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How to make sure you solve the problem, not just the symptom
When a problem occurs in your business what’s the first thing you try to do? Fix it! In fact, that’s such an automatic response that you often don’t sit back and think, 
or act, systematically. You rush in and stick a band aid on the problem – anxious to make the pain go away … quickly. More often than not it’s just a short term solution. It usually means you’re going to have to deal with the problem again a little further down the track. Fixing the symptom won’t fix the real problem.
Here are just 3 questions to ask yourself when faced with a problem in your business. If you can’t answer them, you risk working with incomplete information and making the problem even more complicated.
1. What’s the real problem?
In the hazy world of problems and symptoms, often what you at first think is a problem, is really only the symptom – it’s not the real issue. If you focus on that symptom without uncovering the real problem you are wasting your time. You’re
likely to fail. You need to discover what’s causing the “problem”.
To find this out you might need to hear all sides of the story. Keep in mind the focus for treatment should be on the underlying structure. The goal must be to strengthen the system to help it solve it’s own problems.
2. How long has the problem existed?
Problems usually occur in one of three ways -
- same old stuff
- something brand new
- same old stuff in a new package.
If the problem’s been around for a long time, perhaps there’s a deeper problem embedded in your system. If this is the case you need to deal with the underlying issue. Thinking systematically may mean you’ll need to appreciate the patterns over time.
3. Does the problem serve a function? If so, what?
Problems can play an important role in systems. The classic example is 
scapegoating, or dumping problems onto a person (or group of people). When this happens, you need to ask whether that person (or group) deserves it. If the answer is “yes”, then the work is with the person. If the answer is “no”, then the work is with the system.
Another question to ask yourself is what happens if the scapegoat were fired? Would the problem still exist? It’s all too easy to fall into the trap of “who can we blame” thinking, rather than “how can we fix this?”
Next time, before you rush in to fix things, ask yourself these 3 questions. 
Problems play an important role in your business. They don’t just appear because life is out to give you a hard time. They give you opportunities to find solutions, make positive and lasting changes, and find more dynamic and creative ways to deal with obstacles.
Cashflow – keeping your eye on the ball
Harping back on one of our favourites – Cashflow. In our May issue we talked about managing your cashflow for success. With Christmas looming it’s a good time to make sure you’ve got a handle on this vital aspect of your business.
Here are some quick pointers –
- Make sure your accounts and up to date and accurate (you can’t manage what you can’t measure)
- Invoice as soon as possible (and chase them the moment they’re due)
- Monitor your debtors (if they’re slow payers, change the way you bill them or stop dealing with them until they pay)
- Enforce your payment terms – stop lending your customers interest-free money
- Cash cheques the instant you receive them
If you missed the link above, our May issue “Why you should keep both eyes on your cashflow” talks more about this.
Looking for information on a specific topic? Don't forget to check out the
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Full Focus Blog: Don’t forget to check out our latest blog posting. We give you a little challenge that may just make life a lot easier in the build up to Christmas!
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