Be an expert in problem solving

Twelve-year-old Siri, brought up in the backwoods in Down South, was admitted to a prestigious English school in the city. He was every happy to mix with children who spoke a foreign language as if it were their mother tongue. Without having studied English at his village school, Siri soon became the butt of crude jokes. Although he tried very hard to pronounce English words correctly, he simply could not do so. Meanwhile, others in his class laughed at his accent and social manners.

Siri could not take it any longer. So, he wrote to his father to have him admitted to a Sinhala medium school. Although father was willing to accede to his request, mother had second thoughts about the matter. She immediately wrote to her son asking him to cope with the problem without quitting the school. When he came home for the holidays, mother listened to his problem once again and said, "If others are laughing at your accent, don't worry about it. Make it your strong point".

"But how?"

"Be proud of your southern accent for the time being. You can't reach the BBC standard all at once. When YOU don't worry about your accent others might take you to be a brave boy. One day you're going to beat all of them in their own game. Take heart, my son".

Soon other children in his class began to respect him for his southern accent. He learned the language so well that he passed all the examinations with flying colours. Finally he became a lecturer in English. His success was due to the fact that he turned his weakness into a strong point.Most of us face such problems in life both at home and at workplace. However, when such problems arise we become helpless and depressed. If you think over the problem carefully, you will find a solution.

Edward de Bono, one time Director of the Cognitive Research Trust in Cambridge, England came up with a new technique of problem solving. He called it "Reversal method". To illustrate his theory he cited an ambulance rushing to a hospital with a patient on board. On the way the ambulance finds it difficult to proceed as the road is blocked by a flock of sheep.

In such a situation what can the ambulance driver do? If he drives through the flock of sheep, the vehicle will be damaged and some of the sheep will be killed or maimed. Edward de Bono's solution was simple. He says that the driver should stop the ambulance and allow the sheep to go ahead. Then he can drive the ambulance leaving the sheep behind.

A somewhat similar lesson was taught by a karate master. He says if your opponent aims a blow at you, you should not block it. Instead you should try to avoid it. When you avoid his blows, he will soon become exhausted!

The advantage of a reversal as a problem-solving technique is that it frees you from old ways of looking at a problem. A good example comes from a young cashier who was not happy with his job. He always ran short of money and was pulled up by the management. At one stage he wanted to be a teacher or at least a clerk. Then somebody advised him to reverse the problem and find a solution. He did just that by applying for a position in a bank where he had to handle a lot of cash. He became a highly disciplined bank officer within a few years.

Redefining a problem is another way of solving it. For instance, think of a man who is partially paralysed. He has been advised to avoid long distance travelling. However, he needed a job and that involved travelling to distant places. He redefined the problem of travelling and came up with a solution. Instead of using public transport which is risky even for healthy people, he engaged the services of a private vehicle which transported office workers. Although he had to pay a little more, his problem was solved.

When you face a problem, plan for the results. Suppose you have a limited income and there are many demands on your money. This is the time to think of the results. If you buy an expensive camera for your son, you will not have enough money for household expenses. Similarly, if you invest money in a harebrained scheme, you are taking an unnecessary risk. To solve this problem discuss the situation with all the family members before spending a large slice of your income.

Most of us are used to do an eight-hour job in an office or a factory. Sometimes, if an employee is asked to report for duty at 7 p.m. and work till midnight, he will feel depressed. He will not be able to watch his favourite teledrama, mix with family members and sleep at scheduled times. The best course in such a situation is to break the routine and rework your schedule. You can ask somebody to record your favourite program so that you can watch it at leisure. Also arrange to meet your family members during the day.Brainstorming is perhaps the best way to solve problems. During a brainstorming session, you invite everyone in the family or in office to come out with their views. In such a session, everyone has to be flexible. After listening to every shade of opinion, you will be in a better position to solve most of your problems.

Another sure-fire method of problem solving is to make your minus a plus point. Once I met a journalist who was working for a leading newspaper in Germany. From his childhood his ambition had been to work for that newspaper. However, when he sent in his application to the newspaper editor for the post of trainee journalist, he received a rude shock.

"This is a fast league and we have no time to train young people. Try to join a provincial newspaper and gather some experience".

The youth who did not want to work for a provincial newspaper wrote back to the editor. "I wish to gather experience by working for a fast league. That will give me an opportunity to study how a leading newspaper works". In a few days he received his appointment letter.As has been seen, there are more ways than one to solve your problems. Make problem solving your forte and enjoy life to the full.