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What are analytical skills? Examples and how to level up

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What are analytical skills?

Why are analytical skills important, 9 analytical skills examples, how to improve analytical skills, how to show analytical skills in a job application, the benefits of an analytical mind.

With market forecasts, performance metrics, and KPIs, work throws a lot of information at you. 

If you want to stay ahead of the curve, not only do you have to make sense of the data that comes your way — you need to put it to good use. And that requires analytical skills.

You likely use analytical thinking skills every day without realizing it, like when you solve complex problems or prioritize tasks . But understanding the meaning of analysis skills in a job description, why you should include them in your professional development plan, and what makes them vital to every position can help advance your career.

Analytical skills, or analysis skills, are the ones you use to research and interpret information. Although you might associate them with data analysis, they help you think critically about an issue, make decisions , and solve problems in any context. That means anytime you’re brainstorming for a solution or reviewing a project that didn’t go smoothly, you’re analyzing information to find a conclusion. With so many applications, they’re relevant for nearly every job, making them a must-have on your resume.

Analytical skills help you think objectively about information and come to informed conclusions. Positions that consider these skills the most essential qualification grew by 92% between 1980 and 2018 , which shows just how in-demand they are. And according to Statista, global data creation will grow to more than 180 zettabytes by 2025 — a number with 21 zeros. That data informs every industry, from tech to marketing.

Even if you don’t interact with statistics and data on the job, you still need analytical skills to be successful. They’re incredibly valuable because:

• They’re transferable: You can use analysis skills in a variety of professional contexts and in different areas of your life, like making major decisions as a family or setting better long-term personal goals.
• They build agility: Whether you’re starting a new position or experiencing a workplace shift, analysis helps you understand and adapt quickly to changing conditions. 
• They foster innovation: Analytical skills can help you troubleshoot processes or operational improvements that increase productivity and profitability.
• They make you an attractive candidate: Companies are always looking for future leaders who can build company value. Developing a strong analytical skill set shows potential employers that you’re an intelligent, growth-oriented candidate.

If the thought of evaluating data feels unintuitive, or if math and statistics aren’t your strong suits, don’t stress. Many examples of analytical thinking skills don’t involve numbers. You can build your logic and analysis abilities through a variety of capacities, such as:

1. Brainstorming

Using the information in front of you to generate new ideas is a valuable transferable skill that helps you innovate at work . Developing your brainstorming techniques leads to better collaboration and organizational growth, whether you’re thinking of team bonding activities or troubleshooting a project roadblock. Related skills include benchmarking, diagnosis, and judgment to adequately assess situations and find solutions.

2. Communication

Becoming proficient at analysis is one thing, but you should also know how to communicate your findings to your audience — especially if they don’t have the same context or experience as you. Strong communication skills like public speaking , active listening , and storytelling can help you strategize the best ways to get the message out and collaborate with your team . And thinking critically about how to approach difficult conversations or persuade someone to see your point relies on these skills. 

3. Creativity

You might not associate analysis with your creativity skills, but if you want to find an innovative approach to an age-old problem, you’ll need to combine data with creative thinking . This can help you establish effective metrics, spot trends others miss, and see why the most obvious answer to a problem isn’t always the best. Skills that can help you to think outside the box include strategic planning, collaboration, and integration.

4. Critical thinking

Processing information and determining what’s valuable requires critical thinking skills . They help you avoid the cognitive biases that prevent innovation and growth, allowing you to see things as they really are and understand their relevance. Essential skills to turn yourself into a critical thinker are comparative analysis, business intelligence, and inference.

5. Data analytics

When it comes to large volumes of information, a skilled analytical thinker can sort the beneficial from the irrelevant. Data skills give you the tools to identify trends and patterns and visualize outcomes before they impact an organization or project’s performance. Some of the most common skills you can develop are prescriptive analysis and return on investment (ROI) analysis.

6. Forecasting

Predicting future business, market, and cultural trends better positions your organization to take advantage of new opportunities or prepare for downturns. Business forecasting requires a mix of research skills and predictive abilities, like statistical analysis and data visualization, and the ability to present your findings clearly.

