Whether you’re at a crossroads with a decision, or you’ve got a problem that’s wearing you down, if you approach the issue proactively, you can avoid those feelings of self-doubt and hopelessness. Focus on what you can do, instead of the things that are out of your control, and feel satisfied that you’ve done the best you can.
Here are seven-steps for an effective problem-solving process.
Identify the issues.
Be clear about what the problem is.
Remember that different people might have different views of what the issues are.
Understand everyone's interests.
Interests are the needs that you want satisfied by any given solution. .
The best solution is the one that satisfies everyone's interests.
List the possible solutions
This is the time to do some brainstorming.
Separate the listing of options from the evaluation of the options -that comes later
Evaluate the options.
What are the pluses and minuses?
Select an option or options.
What's the best option, in the balance?
The best option may be a combination of several options.
Document the agreement.
Don't rely on memory.
Agree on contingencies, monitoring, and evaluation.
Conditions may change, and you may need to be flexible.
How will you monitor compliance with your agreement?
As always, we continuously re-evaluate what we implement.
The information provided in this article is general in nature. It is not legal opinion, and should not be considered to be a comprehensive statement of the law. Relevant legislation or Codes of Practice may have changed, and this article may no longer be relevant. Readers should do their own research to determine the accuracy of this article, and to decide whether it relates to their own specific workplace.
