Solve Business Problems Like a 5-Year-Old

by | Nov 13, 2017 | Problem Solving | 0 comments

Kid and cookie jar

We all have problems. What we don’t all have is a proven and consistent way to solve our problems. Problem solving should not be a process that turns you inside out. Have you ever watched a five-year-old get into a cookie jar? Yep, we are going to solve problems like a five-year-old.

Problem: Want cookie…Mom said no…cookie jar is on the kitchen counter. To get a cookie, the solution must meet 4 needs.

 

  1. How do I get to the cookie jar?
  2. How do I open the cookie jar?
  3. How do I get my cookie(s) out of the jar?
  4. How do I avoid being caught?

Solution elements might look something like these:

    1. Drag chair to counter.

 

    1. Take cookie jar off the counter and move the jar to the floor [Broke the cookie jar when I tried to open it on the counter last time].

 

    1. Twist lid off the cookie jar.

 

    1. Remove desired number of cookies… [Criteria: not too many to eat before Mom comes looking for me].

 

    1. Put cookies on counter [So the dog doesn’t eat them].

 

    1. Put lid back on cookie jar.

 

    1. Put jar back on the counter.

 

    1. Stand in chair to push cookie jar back to where it belongs.

 

    1. Put chair back.

 

    1. Get cookies and scram.

 

  1. Enjoy cookies. [Desired outcome].

This model of problem-solving followed the sequence of Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA). Dr. W. Edwards Deming credited Walter Shewhart with naming this model. So, you may know PDCA as the Deming or Shewhart Cycle. What is neat about this model is that you learn what worked (put cookies on counter so the dog doesn’t eat them) and what didn’t (opening the cookie jar on the counter – broke the cookie jar when it fell off the counter). Each time the five-year-old goes for his cookie fix, he’s improving his process. Improved processes run more effectively and deliver the desired outcomes more consistently.

What problems are sitting in front of you? Pick one. Take a sheet of paper and write the problem in the middle. Around the problem, list the criteria that the solution that must meet. Next list the steps you might need to follow to fix the problem. Arrange the steps in a logical order and try them out. Record what worked, what didn’t, and how you will change the process to get a better, faster, or more consistent result. Poof! Basic Business Problem Solving. What lurking problems are you going to solve next?

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