7. Logical reasoning

Becoming a logical thinker means learning to observe and analyze situations to draw rational and objective conclusions. With logic, you can evaluate available facts, identify patterns or correlations, and use them to improve decision-making outcomes. If you’re looking to improve in this area, consider developing inductive and deductive reasoning skills.

8. Problem-solving

Problem-solving appears in all facets of your life — not just work. Effectively finding solutions to any issue takes analysis and logic, and you also need to take initiative with clear action plans . To improve your problem-solving skills , invest in developing visualization , collaboration, and goal-setting skills.

9. Research

Knowing how to locate information is just as valuable as understanding what to do with it. With research skills, you’ll recognize and collect data relevant to the problem you’re trying to solve or the initiative you’re trying to start. You can improve these skills by learning about data collection techniques, accuracy evaluation, and metrics.

You don’t need to earn a degree in data science to develop these skills. All it takes is time, practice, and commitment. Everything from work experience to hobbies can help you learn new things and make progress. Try a few of these ideas and stick with the ones you enjoy:

1. Document your skill set

The next time you encounter a problem and need to find solutions, take time to assess your process. Ask yourself:

• What facts are you considering?
• Do you ask for help or research on your own? What are your sources of advice?
• What does your brainstorming process look like?
• How do you make and execute a final decision?
• Do you reflect on the outcomes of your choices to identify lessons and opportunities for improvement?
• Are there any mistakes you find yourself making repeatedly?
• What problems do you constantly solve easily? 

These questions can give insight into your analytical strengths and weaknesses and point you toward opportunities for growth.

2. Take courses

Many online and in-person courses can expand your logical thinking and analysis skills. They don’t necessarily have to involve information sciences. Just choose something that trains your brain and fills in your skills gaps . 

Consider studying philosophy to learn how to develop your arguments or public speaking to better communicate the results of your research. You could also work on your hard skills with tools like Microsoft Excel and learn how to crunch numbers effectively. Whatever you choose, you can explore different online courses or certification programs to upskill. 

3. Analyze everything

Spend time consciously and critically evaluating everything — your surroundings, work processes, and even the way you interact with others. Integrating analysis into your day-to-day helps you practice. The analytical part of your brain is like a muscle, and the more you use it, the stronger it’ll become. 

After reading a book, listening to a podcast, or watching a movie, take some time to analyze what you watched. What were the messages? What did you learn? How was it delivered? Taking this approach to media will help you apply it to other scenarios in your life. 

If you’re giving a presentation at work or helping your team upskill , use the opportunity to flex the analytical side of your brain. For effective teaching, you’ll need to process and analyze the topic thoroughly, which requires skills like logic and communication. You also have to analyze others’ learning styles and adjust your teachings to match them. 

5. Play games

Spend your commute or weekends working on your skills in a way you enjoy. Try doing logic games like Sudoku and crossword puzzles during work breaks to foster critical thinking. And you can also integrate analytical skills into your existing hobbies. According to researcher Rakesh Ghildiyal, even team sports like soccer or hockey will stretch your capacity for analysis and strategic thinking . 

6. Ask questions

According to a study in Tr ends in Cognitive Sciences, being curious improves cognitive function , helping you develop problem-solving skills, retention, and memory. Start speaking up in meetings and questioning the why and how of different decisions around you. You’ll think more critically and even help your team find breakthrough solutions they otherwise wouldn’t.

7.Seek advice

If you’re unsure what analytical skills you need to develop, try asking your manager or colleagues for feedback . Their outside perspective offers insight you might not find within, like patterns in. And if you’re looking for more consistent guidance, talking to a coach can help you spot weaknesses and set goals for the long term.

8. Pursue opportunities

Speak to your manager about participating in special projects that could help you develop and flex your skills. If you’d like to learn about SEO or market research, ask to shadow someone in the ecommerce or marketing departments. If you’re interested in business forecasting, talk to the data analysis team. Taking initiative demonstrates a desire to learn and shows leadership that you’re eager to grow. 

