Tag Archive for problems

A Boiling Frothing Volcano on the surface

Have you ever felt like the people you worked with carried around hostility that was a place beyond shame? Here’s my theory: people are a boiling frothing volcano underneath but it would be better to be a boiling frothing volcano on the surface.

I have appreciated working with people who told me straight up that I was being an ass when I deserved it. I suspect that the majority of the time most people hold their feelings down underneath and hold it in. While there is an element of risk that you will be considered uncivil, strange, emo crazy or just plain weird, I think it’s best to let people have it or at the very least let it out if you need to.

Now should we just go around blasting folks who perhaps have wormed their annoying way into our feeble minds? No. Just yelling is being a complete moron. But, when someone has crossed the line, fuck them, let them know exactly what you think. There is time and place for anger, so long as nobody gets hurt or stabbed, but you can’t let people abuse you time and time again without giving back just a little bit to let them know that you are not going to take it.

Bottom line: don’t let people manipulate you and get away with it. Let them know, in your own boiling volcano way, that you aren’t their bitch. Do it. Right now.

How to dissolve a problem: A lesson from a six year old

I went to the Mr Toys Toyworld yesterday to buy a Vmigo for my daughter.  She had some money she wanted to spend but she didn’t want to spend it because she really wants a DS lite. She got worked up to the point of tears about having to compromise one over the other.  Then as we talked about it she realised she could have both if she was prepared to wait for what she wanted.  If she simply waiting a few more months or perhaps up to a year she could get the Vmigo.  As I sit here typing this she looks very happy playing with the Vmigo.

The problem was: choose one or the other.  When in reality she could have chosen both and not had to compromise one or the other.  In academic circles we call this ‘dissolving the problem.’ This is where you take the higher order constraints of the problem and change the conditions that cause the issue to exist.  So instead of my daughter having to choose one or the other she came to a higher order conclusion where both were possible.  Try this way of thinking in your own life and why not let me know in the forum how it works out.

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The Pakistan crisis is a good example of a messy problem

In management circles the idea that problems can be messy (not structured, poorly defined) has been around for some time. I was reading the news this morning and came across a good example of a messy problem. This is the Pakistan crisis. A messy problem is said to have no clear solution that will work and any idea that is used might make the situation better or much worse. In this article the writer points out how the Pakistan crisis is good for business. Two different viewpoints are offered here and we can express them meaningfully as a narrative:

“The Pakistan crisis threatens economic stability

and

“Businesses are worried about their future because they attach it to Pervez Musharraf staying in power”

From a business point of view a political crisis is an economic crisis because later in the article the report notes the economy fell as a result of the news that the General may not be in control. This is perception is it not? The perception or idea that he is not control is causing economic problems. Think about it… that’s almost worth remembering and writing down!

So we see that what is happening in the political economy could make an impact on the business economy of Pakistan. Now to the solutions:

1. General Musharraf leaves

If he leaves the country may fall into economic turmoil destroying it’s livelihood.  There is a perceptual link between stability and Musharraf that needs to be handeld carefully here.
2. General Musharraf stays

If he stays political unrest may come anyway and then economic turmoil is coming anyway (apparently).

3. General Musharraf resigns his military post but stays on as Prime Minister

The market will see this as a show of weakness and in favour of political stability we have economic instability. This in turn would lead to more political instability in the long term and would keep the country in turmoil over a longer period of time.

4. General Musharraf keeps his military position but resigns leadership of the country

This option would see a new election. Possibly Imran Kahn or Benezir Bhutto could take power. This would mean a conversation would need to be struck between Kahn or Bhutto about how the military role would play out in the new government. I would think this is impossible given that both of the aforementioned people are currently on the run.

5. General Musharraf is ‘removed’ and a democratic election held… again

Say for a moment that Musharraf goes into exile and a new election is held. This would mean either Kahn or Bhutto would get in. Which would mean in the short term (according to the article) that economic unrest would follow. Now, for a country that already has a history of economic problems, this would be a huge blow. Economic turmoil always seems to follow political unrest.

6. Any of the above solutions may lead to unrest which in turn may lead to drug growth industries

Consider this article on Lebanon and the growing drug trade there.  When unrest occurs, the restrains are lifted off and crime begins to rise.  Unrest means chaos and this in turn means legal, political, economical systems begin to fall apart.  Sure, it’s the illusion of control but it’s an illusion that’s real enough alright.

These are just a few options that on the surface present new ideas which in turn present new problems. In order to effectively overcome such problems in life you need to dissolve the problem. How can this crisis be dissolved?  A higher order solution that removes the problems above is required.  Yet, none immediately spring to mind. Everything that I think of only makes new problems.  I could go on and list solutions here but what is really required is a change of perspective.   A fresh set of ideas.  Yet in a country that is in this much turmoil it’s unlikely that it will ever occur.  Do you have any ideas?

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The dartboard approach to life problems

 

In a previous post I spoke about the problems of life. I want to write briefly today about a way we can walk through problems using a dartboard approach. What is the dartboard approach? In short, the dartboard approach is where you take a best guess as what you should do and take it from there. Also remembering, to let go and just go for it. Here are some of the hallmarks to the dartboard approach.

1. When you can’t work out what to do… do something!

If you are stuck for an idea take whatever you can and just straight up go for it.  What’s the worse thing that could happen?  If it involves money take your time and consider your shot before throwing BUT don’t do nothing.  Make a plan that involves you taking some action first.

