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Welcome to the New Year.  My hope is that 2021 will bring peace and happiness to all my readers.  The last few weeks we have been working on How to creatively solve problems and I introduced the top ten.  We are on the last strategy:   Act and Solve Your Problem

Get busy. Get going. Develop a sense of urgency. The faster you move in the direction of your clearly defined goals, the more creative you will be. The more energy you will have. The more you will learn. And the faster you will develop your capacity to achieve even more in the future.

You can solve any problem, overcome any obstacle or achieve any goal that you can set for yourself by using your wonderful creative mind and then acting consistently and persistently until you attain your objective. Success is a mark of a creative thinker, and when you use your ability to think creatively, your success can be unlimited.

How many times have you known what you need to do but just procrastinated?

I hope you have enjoyed this series on the ten ways to problem solve.  Join me next week as I will start discussing the ten techniques to increase your personal productivity!

This is New Year’s week! I think I can speak for everyone when I say that I am glad 2020 is coming to an end.  We have been discussing 10 ways to creatively solve a problem.  Here we are, already on Strategy number 9.  Strategy 9 is Set A Deadline for When Things Should Be Solved

A decision without a deadline is a meaningless discussion. If it is a major decision and will take some time to implement, set a series of short-term deadlines and a schedule for reporting.

With the deadlines and sub-deadlines, you will know immediately if you are on track or if you are falling behind. You can then use your creative thinking to alleviate further bottlenecks or choke points.

It is Christmas week!  When I was a child, we started celebrating this week as we were out of school and knew a lot of good things were about to happen.  I miss those childhood memories.  If you have been following along, we are up to strategy number 8 of the ten ways to creatively solve a problem.  This strategy is Take Complete Responsibility for Your Decision

Accept complete responsibility for implementing the decision. Many of the most creative ideas never materialize because no one is specifically assigned the responsibility for carrying out the decision.

As personal homework when something does go wrong to you find yourself automatically making excuses?  Just start paying attention.  This will help you in two ways.  One it makes you examine your decision through the eyes of others and two, you will get more respect.

I am up to number 7 this week on how to solve a problem creatively and again, I would like to say, that these are the top suggestions from a lot of different thought banks.  I like them because they are simple and do not require anything except your own brain.  Number 7 is Measure Your Progress.

Set measures on your decision. How will you know that you are making progress? How will you measure success? How will you compare the success of this solution against the success of another solution?

It is amazing how many people do not measure.  Dr. Stern often says in class that you could be doing amazing things and just do not take credit for how wonderful you really are.  You cannot do this if you are measuring your progress. If you do not know how to measure remember our programs all include a lot of these tools.

I hope you have enjoyed my series on creative problem solving.  Keep in mind that the 10 strategies I am presenting are of a collective mind.  Most people agree that these are the top ten.  I am up to strategy number 6, if you just joined us.  Strategy Six is Prepare for The Worst Possible Outcome and then think about how to Overcome it

Before you implement the decision, ask, “What’s the worst possible thing that can happen if this decision doesn’t work?” If your solution does not work be ready to accept that and try something else.

Hard to believe in just a few weeks we are already half-way through my series on creative problem solving.  This week I would like to present strategy number five:  Pick the Best Solution to Solve Your Challenge

Pick the best solution by comparing your various possible solutions against your problem, on the one hand and your ideal solution, on the other. What is the best thing to do currently under the circumstances?

Of course, you would need to pick a solution – right?  How can you move forward without doing that?  But sometimes indecision is what makes us stumble.  You have heard, I am sure, that a bad decision is better than no decision.  Sometimes choosing the decision is what helps you think out the pros and cons.  Just because you picked a decision does not mean you have to move forward.  You can always pick another solution.  Choosing a solution, however, opens the door for feedback and exploration.

First, I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. 2020 has certainly been a challenge.  I think that Strategy Number Four in my series of 10 ways to creatively solve a problem is one that is easy to skip.  Dr. Stern often says in class that we live in a reactive society and that often we just need to take a step back to think and plan our next move.  Strategy Number Four is) Clearly Define the Ideal Solution to The Problem

What exactly must the solution accomplish? What ingredients must the solution contain? What would your ideal solution to this problem look like? Define the parameters clearly.

Hi, if you have been keeping up with my posts then you know I have been presenting 10 creative problem-solving strategies.  Here is number three.  Most every class at SSD Global Solutions focuses on this area.

Number #3 Use Critical Thinking to Approach the Problem from Several Different Directions

Ask, “What else is the problem?” Do not be satisfied with a superficial answer. Look for the root cause of the problem rather than get sidetracked by the symptom. Approach the problem from several different directions. Brainstorm different solutions, because there are likely multiple solutions to the same problem, not just one.

If you read my blog last week, you will know that I am presenting 10 creative ways to solve a problem.  They are food for thought and do not necessarily need any special tools or software. I presented strategy one last week, Change your Language about the problem from negative to positive.  Here is the second strategy which is also something almost every class at SSD Global Solutions supports:

 Define the Situation or Problem Clearly

What exactly is the challenge you are facing? What is causing you the stress and anxiety? What is causing you to worry? Why are you unhappy? Write it out clearly in detail.

Recently SSD added a course on how to be more productive. Being more productive is not all about work. It is about spending time doing what matters to you. That can be family/friend time, work time, or even being able to spend time on personal entertainment. The way to be more productive changes about once a decade. Everyone at SSD is still a big fan of Steve Covey methods on organization and determining what is really important. But, the biggest advancements, in my opinion are the software tools that allow you to think and be creative.