Shining a spotlight on your analytical skills can help you at any stage of your job search. But since they take many forms, it’s best to be specific and show potential employers exactly why and how they make you a better candidate. Here are a few ways you can showcase them to the fullest:

1. In your cover letter

Your cover letter crafts a narrative around your skills and work experience. Use it to tell a story about how you put your analytical skills to use to solve a problem or improve workflow. Make sure to include concrete details to explain your thought process and solution — just keep it concise. Relate it back to the job description to show the hiring manager or recruiter you have the qualifications necessary to succeed.

2. On your resume

Depending on the type of resume you’re writing, there are many opportunities to convey your analytical skills to a potential employer. You could include them in sections like: 

• Professional summary: If you decide to include a summary, describe yourself as an analytical person or a problem-solver, whichever relates best to the job posting. 
• Work experience: Describe all the ways your skill for analysis has helped you perform or go above and beyond your responsibilities. Be sure to include specific details about challenges and outcomes related to the role you’re applying for to show how you use those skills. 
• Skills section: If your resume has a skill-specific section, itemize the analytical abilities you’ve developed over your career. These can include hard analytical skills like predictive modeling as well as interpersonal skills like communication.

3. During a job interview

As part of your interview preparation , list your professional accomplishments and the skills that helped along the way, such as problem-solving, data literacy, or strategic thinking. Then, pull them together into confident answers to common interview questions using the STAR method to give the interviewer a holistic picture of your skill set.

Developing analytical skills isn’t only helpful in the workplace. It’s essential to life. You’ll use them daily whenever you read the news, make a major purchase, or interact with others. Learning to critically evaluate information can benefit your relationships and help you feel more confident in your decisions, whether you’re weighing your personal budget or making a big career change .

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Elizabeth Perry, ACC

Elizabeth Perry is a Coach Community Manager at BetterUp. She uses strategic engagement strategies to cultivate a learning community across a global network of Coaches through in-person and virtual experiences, technology-enabled platforms, and strategic coaching industry partnerships. With over 3 years of coaching experience and a certification in transformative leadership and life coaching from Sofia University, Elizabeth leverages transpersonal psychology expertise to help coaches and clients gain awareness of their behavioral and thought patterns, discover their purpose and passions, and elevate their potential. She is a lifelong student of psychology, personal growth, and human potential as well as an ICF-certified ACC transpersonal life and leadership Coach.

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Understanding Essential Entrepreneurial Skills

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Table of Contents

What are entrepreneurial skills, 12 skills needed for a budding entrepreneur, 1. finance skills, 2. networking, 3. confidence, 4. clear communication, 5. accepting and acting on feedback, 6. growth mindset, 7. analytical and problem-solving skills, 8. time management, 9. leadership, 10. marketing, 11. adaptability, 12. negotiation, aspire to be someone who inspires.

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Across our Communities

Mbe entrepreneurship & supplier diversity.

1. Provide technical expertise: offer subject matter and technical expertise to catalyze and support community initiatives 

E.g., tax/accounting experts to help MBEs file taxes

E.g., business experts to help MBEs better access capital and craft business plans to scale their teams and operations

Access to Capital (CDFI/MDI)

2. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

Systems and technology modernization – $10M-15M: Add/upgrade core banking systems, hardware and productivity tools, train frontline workforce on new systems & technology and hire engineering specialists to support customization and news systems rollout – over 5 years

Talent and workforce – $10M: hire and train additional frontline lending staff and invest in recruiting, training, compensation & benefits and retention to increase in-house expertise and loan capacity – over 5 years

Other capacity-building and outreach – $8M: hire additional staff to increase custom borrower and technical assistance (e.g., credit building, MBE financing options, etc.) and increase community outreach to drive regional awareness and new pipeline projects – over 5 years

Education/HBCU & Workforce Development

3. Offer more paid internships: signup onto InternX and offer 25+ additional paid internships per year to HBCU/Black students 

Digital Access

4. Issue digital access equality bonds: issue equality progress bonds and invest proceeds into SCI’s digital access initiatives

5. Fund HBCU campus-wide internet – up to $50M in donations or in-kind: Partner with the Student Freedom Initiative to deliver campus-wide high-speed internet at ~10 HBCUs across SCI regions

6. Be an advocate for SCI priorities: engage federal and state agencies to drive policy and funding improvements to better support SCI’s near-term priorities

E.g., Engage the Small Business Administration and Minority Business Development Agency to increase technical assistance programs and annual spend to better support Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs) with capital and scaling needs

E.g., Ask the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to include multi-dwelling unit connectivity in its new broadband connectivity maps and ask the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to allow non-FCC data in state broadband plans to unlock ~$285M in potential government broadband funding for 5 SCI regions

Directly Fund SCI

7. Invest directly into SCI (coming soon): provide funding for SCI to pool and invest in community initiatives that are most well-positioned for funding and can drive direct community impact.

