Problem Solving

Every day, each one of us are confronted with some situations which needs solution. Someone misses the bus to his office, someone suddenly falls sick, someone has some other problem.These problems are so common that they are treated as routine. Such things get solved each day, and life goes on. 

 

But in life, all problems are not as simple as the ones mentioned. Imagine the loss of life of someone whom we love and care for, huge financial losses leading to adverse living conditions, loss of employment, deterioration of health and so on. These are difficult to face and makes us clueless about “what next”. Truly these are real problems of life. Thus, a problem maybe defined as a situation which is either confusing or that shatters us. “Problem solving” is what we do, when we don’t understand what to do. It involves a process of working through the details of a problem to arrive at the solution. Solving involves both analytical and creative skills. During such situations, the first thing that we have to do is to recognize that there is a problem and accept it. Living in denial and dodging things makes the solution more difficult and distant. Occasionally, there maybe problems for which time holds the solution. This does not mean that we should sleep over our problems. 

 

In academics at school/college, problem solving is part of both teaching and assessment. Be it problem solving in physics, maths or engineering, the benefits not only relate to developing expertise in domain, but also builds the general capability of problem solving in handling day to day issues. The solution sometimes maybe very creative. Children are generally very creative. They can do out of the box thinking too which is important in problem solving. It is important to nurture problem solving skills from a very young age. Here is an interesting story to illustrate the same. 

 

A professional lady was on a “work from home” mode on a particular day. She was very busy working on her computer but her 5 year old daughter kept disturbing her. To keep her daughter busy for a while, the mother found a map of the world printed in a magazine.The mother quickly pulled out the page and tore it into several pieces. She then gave it to her daughter and asked her to put the map together. The daughter was happy and went to her room. The mother was happy that she could work peacefully for another 30 minutes as that was the time needed to put the pieces together. The daughter came back running in 5 minutes and announced that she finished the puzzle. The mother was surprised! She asked her daughter how she was able to put the pieces together so fast. The daughter replied “It was very simple Amma. The other side of the map was the picture of a lady’s face. I just put the picture of the face in place.” 

 

Life’s problems may not necessarily be confined to self and family. Problems may be at school, workplace or the neighbor hood. Each problem maybe unique and its solution too. Though there is no standard method to solve all problems, the following steps generally help in arriving at a   solution. 

 

The first step is the description or the definition of the problem. This stage consists of asking the right questions and collecting and organizing all information relating to the problem. This is followed by the definition of the end goal.

 

The second step would be to plan a solution. This can be done by breaking down the big problem into smaller ones which are easy to solve. This stage also involves assessing various possible solutions.

 

The third step is to implement the plan and continuously asses the progress. 

 

The fourth step would be to check for the right result or the end goal. A feedback at this stage would also help in fine-tuning wherever required. 

 

When one has a problem, it is better to take help from people who are directly affected by the problem as they understand it better than someone external to the problem. The story below illustrates the same.

 

Once a toothpaste factory had a unique problem. The factory would manufacture the paste, fill it into a metal toothpaste tube, which would in turn would be packed inside a thick labeled paper casing / box. These individual casings would be packed in a carton box and sent to shops. Customers buying individual toothpaste cases found the toothpaste tubes missing in the box. This annoyed the customers and the customers started switching to other brands. The CEO of the toothpaste company started getting worried. He called an external consulting firm to help solve his problem. The external agency came, studied their production line and gave a detailed report suggesting improvements. This took about 6 months and a costed a big sum. The agency suggested to install a weighing scale at the end of the production line where the toothpaste boxes landed. If the box had the tube inside, it would match the preset weight and would move forward. If the tube was missing in the box, the weight would be less and the production line would sound an alarm and the whole production process would stop till someone removed the empty box. 

 

The CEO was happy that he did a smart thing by hiring the external agency to solve the problem. After few weeks, when the CEO was reviewing the production report, he noticed something very unusual. The number of defective boxes reaching the weighing scale had come down to zero. He asked his production team if they had changed anything in the production process for which they replied that there was no change. The CEO decided to visit the the factory to check this. When he visited the weighing scale section, he noticed that a small table fan was kept just before the weighing scale. He observed that the empty boxes were blown off by the fan even before they reached the weighing scale. He asked employees around as to who had kept the fan there.They said “Sir, that is kept by the guy who is responsible for taking out the empty boxes from the scale when the alarm sounded. He was tired of running from his place every time the alarm went on. So, he kept the fan there.” The CEO realized that the employee working at the production line on a routine job was much better than the big consultant he hired! 

 

One of the take-aways from the story is that creativity can solve any problem.

