Think differently

The most important aspect of the thinkers of the scientific revolution is not to find the right answers, but to ask the right questions. They saw a problem where no one else had seen it before. Jonas Salk said: every problem already has an answer, what we need is to ask the questions that will reveal that answer.

So if you pay attention to what questions you ask, you will figure out how to define your problem. If you have trouble solving problems or if the solutions are inadequate, solve the problem by defining it differently.

Thinking Differently Example 1:

You are the manager of a 10-story workplace. In the past, there were few employees in the building and 2 elevators were enough. However, over the years, all offices were filled and employees increased. Now 2 elevators are not enough. Thinking about this, you bought new technology fast elevators, but again, every morning and every evening at the same time, employees line up and wait. Complaints have reached a level that gives you a headache. Some of them even started threatening to quit. What would you do?

If you think about the problem logically, you can say, let’s reduce the number of people getting on at the same time. You might say let’s buy new elevators. You can say let’s install escalators instead of fixed stairs. You can say let’s install elevators outside the building. You can give incentives to those who come to work early and leave late to reduce the density at that moment. You can say that we can make changes in the working hours of some offices.

Some of them make a lot of sense, but whether they work, whether they don’t work, or whether they disrupt the order is the same issue. This is something that really happens and the solution is as follows. Large floor to ceiling mirrors were built around the places where people wait for the elevator on each floor. There were no more complaints as people watched themselves while waiting and were not aware of the waiting time.

Thinking Differently Example 2:

Let’s move on to the next lived example. Here you are the chief of police in a seaside town in the 1960s. It is one of the vacation spots where students flock during the spring holidays. The businesses in this area are happy with the customers, but the men in particular start to cause trouble.

What’s worse, it doesn’t work to put those who get drunk and cause damage in jail. Because young people who spend the night in jail start to brag about it. They even start to disregard those among them who have not spent the night in jail in that area. Even the decent ones start to deteriorate.

When the wards were no longer enough, mobile prisons came even from neighboring provinces. Officers started working overtime. The work is now out of control. On the one hand you have to enforce the law, but on the other hand things are getting worse. What do you do in this situation?

In 1963, the police chief had an idea. They started giving baby food instead of food to the people they took in. They started treating them like children instead of adults. What had been a display of machismo suddenly became a laughing matter.

When the chef could not prevent the incidents, he thought in a different way. He realized that teaching people kindness and respect would not fix it. He thought how to humiliate them and make it a matter of shame. And finally he found this method and solved the problem.

In short, ask the question differently and change the focus. 

Why don’t people buy my products? Why do people buy my products? Find out why and increase your efforts in that direction.

Why are they buying my competitors’ products? Not, say how can I make more sales?

Not how can I save more money, but how can I spend less or earn more than I spend?

Ask different questions and arrive at different solutions. If you are staying where you are, the problem is with you. It’s not time to look for blame outside. Recognize that you are the problem and create ways to find it and solve it.