SKILL 10
Problem Solving
Problem solving is the social emotional competency that calls into action our sleuthing skills, as it is very much like detective work. However, when we problem solve we don’t merely consider objective facts; we have emotional responses to the matter. This skill addresses how we manage and use that emotional information as we solve problems. Problem solving requires that we be alert and observant, noticing as much as possible within the context that surrounds us. Then we must proceed in a manner that uses our logical and our intuitive responses to connect the dots that lead to a sound resolution. This requires disciplined attention, emotional awareness, and perseverance because problems do not necessarily yield to the first attempt at a solution. That is why we call them problems!
Stein and Book (2011, p. 166) define problem solving as “the ability to find solutions to problems in situations where emotions are involved, and to understand how emotions impact decision making.”
In the fullest sense, we are working with social and emotional intelligence, which requires both left- and right-brain applications. As one works to develop this skill, it is valuable to notice how problems are solved now. You might ask your clients if they tend to use more of a right-brain or left-brain strategy or a hybrid approach. Evaluate a range of problems (from simple to medium complexity) that have been solved in the past and notice what kinds of solutions were achieved and the process for achieving the resolution. This direct feedback will guide your clients in evaluating whether their current strategy works well or could use some fine-tuning. As a part of the process, work with them on how they incorporate emotional data to solve problems well.
WHY SHOULD WE CARE ABOUT PROBLEM SOLVING?
Problem solving is a skill we employ constantly in our lives, from figuring how to get all our materials and a hot cup of coffee into the car in a single trip without spilling anything to planning for our children’s college and our own retirement. Regardless of the field in which we are employed, we are expected to solve problems and to solve them quickly, economically, and permanently. Our ability to accomplish these types of goals determines our compensation and how much leisure time and discretionary resources we have to enjoy. And guess what? If you think back to your last vacation, you will no doubt recall at least one or two significant problems you had to solve just to be able to enjoy your enjoyment!!
HOW CAN WE BUILD OUR PROBLEM SOLVING COMPETENCIES?
CREATE A CHECKLIST
Ask yourself whether you have
- Properly defined the issue
- Gathered all the facts
- Incorporated your emotional responses and sorted your emotions to determine which are helpful and which might be holding you back
- Brainstormed all the possibilities, and
- Incorporated all this into a timely solution.
Probably the most important component to effective problem solving is using a proven method that includes all the necessary steps. The Collaborative Growth Master Solve© Problem-Solving Model we use in Exercise 10.3 of this book utilizes ingredients from a variety of sources, one of the most significant being neuro-linguistic programming, a powerful technology in the field of strategic communications.
Improving your skills in problem solving will add to your value as a team player, make you more productive and effective regardless of the field in which you work, and, perhaps most importantly, it will make life flow more smoothly and more enjoyably.
STAR PERFORMERWilliam Ury is author of The Third Side (2000) and co-author of Getting to Yes (Fisher & Ury, 1981). He is an internationally recognized leader in the field of negotiation and conflict resolution. As a cultural anthropologist, he has shared his wisdom on our need as a species to “change the culture of conflict within our families, our workplaces, our communities, and our world . . . to create a culture where even the most serious disputes are handled on the basis not of force and coercion but of mutual interest and coexistence” (2000, p. ix).
REEL PERFORMERThe King’s Speech is a dramatic example of solving a major problem laden with emotional land mines. Prince Albert has struggled with a painful stammer since he was four or five. His older brother is supposed to be king but abdicates as World War II is brewing; Great Britain needs to have confidence in their king at the time that the spoken word is just beginning to be broadcast on the radio. Prince Albert has finally started speech therapy with a very unusual person, Lionel Logue. Although there are many challenges, the two work together successfully and form a tight bond. The prince becomes King George VI and boldly leads the country through the war. The problem is well addressed, and to do so the prince and Lionel had to confront, accept, and resolve many emotional challenges.