2. Make sure it’s an educated guess

When thinking through problems you have to look at what your options are and be thinking strategically.  A confident dart player does not simply shut their eyes and hurl the projectile without thought.  They are working off a ‘best guest’ scenario as to what their opponent is thinking.  In short they are sizing up their own plan of attack against what they think is the opponents next move.  There is no answer to what somebody will do next but those that make an educated guess and then take action are more likely to be right than wrong most of the time.

3. Have confidence in your choices 

I would hate to tell you this but most decisions are driven by emotions.  That means, you have a decision you make based on the emotions you have and as a consequence will often favour those.  If you are like me, you have a problem believing in yourself.  This means, most of the time you write something only to receive a criticism from somebody else who drags you down.  Remember, they are not responsible for your decisions… you are.  Listen to good counsel by all means (my next point), but do not allow yourself to be told by someone that you have no right to make choices.  You do have that right.  You should therefore be confident and say to yourself, ‘I made a choice and I am happy with it.’  Be confident and know that your choice is a good educated guess and it’s relevant to you and your situation.

4. Talk to others

When planning and taking action it’s a key thing to remember that you are not alone.  You have people around you that care deeply for you and if you ask them they will help you talk it through.   People are there to help.   If it’s a tough decision talk to them about it if you need a fresh set of eyes.   In a later post I will be speaking about how we can recognise the role emotions play in our lives.

5. Pray

Before I make a big decision I turn to God and ask him to help me.  After all, he is interested.  So I pray and ask for a feeling through my inner man that what I am about to do is right for me.  This works most of the time for me.  Sometimes I get a horrible feeling in my gut and this tells me not to do that thing I was planning.  Other times I feel comfortable or at peace with it… so this helps too.  There are times when my life seems to be going nowhere… if I stop and talk to God about it and write down what I believe he is telling me then I fair a lot better than I do otherwise.

In all of these things it’s important to recognise that life is not certain.  I was not born near a roadmap neither was I handed a list of what I am to do here.  Largely, I believe, it’s us to me what I do and how I travel.  I believe in destiny but at the same time I believe we have a free choice to make.  When I am struggling I resort to this list and it’s helped me greatly.  One time I didn’t know whether I should enrol in a course or not.  So I just enrolled.  I figured that, if I take the chance, I will probably be fine even if I get it wrong.  What happens if I do and I fail? Unless what you are planning to do is dangerous to others… so what?  I have failed at heaps of things and each one of those failures eventually led to an open door somewhere else that became a success.  Am I saying that you have to fail to succeed.  Yes.  So just think about it and throw that dart!

Thanks for reading.  Why not talk about this article in my forum? Alternatively you can leave a comment or talk to me personally about it.

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How to know there IS a problem

In the world filled with problems there is a great divide between stuff that’s a problem and stuff we think might be a problem. What do I mean? Well consider this: the problem of traffic in this fair city of Brisbane is a problem for me because I have to drive into it every morning when I go to work. To say it was a crisis would be a bit dramatic and probably amplify the thing way out of context. Yet in my experience, people do this all the time. So what I am going to do next is outline some ways you can know you really have a problem.

1. Is this problem an immediate concern

If the situation at hand is not solved immediately is there a chance that it can be solved later? If it can be solved later why are you so concerned about solving it right now. Why do you want to fix it and why on earth do you want to waste time and energy when other problems could be better solved now. Most people make something that’s an immediate concern where there is no need to do that. The reasons we do this could be because of: personal preference, political reasons, you think it has to be solved ‘right now’ and stuff like that. If the problem is not immediately a concern there is good chance that you are worried about something that may never occur.

2. Are you making something a problem because you want to see it solved

Consider your own life and the problems you have at the moment… are you creating new problems to solve because you want to. The reasons why you are doing that might be avoidable. In high times of stress humans fall back into crisis mode and make sense of situations differently than they do under normal circumstances. The consequences of what we are doing when we are looking to solve a problem often forms the area of concern itself. We create the concern so we can solve it. Over a period of time we build up an issue in our minds and then plan out ways to solve it as we create it. Why do we do this… it’s part of being human.

3. What is the evidence that has led you to think there is a problem

Evidence can be real (facts) or it can be the stuff in our brain that tells us something is real. Whenever you have come to a conclusion that there is a problem it’s because you have evidence that has lead you to this conclusion. What evidence do you have? Mental evidence… your thoughts? In your thinking process you have created a chain of evidence that links certain types of information together to form a logical conclusion. The conclusions you have reached are well thought out and logical based on rational (or in some cases irrational) thinking. To test this ask yourself what makes you think what you are thinking. The conclusion (problem) was reached through evidence (thoughts) what thoughts make you think there is a problem. Once you have isolated these… write them down and study them. Is it really that serious?

4. If there is a problem is there also a solution

Believing is intrinsic to human affairs. We find a problem it’s usually connected to certain kinds of solutions. When we look at a problem, in our mind is a subtle idea for a solution, that we have been mothering to the point where we are now finding a problem to birth our solutions. In the seventies they called this the garbage can of decision making. A problem can often be identified by overzealous people looking to test a ‘solution’ that is a personal pet project. Don’t be one of these people. As I will discuss in a later post problems and solutions are inexplicably related.

One final question to ask yourself as you look for problems is the question of meaning. What meaning does the problem have? If it’s a problem with a certain degree of importance (i.e. marriage) then you will be blinded by the all too familiar problem of being human. That however, is another post for another day. For now, think… do I really have a problem? Happy problem solving!

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