the-story-why

[Series 015] "So, What's the Actual Problem?" - The Power of Problem Definition 1. 55 Minutes to Think, 5 Minutes to Solve Albert Einstein is famously quoted as saying: "If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions." We usually do the opposite. When we hit a snag—whether it's a dip in our savings, a fight with a friend, or a project going off the rails—we spend less than a minute thinking before we jump straight to "solutions." "Should I switch gyms?" "Should I just text them sorry?" "Should I pull an all-nighter?" We rush because we're anxious. But applying a solution to a poorly defined problem is like climbing a ladder leaning against the wrong wall. It doesn't matter how fast you climb; you won't get where you want to go. If a problem persists, ...

"So, what does everyone think?" When this question gets asked in a group project meeting, this usually happens: 👴 Sarah: "This will cost too much money" (worried) 🧑 James: "People will definitely love it!" (optimistic) 👩 Emma: "Is this even allowed by school rules?" (concerned) 👦 Mike: "Yeah... sounds good I guess" (just agreeing) Everyone's saying different things, no one's reaching a conclusion, time's passing, and finally the loudest person's idea wins. Classic group project disaster. The problem? People are thinking in different modes at the same time. It's like everyone's on different radio frequencies trying to have a conversation. What if everyone thought in the same mode, one at a time, in order? 🎩 Edward de Bono's Genius Discovery: Six Thinking Hats the-story-why.blogspot.com In the AI Era, If You Don't...

In our last article ( [011] "Why Do I Have to Go to School?" ), we learned about the 5 Whys technique. It's a tool where you ask "Why?" five times to dig beneath the surface and find the real reason behind things. But here's the problem: just asking "Why?" five times doesn't automatically get you to the truth. Many people try the 5 Whys and fail. The reason? They can't tell the difference between 'symptoms' and 'root causes' . When you only chase what you can see on the surface, even five Whys won't stop you from wasting your effort. Today, I'll show you how to use 5 Whys properly—how to avoid getting stuck in the 'symptom trap' and reach the 'root cause'. 🧐 Symptoms vs Root Causes: Why Does It Matter? the-story-why.blogspot.com [Series 011] "Why Do I Have to Go to School?"｜Learning to Question the "Obvious" (Critical Thinking Training) th...