I spent two weeks obsessing over a problem that, in hindsight, didn’t even exist. The one that was attractive to me, without asking myself whether it really mattered. My ego took over, and stubbornness kept me locked in. I stuck with the wrong problem until I finally “solved” it. I changed how I approach problems after noticing it and observing others fall into the same trap.
As my job as a manager is to observe how others work and help them improve, I often catch people when they focus on the wrong problem because they regularly misinterpret situations and reality. It’s comfortable to choose the first approach they find, the easiest problem they encounter, or the one that they assume will bring the most benefits. They find a problem attractive when it is relevant to what they enjoy doing or what they think they ought to be doing.
I was in the first group rather than the latter. If I saw an opportunity to do something I liked and was familiar with, I jumped on it. Because I knew I would do a good job and bring results. I assumed these results would also benefit me. I convinced myself that others would accept me more and see me as successful. I created an illusion of success and became a victim of my own pride and ego.
“Experts cling to their beliefs in large part because their egos are attached to being ‘smart’ or ‘the best’ in their area of focus.” — Sydney Finkelstein
When the ego is destroyed, when desires are stripped away, when arrogance is torn down, we arrive at the truth. Nobody wants to be seen as stupid or wrong. I didn’t want either. However, the person who can admit that they are wrong triumphs. Confessing the mistake requires setting the expertise aside and sitting in the learner’s chair.
When I employed an open mind, a learner’s mindset, the right problem revealed itself, not the one that would presumably benefit me the most. Feeling like an expert (and having the attitude of “I know them all”) prevented me from evaluating the problem fairly. I became a fake expert, shortsighted at the expense of “effectiveness.” I focused on the number of issues I solved, while forgetting the efficiency: solving the right problem.
The surprising truth, especially for people in leadership roles like me, is that others often tell us the problem, but we ignore it. We deny taking another perspective.
Most problems are already obvious
Arnie Malham, in his book Worth Doing Wrong, talks about the importance of fostering an open culture at work. Only an open culture can provide opportunities for everyone to raise their voices, escalate problems (or even solve them without anyone noticing), and share feedback. The leader’s job is to create this culture and listen to the people, understand the problems, and prioritize correctly.
Most escalated problems may appear as noise, especially when they conflict with problems leaders identify on their own. Many leaders tap into their ego and think, “My team neither sees the big picture nor the right problems.” They choose the problems they assume are important. They miss the forest for the trees.
The higher we are up the hierarchy chain, the more people look up to us. We’ll frustrate even more people and harm the business when we are on the wrong problem. Contrary to the benefits we think we’ll gain in the short term, solving problems nobody cares about or not the most important ones will put our job at risk in the long term. When we listen to the people and acknowledge our ignorance, we’ll find success and wisdom.
Wisdom
The wisdom comes from how we handle the ignorance. Acknowledging complex problems that consist of many unknowns, understanding the intricacies between components, listening to the people who are closer to the problems and learning from them are the steps I take now.
So, what can YOU learn from my mistake?
Don’t invent problems. Leave your ego aside and carefully observe and evaluate what people tell you. Ask questions with curiosity. The more you learn, the easier it gets to identify the right problem. Don’t worry too much about the solution. When you’re on the right problem, you’ll eventually find a solution that works.
I created this article using these notes: 46j, 52a4, 7, 12, 31, 27a, 38b, 54, 30, 52a, 68, 7c, 20c, 24a1, 56m