Memphis, Tennessee

Lead community organization: The Collective Blueprint

Our ambition:

Increase the volume and value of Black-owned businesses – through corporate MBE spend and MBE startups & scaling

1. Scale technical assistance – $15M: fund* to expand technical assistance through business coaches and wrap-around services for 500+ MBEs over 5 years to help them scale from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue

2. Standup MBE fund – $15M: standup/scale MBE fund* to offer more flexible access to capital arrangements 400-500 MBEs over 5 years

 * Lead organization: The Collective Blueprint ; Contributing local organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): Community Unlimited , Women’s Business Center South , Epicenter , others

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.3x increase in MBE value & 20K+ new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$3B+

Modernize CDFI/MDI systems and tech as well as recruit and upskill talent to increase CDFI/MDI capacity and ability to inject more capital into Black communities

3. Provide loan guarantees – $15M: create a fund* to provide 80% loan guarantees over 5 years to encourage lender participation and inject more capital into the community

4. Conduct advocacy: ask US Treasury & Tennessee State to allow Tennessee CDFIs/MDIs to retain SSBCI capital & offer loan guarantees to boost loan issuance

5. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs** over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup a SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* Leading organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): Community LIFT , Memphis CDFI Network , etc.

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: Community Unlimited, Hope Credit Union, River City Capital, United Housing Inc, etc.

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~$330M+ in additional loans per year to support ~30K+ MBEs

Lower financial burden for Black students, increase number of Black college graduates, increase Black workforce and executive representation and their access to high-paying jobs

6. Standup training hub – $30M: fund* the establishment a world-class training hub that offers certificate-granting STEM and innovation programs in advanced manufacturing, health care, etc. to 10K+ youths

7. Fund SFI program – $7M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s  Income Contingent Alternative to Parent Plus to support ~15 Black STEM students per year forever at 4 HBCUs**

* Lead organization: The Collective Blueprint ; Contributing local organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): Greater Memphis Chamber and Workforce Midsouth

** Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs with STEM programs being considered: Le Moyne-Owen, Baptist Memorial, University of Memphis, Rust College

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 8K+ additional college graduates and 10K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$1B+ in economic growth

Increase accessibility, affordability and adoption of high-speed Internet

8. Accelerate digital access initiatives – $75M:  partner with local orgs* to invest in setting up internet connections / installing hotspots, offering laptops and supporting adoption (through government subsidy technical assistance and digital literacy) to connect ~135K homes to high-speed internet in the Memphis region

9. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~135K unconnected households 

 * Lead organization: The Collective Blueprint ; Contributing local organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): CodeCrew

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~135K households connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$2B+ in economic potential

Houston, Texas

Lead community organization: Greater Houston Partnership

1. Scale team – ~$3M: hire 3-4 FTEs over 5 years for One Houston Together * to help companies increase MBE spend from ~2% to 5-10%+ as well as BIPOC workforce advancement and BIPOC board representation 

2. Increase MBE certification and scale technical assistance – ~$2M: partner with One Houston Together * and the Houston Minority Supplier Development Council (HSMDC) ** to certify additional MBEs, develop Minority Business Finder database tool and provide resources and services to help local MBEs scale and participate in Pathways to Excellence program

3. Commit to increase racial diversity in supply chain and procurement: increase MBE spend in Greater Houston region* to 5-10%+

* One Houston Together serves as lead (please contact if you are interested in funding these initiatives)

** Houston Minority Supplier Development Council (HSMDC) serves as a partner organization (please contact if you are interested in learning more about this initiative)

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.5x increase in MBE value & ~55K new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$12B 

4. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: Unity National Bank, Unity Bank of Texas, PeopleFund, Houston Business Development Inc, etc.

