Picture credit - Forbes
Day 52 - Problem Solving Skill
31 May 2020
sirurp@gmail.com
My learning for the day
Today I want to summarise two movies on Problem Solving
Movie 1 - Willy Wonka and the Charlie Factory (2005)
The Plot
The problem statement for Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp), the owner of a famous chocolate factory - How do I find a suitable successor for me?
Willy Wonka sets up an elaborate contest to get participants to reveal their true character.
Willy Wonka is a story of a messed up CEO. Willy is reclusive, neurotic, controlling, has serious trust issues and talks in riddles.
It’s a bizarre tale of executive succession by pseudo-adoption.
Luck is not a strategy
Sometimes, there’s no railing - In a world full of warning labels and safety barriers, it’s easy to assume all hazards will be cordoned off
Skip version 1.0 - it’s better to let the lessons be learned at someone else’s expense
Don’t let impetuous people (those who act without thought or care) set the agenda
If you’re an Oompa Loompa, move on (if you are invisible to your boss, move on)
Movie 2 - Rudy (1993)
The Plot
Rudy is a 1993 American biographical sports film on the life of Daniel Ruettiger, football player, motivational speaker and author. This movie is one of the top motivational movies.
He had a dream to join University of Notre Dame and play on their football team. But there were two problems that made him ineligible to Notre Dame - his bad academic record and his short stature. The movie is about all the strategies he used to get admitted to the university and become part of the football team.
Commitment – No matter what limitations others place on you, your life is in your hands and you can achieve what you dream of
Character – Rudy’s dreams didn’t end on the football field at Notre Dame. He believed that his story could inspire others so he worked for a decade to learn what he needed to know about the movie business and kept knocking on doors and telling his story until Hollywood made a movie about his life.
Courage – Rudy Ruettiger had been literally knocked down hundreds of times on the football field leaving him bloodied and bruised. Yet, each time he was knocked down – often by much larger players – he kept getting up and fighting back.
Contribution – Rudy continues to help others achieve their goals through his speeches, training seminars, interviews and scholarship programs.
Rudy’s problem 1 (poor grades) - His grades were poor because of dyslexia. Once he understood the problem, Rudy worked with tutors and professionals to rise above his dyslexia. He found that doing community service gives additional credits so he added community service to his resume. He found a nearby smaller college that admitted him and continued to try a transfer to Notre Dame through local priests. And continued to apply to Notre Dame until he was finally accepted.
Rudy’s problem 2 (no physical stature) - He focused on being the best team member (helping out others in need). His determination, persistence and “heart” eventually won over the coaches and they agreed to let Rudy be a part of the team’s practice squad. The rest is history.
My learning so far on this topic
Day 2 post - ‘5 Whys Analysis’ to find the root of a problem
Day 12 post - Design thinking. Two stories about design thinking in action
Day 22 post - Fishbone diagram to find root cause to a problem
Day 32 post - Two TED talks - Collaborative visualisation, The trolley problem (ethical dilemma), and a note on who decides the ethics of self driving cars
Day 42 post - Two books - Problem Solving 101 & The Art of Thinking Clearly
What is Problem-Solving Skill?
Problem-Solving Skill is the ability to determine the source of a problem and find an effective solution.
How to improve this skill?
Set a goal to become a go-to person by mastering the art and science of problem solving.
Follow the LAST model to build your personal brand as a Guru of problem solving.
Learn - Invest time in learning different frameworks/ models/ techniques of problem solving
Apply -
Identify a model suitable to you
Create a template to document the flow of the process
Find opportunities to use the selected method/ template
Maintain record/ process flow of every important activities you did with respect to problem solving
Maintain notes of your thoughts/ insights/ failures/ challenges…. to be used for sharing/ training others
Share - Share the insights captured in step 2 above in a planned manner (social media posts, blogs, videos, study notes…)
Train - Generate opportunities to train your peers and team members so that, over time, your organization benefits from your efforts
Purpose of this document
I took a 66 day challenge to study Life Skills last year (10 April 2019). To my astonishment, I succeeded in studying for 66 days one skill a day.
My objectives of learning these skills were - To strengthen my mind to face life’s challenges with ease, To use these skills in my worklife for a better performance, To use these skills in my personal life for enriching my relationships, To open new possibilities to surprise myself.
This is my next 66 day challenge (from 10 April 2020) - To share my Life Skills learning with my social media friends.
I pray that my toil helps you in your success journey.
What are Life Skills?
UNICEF defines Life skills as - psychosocial abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life. They are loosely grouped into three broad categories of skills
- cognitive skills for analyzing and using information,
- personal skills for developing personal agency and managing oneself,
- inter-personal skills for communicating and interacting effectively with others.
Which LifeSkills are covered?
The World Health Organisation identified these basic areas of life skills that are relevant across cultures:
1. Decision-making
2. Problem-solving
3. Creative thinking
4. Critical thinking
5. Communication
6. Interpersonal skills
7. Self-awareness
8. Empathy
9. Coping with emotions
10. Coping with stress.
Some trivia
‘Life skills’ was never part of the school curriculum. WHO/ UNESCO mandated academia to teach these skills in all schools across the globe in 1993.
Different countries educate their children in these skills with different objectives
- Zimbabwe and Thailand - prevention of HIV/AIDS
- Mexico - prevention of adolescent pregnancy
- United Kingdom - child abuse prevention
- USA - prevention of substance abuse and violence
- South Africa and Colombia - positive socialization of children.
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