Some teams are very good at figuring out what could go wrong. People on a team are always ready to ask tough questions and point out possible risks when their coworkers come up with new ideas or suggest new projects. But other members of the team should also give good feedback.
How can you, as a leader, help change the culture on your team from one that’s focused on identifying problems to one that fixes them with positive frames and mindset that encourage them to give ideas?
It’s not always bad to have a team that is quick to point out problems and say what could go wrong. But if your team spends too much time looking for problems instead of solving them, this can hurt productivity and morale.
“Talent is attracted to possibility, opportunity, and agency,” according to Liane Davey, professional speaker and author of the book The Good Fight. “You will lose great people if your team is always talking about why it can’t, rather than about how it can.” She says.
The best teams are able to do both. As leaders, our job is to “create an environment that allows for both creativity and analytical thinking” so that our team can come up with solutions that are based on the real world.
Here’s how.
Step 1. Recognize the Symptoms
A “symptom”is an indicator or a sign that a problem exists. For instance, if your team has low morale, this is a sign that something is wrong (a problem). Low morale doesn’t happen on its own, and it can’t be fixed by itself. The underlying problem may be overworked, boredom, poor management, pending layoffs, etc.
Questions we can ask to identify the underlying problems include:
- What’s not working?
- What do you want to change?
- Where are you now?
Step 2. Identify the Causes
Once the problem has been identified, in order to solve it, we need to look at the root causes of the problem, not the symptoms. Root causes explain how the symptoms came about and they are the factors that cause the problem.
Questions we can ask:
- What are the underlying causes? (Why)
- What’s stopping you from fixing this? (Why)
We do root cause analysis by asking a lot of “why” questions. A symptom may be caused by something else each time that you can answer the “why” question. Continue to ask why for each answer until you can no longer come up with a logical answer.
Step 3. Define the Desired Outcomes
A desired outcome is a statement that makes goals more concrete. As a leader, you need to be clear about the changes you’re looking for from your team. When the desired outcome is not clearly defined, you are unable to describe what specific change(s) you hope to occur as a direct result of your program that will help you achieve your goal.
To develop a useful set of desired outcomes, describe what specific change(s) you hope to occur using the SMART principles:
- Specific, describing what will change.
- Measurable, focusing on how much change is expected.
- Achievable within a given time frame.
- Realistic, accurately addressing the scope of the problem.
- Time-phased, indicating when the outcome will be measured.
Questions to ask:
- What do you want instead of the problem?
- Where do you want to get to?
- What do you want to achieve?
Step 4. Activate the Resources
Resources refer to the capabilities and qualities you have that you can use to help solve the problem. Resources can be internal or external. They can be contacts, money, or technology. On the other hand, they can also be experiences, skills, and beliefs that help to get rid of the problems and reach the goals.
Questions to ask:
- What resource would help you to overcome the symptoms and causes?
- What resources do you need in order to move to your preferred destination?
- What skills or knowledge do you have to achieve your/ your goal?
- What’s the first steps, the second, and the ones after that?
- How can you get there?
Step 5. Determine the Desired Effects
Effects are the long-term, systemic, and higher-level results of the outcome. It is the desired effect of achieving the goal. Effects are the “what for” of the goals, they express the motivation and the effect of achieving the goal.
Questions to ask:
- What will change for you if the goal is achieved?
- What will be possible for you once the goal has been achieved?
- What will you learn from it?
- When you get there, what does that do for you?
Embrace Problem Solving
Growth and opportunity can only happen if we can solve problems. In business and in life, they say that failure is the most important thing you can learn from. Be the leader who shows maturity, takes risks, and holds people accountable. The more we learn, the more we grow. Embrace problem solving and the many hidden treasures it holds.
Curated by Danielle Tan.
Reference:
- Use root cause analysis to get to the bottom of an issue | TechRepublic
- Coaching Conversations for Transformational Change, Meta-Coaching Volume II by L.Michael Hall Ph.D with Michelle Duval & Robert Dilts.
