Don't just bring a problem. Bring the answer

bring the answer ... not just the problem

Who are the people that you most value in your team ..... it's those people that bring solutions or answers (along with suggestions, new ideas, different perspectives, viewpoints or arguements etc.)

It's never all plain sailing. Never does a day go by without a problem cropping up in almost all teams, businesses or organisations. Sometimes they are even self inflicted. Most of the time a leader might never know that there is a problem because its dealt with by good process or great people are empowered to solve it.

When a leader is confronted with a problem its more likely that its a big problem, or a complex or costly one and assuming that the aforementioned process and empowerments are in place then its possible that its above anyones pay-grade to solve. Many people figure that great leaders might have all (or at least some of) the answers. A common fallacy of leadership. What good leaders do well is to surround themselves with people who can come up with solutions to problems and are able to input into a process that makes most problems fixable. These people are invaluable.

So next time you feel the need to burden your boss by throwing another monkey on his back just stop and think.... might he ask for your opinion on what to do? might you hear that great four-word question "what do you think?". You should at least have some suggestions on what the likely solution might look like. The conversation then becomes - we have an issue, here's the cause and here's some solutions that will fix it, am I missing anything?

I always want people to not simply bring problems but also demonstrate that they have considered options to solve or fix the issue at hand. Be the bringer of answers .......Being part of the solution is a much better place to be.

Whilst on this subject. Lets also put blame in its proper place for a moment. Shit happens. Regularly. The only way to approach these occurrences is, 1. How do we fix / remedy it. 2. what can we learn to stop it recurring. It's tempting to start with "what caused the problem?". After all, its a good place to start to work out the fix. However, the worst cultures try and insert "and who is to blame" immediately after "what is the cause". This gets in the way of fixing things quickly. Don't fall into that trap.

As a leader. Surround yourself with bringers of answers not just problems. As a team member... be one of those people.