“You can’t solve a problem with the same thinking that created it.” (Often attributed to Einstein, but not verified.)
This is one of those ideas that is core to good leadership I think. It’s right up there with –
“To set things right, you have to see things right”,
and “Who, not how”,
and “From the invisible – the visible”,
and “What problem can you solve that would solve 1000 other problems?”.
So if you can’t solve a problem with the same thinking that created it, then you have to identify the person that created it and get them out of the way, disempower them, or agree to yield to someone else’s ideas to fix it.
Right?
Then find out WHO can solve this problem? Who has experience in this? Who is wise? Who has the knowledge? And how do we get them to look at this problem and figure out how to solve it?
Fix one problem that fixes all. That was a game changer for me.
This reminds me of something I used to tell my team, “You have to be good before you can be the best.”
You can get better at something and still not be very good at it…
Good, better, best.
If you want to be the best at something, you first have to be/get good at it – then you get better (with work, effort, investment, vision, planning, follow-through, tenacity, etc.).
THEN you have a chance to work at being the best – for now…
But you gotta be good FIRST.
GREAT post, Larry – Thanks! 🙂