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~$330M in additional loans per year to support ~30K MBEs

5. Fund SFI program – $120M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s Income Contingent Alternative to Parent Plus * to support ~1.2K Black STEM students per year forever at 7 HBCUs**

* Student Freedom Initiative serves as lead (main contact if you are interested in learning more and funding this initiative)

** Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs with STEM programs being considered: Texas Southern University, University of Houston, Prairie View A&M University, Houston Baptist University, University of Houston-Clear Lake, University of Houston-Downtown, University of St Thomas.  

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 5K+ additional college grads & ~600 workers with senior exec positions / high-paying wages to drive ~$0.2B in economic growth

6. Accelerate SCI’s digital access initiatives – up to $80M in donations or in-kind: invest in setting up internet connections / hotspots, offer laptops/Chromebooks and support adoption (through government subsidy technical assistance and digital literacy) to connect ~145K homes to high-speed internet in the Houston region*

7. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~145K unconnected households 

* Community organization(s) being identified 

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~145K households connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$3B in economic potential

Greater New Orleans, Louisiana

Lead community organization: Urban League of Louisiana

1. Scale Black Business Works Fund – $10M: grow the Urban League of Louisiana’s Black Business Works Fund to support ~3K-4K MBEs over 5 years with emergency working capital needs to support/sustain ~$1B+ in annual revenues

2. Scale technical assistance – $20M: fund the Urban League of Louisiana , New Orleans Business Alliance , Thrive New Orleans and Propellor to scale bookkeeping, B2C payment, marketing support & subsidized rent to scale 200+ MBEs from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.5x increase in MBE value & 8K+ new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$2B+

3. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT teams to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: New Orleans Business Alliance (community convener), Liberty, TruFund, LiftFund, NewCorp, etc.

4. Subsidize internships & apprenticeships – $40M: fund the New Orleans Youth Alliance , YouthForce NOLA and the Urban League of Louisiana to place and help subsidize apprenticeships, internships and other work-based learning experiences for ~20K young adults in high-pay sectors (e.g., energy)

5. Fund SFI program – $12M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s Income Contingent Alternative to Parent Plus to support ~120 Black STEM students per year forever at 3 HBCUs*

* Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs being considered: Dillard University, Southern University – New Orleans and Xavier University of Louisiana

6. Scale career prep – ~$10M: scale the New Orleans Youth Alliance and YouthForce NOLA with 15-20 coaches over 5 years to equip ~20K young adults with skills for high-paying industries, job search & prep and subsidized transportation

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~2K additional college graduates and ~20K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$1B in economic growth

7. Accelerate SCI’s digital access initiatives – up to $35M in donations or in-kind: partner with New Orleans’s Office of Information Technology & Innovation and Education SuperHighway to invest in setting up internet connections / hotspots, offering laptops/Chromebook and supporting adoption (through government subsidy technical assistance and digital literacy) to connect ~55K homes to high-speed internet in Greater New Orleans region

8. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~55K unconnected households

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 55K households connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$1B in economic potential

Charlotte, North Carolina

Lead community organization: Charlotte Regional Business Alliance

1. Offer in-kind FTEs: provide 2-5 in-kind FTEs to the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CRBA) over 5 years to convene corporate partners, assess their MBE spend, develop pipeline to increase MBE spend to 5-10%+

2. Offer technical assistance expertise: partner with the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CRBA) to advise/mentor ~200 MBEs on capital/loan access to help them scale from <$10M to $50M+

3. Commit to supplier diversity: increase MBE spend in Charlotte region to 5-10%+

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 3x increase in MBE value & ~13K new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$2B+

4. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M : help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance; in-kind experts to also help build out the MBE ecosystem through CDFIs/MDIs, market CDFI/MDI offerings and programs and help draft final loan agreements to qualify borrowers between investment fund(s) and CDFIs/MDIs

* CDFIs/MDIs being considered (examples and not exhaustive): Security Federal Bank, Institute / North Carolina Community Development Initiative, Sequoyah Fund Inc, Self-Help Credit Union, BEFCOR, Aspire Community Capital, etc.

