can come to with this fixed mindset are most of the time unsatisfactory. You don’t realize that you can grow. You don’t consider asking for help, or hiring the appropriate person or consultant for the job.

Other people start with the end in mind. What needs to be done to solve this problem? What's the best solution? How can we tap into whatever knowledge is necessary? They don’t see the lack of a particular skill as limiting, because they know they can either learn new skills or hire someone more capable to do the relevant parts of the job.

In her excellent book Mindset, Carol Dweck calls these two different mindsets fixed mindset and growth mindset.

What’s your approach to problem solving?

Photo by [Sanwal Deen](Photo by Sanwal Deen on Unsplash) on Unsplash