Thanks to Dr. H S Nagaraja

Be your own self - do not compare

We have heard the adage “God makes the man and breaks the mould” - meaning, no two persons are identical in all aspects namely thoughts, actions, perception of things and so on. This is true of even the identical-looking twins. This is the basis for biometrics. It is thus obvious that comparison with others is not the right thing to do. 

 

However, comparisons happen all the time around us. Sometimes a parent says “Your older brother/sister was not like this.” The school teacher says “Your brother was better in mathematics.” and so on. Forget others comparing us with someone else, we also compare ourselves with others. The factors of comparison are generally the looks, wealth, career, intellect and achievements. Generally in comparisons, we look at others’ strengths and our own weaknesses. Too much of comparison takes away our happiness. Since success happens out of our strengths and failures happen out of our weaknesses, we should rather look inwards than look at others for comparison. The ideal thing would be to count our own strengths and work not them. Here is an interesting story.

 

There was a dog which lived a happy life. One day, as it was walking around in a zoo, it saw a deer grazing grass. The dog thought “Wow, look at that deer. It looks so beautiful. It must be the most luckiest animal. I wish I was like a deer.” It felt sad that it did not look as beautiful as the deer. It went to the deer and told so. The deer said “I thought I was the luckiest till I met the bear. It is so furry and warm. It looks cuddly. I’m thin and lean. I wish I was like the bear.” The dog went to the bear and repeated what the deer told him. The bear said “I don’t think I’m lucky. I think the elephant is the luckiest. It is so big and majestic. It has such a long trunk. It can spray water on itself and play so much more!” The dog went to the elephant and told him what the bear said. The elephant said “What are you saying?? I’m not the luckiest. I think the lion is the luckiest. It is called the King of the jungle. It has such a beautiful mane and looks so royal. I wish I was like the lion.” The dog went to the lion and said “You are the King of the jungle. You are the luckiest animal”. The lion said “I have been watching you for a while. I was actually thinking that I wanted to be like you. I may look like the King. But what is the use? I’m caged here in the zoo. But, look at you. You are free to walk around, go wherever you want and eat whatever you want. You are indeed very lucky!”

 

Comparison in a limited sense is not bad. It helps structure our goals and troubleshoot to evaluate the steps towards efficiency of reaching our goals in life. “If someone’s reflexes are good, your analytical abilities may be better; if someone’s memory is good, your problem solving abilities may be great; if someone’s confidence is good, your kindness towards others may be great.” 

 

The world has millions of people. One may not always be the best in the field of one’s work. Everyone cannot take the first position in a particular field. But everyone can reach his/her best and contribute towards the growth of that particular field. This is possible when one looks at one’s own self than look at others for comparison. Different jobs require different strengths, competencies and attitudes. For example, a priest in a temple has to pray for every devotee who comes and offer blessings independent of whether the devotee is a King or a beggar. He has to be kind and courteous. A police officer dealing with criminals cannot be mild, over-courteous or emotional. He has to be tough to deal with criminals. The requirements for the priest and the police officer are different. In a social structure, where millions of people live together, every role is important and a person taking up each role has to acquire the specific personality. Here is an interesting story.

 

Simhendra was a brave and empathetic King. His Kingdom was attacked several times by the enemy, but he always won the battle and protected his Kingdom. People in his Kingdom were very happy. After one such battle with an enemy, Simhendra was tired. There was something that was bothering him. He decided to meet a saint who lived in the forest to get some peace of mind. The next morning, the King left alone to the forest to meet the saint. When he reached the saint’s ashram, the saint was in deep meditation. He looked very calm and serene. The King felt inferior looking at the saint. When the saint finished his meditation and came to see the King, Simhendra said “Oh Blessed one, it is so nice to meet you. You look so peaceful. I feel so worthless compared to you. I have always done good to my people. I have protected them and provided what they need. I have never done anything bad that I know of. But, when I look at you, why do I feel so little?” The saint smiled and said “Why don’t you rest? You have just come back from a battle. Spend time here and leave by the evening. I will answer your question later.” Simhendra agreed and stayed in the ashram the whole day. By evening, there was a cool breeze and the moonlight shone brightly up in the sky. Simhendra felt relaxed. The saint came to Simhendra and said “Oh dear Simhendra, look at the beautiful moon. Look at the forest, it looks so serene in the moonlight. But by tomorrow morning, the moon goes away and the sun is up in the sky. Sun gives us bright light. You can see the forest clearly. Both the sun and moon have their own beauty! Each has different characteristics unique to them. Just because they both give light, it doesn’t mean they have to be alike. We need to understand, appreciate and respect each one’s existence.” Simhendra felt enlightened and bowed to the saint. 

 

One of the take-aways from this story is that what Albert Einstein once said “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it is stupid.” 

 

Thanks to Dr. H S Nagaraja