Business Systems: When faced with a problem

When consulting one on one or presenting at one of our workshops, after explaining a process or a strategy I often get all the ‘but’s’ and ‘That’s great but we have a problem with … ‘

My advise is “You always see or get what you are looking for” or to put it another way you create ‘your world’ with the way you think.

Consider it is all about the way you and your thoughts are ‘being’. At Creative Business Builders we insist on ‘being’ creative.

Problems are things we make up to avoid something, maybe our success?

The following post is based on an article I came across some time ago, I cannot recall where or who the author is, however I would like to acknowledge the author for their creative work.

Japanese grocery stores had a problem.

They are much smaller than shops and therefore don’t have room to waste. Watermelons,big and round, wasted a lot of space. Most people would simply tell the grocery stores that watermelons grow round and there is nothing that can be done about it.

That is how majority of people would respond. But some Japanese farmers took a different approach.
If the supermarkets wanted a square watermelon, they asked themselves, “How can we provide one?”

With some creative thinking it wasn’t long before they invented the square watermelon.

The solution to the problem of round watermelons was not to solve as the farmers did not assume it was impossible – and simply asked how it could be done.

They found out that if you put the watermelon in a square box when they are growing, the watermelon will take on the shape of the box – and grow into a square fruit!

This made the grocery stores happy and had the added benefit that it was much easier and cost effective to ship the watermelons. Consumers also loved them because they took less space in their refrigerators
which are much smaller than those in the West meaning that the growers could charge a premium price for them.

What does this have do with anything in life or at your job or business Systems? Here are a few lessons that can you can take away from this story which I know will help you :

1. Don’t Assume:

The major problem was that most people had always seen round watermelons so they automatically assumed that square watermelons were impossible before even thinking about the question.

Things that you have been doing a certain way your entire life have taken on the aura of the round watermelon and you likely don’t even take the time to consider if there is another way to do it. Breaking yourself from assuming this way can greatly improve your overall life as you are constantly looking for new and better ways to do things.

This was one of the most difficult things for me to do because most of the assumptions I make, I don’t even realize that I’m making them.

They seem perfectly logical at the time and on the surface, so I have to constantly make an effort to question them.

Remember the saying: To Assume makes an Ass out of You and Me

2. Question your habits:

The best way to tackle these assumptions is to question your habits. If you can make an effort to question the way you do

things on a consistent basis, you will find that you can continually improve the way that you work.

Forming habits when they have been well thought out is usually a positive thing, but most of us have adopted our habits from various people and places without even thinking about them.

I have changed a large number of habits that I have had after taking the time to question them and continue to do so on an ongoing basis. Some of them I have know idea where they came from while others I can trace to certain people or instances in my life.

It’s a never ending story or process, but by doing this, you can consistently strive toward making all aspects of your life more enjoyable instead of defaulting to what you have now.

Remember doing things the same habitual way will give you the same results – Nothing will change!

3. Be Creative:

When faced with a problem, be creative in looking for a solution.

This often requires thinking outside the box. Most people who viewed this question likely thought they were being asked how they could genetically alter water melons to grow square which would be a much more difficult process to accomplish.

By looking at the question from an alternative and creative perspective, however, the solution was quite simple. Being creative and looking at things in different ways in all portions of your live will help you find solutions to many problems where others can’t see them. I am fortunately a creative person, so I’ve found that the more that you look at things from different perspectives, the more creative you will become. It’s a learned art and builds upon itself.

4. Look for a better way:
The square watermelon question was simply seeking a better and more convenient way to do something.

The stores had flagged a problem they were having and asked if a solution was possible. It’s impossible to find a better way if you are never asking the question in the first place. I try to ask if there is a better way of doing the things that I do and I constantly write down the things I wish I could do (but currently can’t) since these are usually hints about steps I need to change.

Get into the habit of asking yourself, “Is there a better way I could be doing this?” and you will find there often is.

Remember the Teacher (the solution) will appear when the student is ready (or asking)

5. Impossibilities often aren’t:

If you begin with the notion that something is impossible, then it obviously will be for you. Remember “You always see or get what you are looking for” or to put it another way you create ‘your world’ with the way you think.

If, on the other hand, you decide to see if something is possible or not, you will find out through trial and error. Take away the lessons from the square watermelons and apply them to all areas in your life (work, finances, relationships, etc) and you will find that by consistently applying them, you will constantly be improving all aspects of your life.

I am confident we can bring about change if we really want to.

Remember concentrate on what you want – the solution. Not what you don’t want – the problem

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