I was always a little dismayed at the business world’s frequent mention of “Give me solutions not problems”. To me, this always felt a little off or missing the point, but in my less experienced days I could never figure out why.
Clearly, getting things done and fulfilling needs is a good thing, so how exactly does delivering solutions become a bad thing? Well, if I have a squeaky door and I lubricate it, the squeaking stops. A simple solution to a symptom to a problem.
If I find other squeaky objects, such as an office chair that grinds and squeaks every time I move, then I could perhaps lubricate the back fixing. Again, a trivial solution to an apparent problem.
Treating symptoms as they appear
In both of those examples, what I am really doing is just treating symptoms as they appear. I have a tool, the lubricant, and with it I can go looking for problems, or rather symptoms, to underlying problems and deal with them. And then, I can call myself the man who sorts stuff out for you.
In the tech world, the solutions can be complex to complement the inevitable multitude of interwoven problems. Even in these cases, however, there is often a single fundamental “why?” driving the action. Why are we trying to fix this? Why do we need to solve this problem?
The solutions that match specific issues are often good for that specific moment and set of circumstances, but in a complex environment any of those may change at any time. The result of this is that we soon end up with a slightly redundant solution. With time the underlying requirements shift and more solutions may get added so we end up with a patchwork of solutions no longer quite fit for purpose.
So how do we deal with this creeping, solution-invoked redundancy?
Requirements masquerading as solutions
One way is to be aware of requirements presented as solutions. “I need you to do x because of y”. Instead, try to get it expressed as “I have this problem and I need to overcome it”. This immediately opens up everyone’s thinking to possibilities.
In the case of the door perhaps we can get some maintenance guy to check it every month and lubricate it so I don’t have to put up with the squeaking? Or maybe we get him to re-hang the door on its hinges as it never really swung freely and that was the underlying cause of the irritating noise? Actually, do we need the door at all? It would, after all, be one less thing to worry about at the expense of the real work that needs to be done.
Discover the problem in the simplest possible terms
Getting the problem defined in the simplest and clearest terms possible will help find the most elegant solution. This is how we discover a fundamental need. Once that need is understood it can be addressed and often we might find that it leads to a better, happier result all round.
So, perhaps removing that door would open up your space a little more, creating a peaceful and airy environment, which is actually what you truly desired all along.