Problem Solving 101

Problem solving is a process that can be broken down into four steps: (1) understand the current
situation; (2) identify the root cause of the problem; (3) develop an effective action plan; and (4)
execute until the problem is solved, making modifications as necessary. These steps come as a
package. Before you can solve anything, you first need to realize that there’s a problem. Once you do,
identifying the root cause of the problem isn’t enough. You have to think through how you could fix
the problem, and then actually take the actions required to fix it. Problem solving is a combination of
thinking and acting. Just doing one or the other won’t get you anywhere.

PROBLEM-SOLVING TOOL BOX: LOGIC TREE A logic tree is a great tool to use when you problem
solve. It’s a visual tool that helps when you are trying to identify all the potential root causes of a
problem and generate a wide variety of solutions. The key to making a useful logic tree is to break
down a problem into categories without leaving anything out, and to group similar items under the
same branch. This will make more sense if we start with an easy example. How would you break
down a class of third-graders? One way is to break it down by gender: boys and girls. Another way is
to break it down by height: taller than four feet, four feet or shorter. You could also break it down by
the dominant hand: right-handed, left-handed, or both. The logic trees for these breakdowns would
look like this:

When you create the logic tree, you don’t necessarily have to build it from left to right. Simply start
by listing whatever comes to mind on a piece of paper. To build the tree, group major topics (e.g.,
“Belongs to a school club”) on the left, moving to more minor or limited topics (e.g., “Sports,” “Art,”
etc.) to the right. Group similar topics together (“Team sports,” “Mainly individual sports”). The next
step is to create more branches. Starting at the right, for each group of topics, ask yourself, “What
can I call this group to sum it up?” Draw a branch to the left and write the name of that group. From
the left side of the tree, for each bigger topic ask, “Specifically what or how?” to add sub-branches
out to the right. Just like the logic tree above, the finished tree grows bigger from left to right.
• Step 1: Diagnose the situation and identify the root cause of the problem. 1A List all the potential
root causes of the problem. 1B Develop a hypothesis for the likely root cause. 1C Determine the
analyses and information required to test the hypothesis. 1D Analyze and identify the root cause.

• Step 2: Develop the solution. 2A Develop a wide variety of solutions to solve the problem. 2B
Prioritize actions. 2C Develop an implementation plan

There’s a proven problem-solving kids’ process for figuring out how to achieve such a goal. • Step 1:
Set a clear goal.

• Step 2: Determine the gap between the goal and the current situation.

• Step 3: Form a hypothesis about how to close the gap and achieve the goal. 3A List as many options
and ideas as possible. 3B Select the best ideas as the hypothesis.

• Step 4: Check the hypothesis. Go back to step 3 if the hypothesis is disproved. 4A Determine the
analyses and information required to test the hypothesis. 4B Analyze and develop action plan.
PROBLEM-SOLVING TOOL BOX: PROS AND CONS; CRITERIA AND EVALUATION There are two tools
that are very helpful when you need to evaluate multiple options and select the best one. Tool 1:
Pros and Cons The first tool is called pros and cons. This tool helps you broaden your options and
ensures that you consider both the good aspects (pros) and bad aspects (cons) before making a final
decision. Pretend that, like Kiwi, you are trying to pick a new high school to attend. The pros-and-
cons tool can help you sort out the differences between your choices. Step 1: List All the Options First
list all your options; for example, you could have three schools to choose from: Armadillo High
School, Beaver High School, and Cougar High School. Step 2: List the Pros and Cons of Each of the
Options Next list all the pros and cons of each of the options. Even if you think a certain option is the
most attractive, get into the habit of asking yourself, “Aren’t there negative aspects? Are there other
positive aspects?” We tend to be swayed by our first impressions. If we first think something is
attractive, we tend to try to collect evidence that supports that idea. On the other hand, if we think
something is unattractive, we tend to highlight only its negative points. It is critical to avoid this
tendency in order to make a sound decision.

Step3: Weight Each of the Positive and Negative Points You Listed Not all the arguments for or
against each choice have the same importance. The next step is to assign a weight to each of the
items. Let’s use the following weighting for this example: + + +/- - -Very attractive/unattractive + +/- -
Moderately attractive/unattractive +/- Marginally attractive/unattractive Say you think quality of
education and cost are very important (so their weight is +/- 3) while the age of the school building is
not that important (meaning its weight is +/- 1)

Step 4: Select the Most Attractive Option The final step is to select the best option considering the
weighted pros and cons you have listed. In this case, you should probably choose Beaver High School,
which has the most plusses and least minuses. Tool 2: Criteria and Evaluation The next tool is criteria
and evaluation. You can use this tool to clarify which criteria, or qualifications, you should use to
evaluate your options, decide the importance of each set of criteria, and effectively evaluate your
options. Step 1: List All the Options As you did with the pros-and-cons tool, first list all your options.
Again, we’ll be choosing between Armadillo High School, Beaver High School, and Cougar High
School. Step 2: List the Evaluation Criteria When you say a school is good or bad, what are your
specific criteria? We’ve been using the following qualifications: • Quality of education • Availability
of a study abroad program • Strength of the baseball team • Estimated number of friends going to
the school • Distance to school • Newness of the school building • Cost of tuition Step 3: Decide the
Degree of Importance of Each Criteria The next step is to decide the degree of importance for each
of the criteria you listed in the last step. You can use three levels, like high, medium, and low, or you
can use a 10-point scale. We’ve assigned the following weightings to the criteria: • Quality of
education: High • Availability of a study abroad program: High • Strength of the baseball team:
Medium • Estimated number of friends going to the school: Medium • Distance to school: Low •
Newness of the school building: Low • Cost of tuition: High Step 4: Evaluate Each Option Based on
the Weighted Criteria Next you evaluate each option based on the criteria you’ve set. You can
evaluate them with as many levels as you want. For this example, let’s use a three-level evaluation
method ranging from “+++” for very attractive to “+” for not attractive.

Step 5: Select the Most Attractive Option Finally, select the most attractive option. Make sure you
consider the weight of the evaluation criteria when you make your final judgment. Again, in this
example you’d probably choose Beaver High School because Beaver High has high scores on
important criteria such as the quality of the education and the availability of a study abroad program,
despite low scores on less important criteria, like the distance to the school and the newness of the
building. Both the pros-and-cons tool and the criteria-and-evaluation tool will lead you to the same
result and help you to select the best option out of many. But these are more than just tools for
organizing your thoughts. They help point out information you might be missing and bring up
questions you may need to ask yourself along the way about what you really think is important.
Furthermore, you may be able to come up with ways to reduce some of the shortcomings of your
options.

• Spend less time worrying about things and more time thinking about actions you can take to get
closer to your goals, then actually take action.

• Ask for advice. You don’t have to figure everything out on your own. Look for information to help
you make the best decision in the given time.

• Challenge your own thinking processes and your conclusions. Ask the following questions:

• What are the pros and cons? Do I have the full list? Which option looks more attractive considering
both the pros and the cons? Are the pros and cons really pros and cons? What actions could I take to
enhance the pros and to minimize or eliminate the cons?

• What are the specific criteria I should be using? Do I have the right ones? Am I weighting each
criterion the right way?

• Is my evaluation correct? What information am I basing my evaluation on? Is it accurate, up-to-