Could There Be More Than One Right Answer?

Too often we get locked into one way of doing things. So, the team’s attitude is, “If things are working, why change them?” of “If it ain’t broke, why fix it?” When the methods you use to find new ways of doing things are routine and unchanging, your team members get bored and switch off. Remember, the world is relentlessly changing, and we can never be complacent. Making improvements to routines, systems and working procedures is necessary on an ongoing basis.

When you look for more than one right answer, you allow your imagination to flow. When you stop looking, you limit your choices.

Team members will often stop searching when they find one answer, and it can be the second or third option that is exactly what you need to solve a problem. One technique for finding alternative answers is to “pluralize” your questions. Don’t ask, “What is the answer or solution?” Ask, “What are the answers or the solutions?” Don’t ask, “What is the result?” Ask, “What results are there?”

The bottom line is that you need to generate lots of ideas, solutions, answers and results to become an innovative and creative company. While you may not always be able to use all the ideas that you generate, you can be sure your team members will produce many ideas that are worthwhile. Photographers take many shots to get that one picture they are aiming for. Use this same approach for thinking, generating ideas and finding solutions. Then you will find many great ideas and ensure your company’s success.

Once there were two men whose opinions differed. An argument ensued. They decided to settle the matter by going to a judge. First, the plaintiff made his case very eloquently and persuasively. When he finished, the judge nodded his head, saying “That’s right, that’s right.”

Hearing this, the defendant jumped in and said, “It’s my turn. You haven’t heard my side of the story.” The defendant made his case, also very eloquently and persuasively. When he had finished, the judge nodded his head, saying “That’s right, that’s right.”

Moral of the story: Truth is all around you, and what matters is that you realize there is more than one right answer.