Don’t find fault, find a remedy. – Henry Ford
“Yeah, I know it won’t work, I already tried. Have you got a better idea?” Well, do you?
What does that mean?
As an engineer, this is my pet peeve. People bring me things, and say “It’s broken,” and walk away. That’s not very helpful, is it? I don’t think so.
The basic premise of the quote is that if you are bright enough to notice that it is broken, you probably have an idea or two about how to either fix it, or do/make it better.
Most people know this, yet still they simply dump a problem on someone else without being helpful at all. The prevalent attitude is often “Not my problem” attitude.
And this applies not just to hardware or other physical items, but mentally challenging issues or physical challenges. These are places where a little help is far more useful than saying “it won’t work.”
Why is having an idea for a possible remedy important?
We’ve all met that person. The Gloomy Gus, who is always saying it won’t work, or that there is too much of one thing or not enough of another. No matter what, they can find the dark cloud in every silver lining. They are looking for a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. How much fun are they to be around?
What if you had to have an idea for making things better before you could raise a concern? Obviously there would be an exception for safety reasons, but could you imagine how much better meetings would be if there were ideas for how to make things better, instead of people sitting around a table complaining about how things don’t work?
By having an idea, even if it isn’t great, much less a perfect solution, gives others a place to start. It helps change the attitude from negativity to working towards a solution. And sometimes the silliest ideas trigger something in the mind of another, and pretty soon, people are busy talking about solutions, instead of complaining. That’s winning.
Where can I apply this in my life?
That would largely depend on how often you find things which are not working or are in need of improvement. However, anytime you do notice something not working right, I would challenge you to try to come up with at least one way it could be fixed or made better.
If someone is trying to get a ladder through a doorway, but is holding the ladder cross-ways, at least suggest they get a shorter ladder or hold it in an up-and-down orientation instead of horizontal, right? That’s what inspired the picture, which I posed myself as I couldn’t find one online. I could have complained. Instead I fixed it.
But so many people just have the habit of being negative. They know what they don’t like, and are used to simply blurting their opinions out to anyone and everyone. You might even be one of those people, from time to time. I even catch myself doing it on rare occasions. 8)
What questions could you ask yourself when you are preparing to comment about something that isn’t working as well as it could? Could you ask yourself “What could be improved?” or “How could it be done better?” Obviously the questions would depend on what you were trying to fix or improve, but that’s a start, right?
As I mentioned earlier, I get stuff dumped on my desk from time to time, with just a comment of “fix it” or “it doesn’t work right.” How am I supposed to know what “right” is, or how to fix it? I usually have to engage the person to coax the necessary information out of them.
Usually, I can also get a few ideas for how to fix it from them as well. I can be tricky that way. But by talking to them, I can usually get the necessary information from them, along with some ideas I might not have been able to come up with on my own. Two heads can be better than one, right?
In my opinion, far too many people focus only on the negative. On the things which are wrong. On the things which are broken. On the things which do not work. Yet, far too often, they are the best equipped to come up with the ideas for the best solutions. We just need to draw them out.
So, if you are going to complain about something which isn’t quite right, or even badly broken, stop. Take a moment and consider how it could be done better, or repaired, or whatever is appropriate to the situation. Don’t just have a complaint about a fault, have an idea for a remedy.
And if you hear someone else complaining, try to get them to brainstorm with you. Try to get them to help find a solution, or a series of candidates for a possible solution. In that way, everyone wins. And that is a good thing.
From: Twitter, @motivatquotes
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/h/henryford121985.html
Photo by philosiblog
…and speaking of faulty items, it appears the ‘related posts’ website I use is down. My solution: I’ll come back and fix this, once their site is back up and functioning. Or do you have an idea you would like to share?
Related articles
- The Scoop: Be a Solution Finder (shorthoptimism.wordpress.com)
- Solutions (healthitworker.wordpress.com)
- Just Stop Bitching, Moaning and Complaining ! (gavinsharples.wordpress.com)
- LET LES BROWN INSPIRE YOUR FRIDAY! by idowuOMISORE (idowuomisore.wordpress.com)
- Be solution minded not problem minded (christ2live.wordpress.com)
…and here it is! The issue is something to do with my browser, and so I am using a different browser until I can get it fixed. In the meantime, a remedy has been found.
