rajeshrathee
September 30th, 2006, 12:55 AM
The Difference between FOCUSSING on PROBLEMS Vis-a-Vis FOCUSSING on
SOLUTIONS
Case 1 :
When NASA began the launch of astronauts into space, they found out that the
pens wouldn't work at zero gravity (ink won't flow down to the writing
surface). To solve this problem, it took them one decade and $12 million.
They developed a pen that worked at zero gravity, upside down, underwater,
in practically any surface including crystal and in a temperature range from
below freezing to over 300 degrees C.
And what did the Russians do...?? They used a pencil.
Case 2 :
One of the most memorable case studies on Japanese management was the case
of the empty soapbox, which happened in one of Japan's biggest cosmetics
companies. The company received a complaint that a consumer had bought a
soapbox that was empty.
Immediately the authorities isolated the problem to the assembly! line,
which transported all the packaged boxes of soap to the delivery department.
For some reason, one soapbox went through the assembly line empty.
Management asked its engineers to solve the problem.
Post-haste, the engineers worked hard to devise an X-ray machine with
high-resolution monitors manned by two people to watch all the soapboxes
that passed through the line to make sure they were not empty. No doubt,
they worked hard and they worked fast but they spent a whoopee amount to do
so.
But when a rank-and-file employee in a small company was posed with the same
problem, he did not get into complications of X-rays, etc., but instead came
out with another solution.
He bought a strong industrial electric fan and pointed it at the assembly
line.
He switched the fan on, and as each soapbox passed the fan, it simply blew
the empty boxes out of the line.
Moral
Always look for simple solutions.
Devise the simplest possible solution that solves the problems.
Always Focus on solutions & not on problems.
SOLUTIONS
Case 1 :
When NASA began the launch of astronauts into space, they found out that the
pens wouldn't work at zero gravity (ink won't flow down to the writing
surface). To solve this problem, it took them one decade and $12 million.
They developed a pen that worked at zero gravity, upside down, underwater,
in practically any surface including crystal and in a temperature range from
below freezing to over 300 degrees C.
And what did the Russians do...?? They used a pencil.
Case 2 :
One of the most memorable case studies on Japanese management was the case
of the empty soapbox, which happened in one of Japan's biggest cosmetics
companies. The company received a complaint that a consumer had bought a
soapbox that was empty.
Immediately the authorities isolated the problem to the assembly! line,
which transported all the packaged boxes of soap to the delivery department.
For some reason, one soapbox went through the assembly line empty.
Management asked its engineers to solve the problem.
Post-haste, the engineers worked hard to devise an X-ray machine with
high-resolution monitors manned by two people to watch all the soapboxes
that passed through the line to make sure they were not empty. No doubt,
they worked hard and they worked fast but they spent a whoopee amount to do
so.
But when a rank-and-file employee in a small company was posed with the same
problem, he did not get into complications of X-rays, etc., but instead came
out with another solution.
He bought a strong industrial electric fan and pointed it at the assembly
line.
He switched the fan on, and as each soapbox passed the fan, it simply blew
the empty boxes out of the line.
Moral
Always look for simple solutions.
Devise the simplest possible solution that solves the problems.
Always Focus on solutions & not on problems.