Lesson 12 - Problem-solving skills

1. The importance of problem-solving skills

In daily life, we often face many problems that need to be solved. Issues in work,
study, or life such as: which high school to choose, which subjects to study for the
university entrance exam, which university to choose, which profession to study?

In the future, when you start building a startup project or become a member of a
project, every day you will face countless new problems: how to sell products, how to
manage teams, how to reduce rental costs, run advertisements, etc.

In summary, every day we have many problems, big and small, to solve. However, in
reality, many of us do not have a systematic method of problem-solving. This leads to
either not knowing how to solve the problem, or solving it in an ineffective, suboptimal
way, or not truly understanding it and solving it based on intuition.

Therefore, in today's lesson, I want to share with you some approaches to

solving problems in a more scientific and systematic way, to help make our lives easier
and more effective.

2. Understanding the concept:

a. What is a problem:
- A problem is a state where there is a conflict or a gap between reality and
desire.
- A problem is a situation where one sets a goal to achieve, but the way to
achieve it is not yet clear.

b. What is problem-solving?
Problem-solving is a process of identifying, analyzing the causes, selecting
optimal solutions, implementing and evaluating solutions to eliminate conflicts between
reality and desire.

"Problem-solving is
finding the optimal solution to
achieve the stated goal"
 c. Types of problems:
● Deviation problem: Requires ADJUSTMENT measures
- Machinery malfunction
- Insufficient manpower for the shift
- Work or personnel deadlock
● Potential problem: Requires PREVENTION measures
- Conflict among team members
- Increase in employee turnover
● Improvement problem: Requires increasing PRODUCTIVITY, EFFICIENCY
- Upgrading services, products, equipment
- Acquiring new skills
- Changing to new standard procedures

3. Steps to solve problems:

Now we will go through the steps we apply to solve problems in sequence.
Step 1: Identify the problem
To solve a problem, first you need to clearly identify the specific issue that you
are facing. This step may seem very simple, but in reality many people overlook this
part. If the problem is not correctly identified, we will waste time, effort, and money
trying to solve it, and the problem will still persist.

Step 2: Identify the causes

After identifying the problem, let's search for the causes that lead to that
problem. Usually a problem occurs due to multiple causes. So, to make it easier to list,
let's categorize these causes in two directions:

a. Direction 1: Broadly
Broadly means listing as many causes as possible that come to mind and writing
these causes down on paper.

To better visualize, you can write the causes in the following 3 aspects:
● The first aspect is about the human factor: That is about ourselves, our
subjective aspects.
● The second aspect is about the method: That is if there is something wrong with
the method used to solve your problem.
● The third aspect is about execution, which is combining the method you have
with your subjectivity and executing that method. So, what is wrong during your
execution process? List all as many as possible in the broad direction.

The more causes we can think of, the better.

What is the importance and benefit of searching for causes broadly?

It helps us have a comprehensive overview and not miss any causes.

This is one of the reasons why many of us cannot solve a problem completely.
Usually, we solve the problem but after a while it comes back. The reason is because
we did not solve all the causes, leaving some behind. Approaching in a broad direction,
focusing on the three factors of human, method, and execution will help you have a
comprehensive view, ensuring that no causes are missed.

b. Direction 2: Deeply
Searching for causes broadly is not enough because it only helps us see the big
picture, ensuring that no causes are missed. But it does not really help us solve the
problem effectively. So, there is another aspect: deeply.
Among the causes we have listed, those are not the direct causes of the
problem. The core cause strongly impacts the problem we encounter, requiring us to
dig deep to the root.

80/20 PRINCIPLE (pareto): 80% of problems arise from 20% of the root causes.
Therefore, if we find the root cause, then we know how to prioritize focusing resources
to solve these root causes first. Once we have solved it, the root causes will
automatically be removed or resolved more easily.

5 WHY METHOD: method helps us find the ROOT CAUSE of the problem.

Ask the question WHY 5 times with the same cause (the number 5 is relative).
For example: While operating, the conveyor suddenly stops
working. Why – Why does the conveyor stop working? –>
Because the motor is damaged; Why – Why is the Motor
damaged? –> Due to coil burn;
Why - Why is the coil burned? -> Due to lack of lubrication in the bearings.
Why - Why are bearings lacking lubrication? -> Due to lack of maintenance.
Why - Why is it not maintained? -> Because there is no maintenance plan.

Step 3: PROVIDE SOLUTIONS AND CHOOSE A BETTER SOLUTION.

● Choose a better solution, not the best solution because in reality, a perfect
solution is never found. Because any solution depends on our resources, and
resources are limited.
What does this mean? Be bold and don't wait for the perfect solution in all
aspects before taking action, procrastination will lead to missed opportunities. In
life, many people have a perfectionist tendency (this is good when considering
 but should not be too perfectionist in action, leading to delays and missing out on
many things.

● Propose a solution: think of at least 2 solutions to have options, evaluate, do not

have only 1 solution. However, do not have too many solutions to avoid
confusion and waste of time.

● Creative thinking: To find effective solutions, one must focus on solving the
problem at hand efficiently, using minimal time, effort, and money.

4. Tips for solving problems:

Understand the process of solving problems thoroughly. Train problem-solving
thinking.
● When encountering a problem, it is important to frequently ask questions to
find solutions instead of worrying, getting upset, feeling bored, or worse, blaming
others.
For example: How is this issue solved? Is there any way to solve this problem to
save time and money? Gradually, asking questions will help students become
more sensitive in problem solving.

● Be open to new ideas to cultivate creativity in problem solving. Do not judge

ideas right away => only evaluate and analyze when there are a few solution
ideas.

● Always encourage yourself with positive words before finding a solution.

For example: Do not say "I'm stuck and it's too hard to give up" but say "I will
find a solution quickly".

With the system and content of today's lesson, I hope you have some ideas to
solve the problem that I wrote on paper at the beginning of the video.