GUEST POST from Mike Shipulski
If it’s your problem, fix it. If it’s not your problem, let someone else fix it.
If you fix someone else’s problem, you prevent the organization from fixing the root cause.
If you see a problem, say something.
If you see a problem, you have an obligation to do something, but not an obligation to fix it.
If someone tries to give you their stinky problem and you don’t accept it, it’s still theirs.
If you think the problem is a symptom of a bigger problem, fixing the small problem doesn’t fix anything.
If someone isn’t solving their problem, maybe they don’t know they have a problem.
If someone you care about has a problem, help them.
If someone you don’t care about has a problem, help them, too.
If you don’t have a problem, there can be no progress.
If you make progress, you likely solved a problem.
If you create the right problem the right way, you presuppose the right solution.
If you create the right problem in the right way, the right people will have to solve it.
If you want to create a compelling solution, shine a light on a compelling problem.
If there’s a big problem but no one wants to admit it, do the work that makes it look like the car crash it is.
If you shine a light on a big problem, the owner of the problem won’t like it.
If you shine a light on a big problem, make sure you’re in a position to help the problem owner.
If you’re not willing to contribute to solving the problem, you have no right to shine a light on it.
If you can’t solve the problem, it’s because you’ve defined it poorly.
Problem definition is problem-solving.
If you don’t have a problem, there’s no problem.
And if there’s no problem, there can be no solution. And that’s a big problem.
If you don’t have a problem, how can you have a solution?
If you want to create the right problem, create one that tugs on the ego.
If you want to shine a light on an ego-threatening problem, make it as compelling as a car crash – skid marks and all.
If shining a light on a problem will make someone look bad, give them an opportunity to own it, and then turn on the lights.
If shining a light on a problem will make someone look bad, so be it.
If it’s not your problem, keep your hands in your pockets or it will become your problem.
But no one can give you their problem without your consent.
If you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t, the problem at hand isn’t your biggest problem.
If you see a problem but it’s not yours to fix, you’re not obliged to fix it, but you are obliged to shine a light on it.
When it comes to problems, when you see something, say something.
But, if shining a light on a big problem is a problem, well, you have a bigger problem.
Image credit: Pixabay
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