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: Security Federal Bank, Institute / North Carolina Community Development Initiative, Sequoyah Fund Inc, etc.

5. Fund SFI program – up to $10M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s HELPS program to support ~1.5K+ students per year at HBCUs* with emergency expenses – e.g., unexpected health costs, late rent payments, etc.

* Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs in Charlotte that are being considered: Johnson C. Smith University, Johnson & Wales University – Charlotte, Charlotte Christian College

6. Provide in-kind staff: offer 2-5 FTEs to the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CRBA) over 5 years to track Black-/Brown-executive representation, convene corporate partners to develop executive pipeline and hiring plans and support corporate partners to increase representation from ~10% to 30%+

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.5K+ additional college graduates and 2.5K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$0.2B in economic growth

7. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~35K unconnected households

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~35K households get connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$700M in economic potential for Charlotte

Birmingham, Alabama

Lead community organization: Prosper Birmingham

1. Fund startups and give access to investor network – $70M: grow the Prosper Health Tech Fund – powered by Gener8tor – and offer venture capital technical assistance to scale 50+ startups from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue; near-term priority is to secure $4M in venture investment by end of May 2022

2. Fund technical assistance – $25M: fund Prosper Birmingham , Magic City Match , and Birmingham Business Alliance to establish/expand business advisory programs, renovate and subsidize retail/office space for MBEs and scale coaches & support services (e.g., digital footprint, B2C platforms, accounting & bookkeeping, recruitment, etc.) to help 100+ MBEs scale from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 3x increase in annual MBE revenue & 8K+ new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$2B+

3. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: First Bancshares, Commonwealth National Bank, TruFund, Sabre Finance, Bronze Valley, etc.

4. Fund scholarships and hire coaches – ~$35M: scale Birmingham Promise fund to financially support 200-250 students per year over 4 years to increase college retention and graduation rates

5. Fund endowment – $2M: support 50 University of Alabama at Birmingham college students per year with housing to reduce their financial burden and increase college retention and graduation rates

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 6.5K+ additional college graduates & 35K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$1.2B in economic growth

6. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~35K unconnected households

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 48K households get connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$700M in economic potential for Jefferson County

4 Ways to Improve Your Problem Solving and Analytical Skills

Possessing strong analytical skills and solving problems is a part of everyday life– not just in entrepreneurship, but also in your personal life.

In fact, we would go as far as to say that if you aren’t encountering problems every once in a while, and subsequently conquering them, are you even a real entrepreneur?

However, being an entrepreneur, and by extension, an excellent problem solver, you’re going to need a few tricks up your sleeve. You’re in luck today.

Thinking Fast and Slow

by Daniel Kahneman

⏱ 14 minutes reading time

🎧 Audio version available

Buy on Amazon

Trick #1: Be Impatient

The first trick we’ve got to share is to jump into action. Take immediate steps to tackle this problem. As you know by now, entrepreneurship isn’t a wise career path for people who tend to put things off or procrastinate.

The next time a problem rears its ugly head, tackle it immediately. By “tackling it,” we mean executing our next piece of advice. This is not the same as hurrying into a decision, which could possibly make things worse. Being impatient about solving problems means you’re eager to solve them instead of letting things run their own disastrous course.

Trick #2: Digest

When they find themselves in a bind, a lot of people go with the first decision or plan of action that comes to mind. While you need to get a jumpstart on solving the problem, you should never make a business decision in a hurry. In order to be a successful entrepreneur, coming up with a system that helps you think critically is a must .

The next step is to digest , which in this case means thinking critically about the problem. Digesting means not immediately going with the first idea. Take the time to digest the problem before you even think about offering a solution.

Critical thinking, the ability to logically digest problems, is vital for your business. It’s going to help you grow your brand. And it works for every aspect of the job, including finances, marketing, and when dealing with employees and investors.

And most importantly, it’s going to ensure that your solution is effective and long lasting– as in, it’s not going to circle back with an additional problem.

Analyze every factor on hand. To avoid procrastination, set a strict deadline for when you need to find a solution.

Trick #3: The Five Whys

You know those little kids who constantly bombard people with ‘why’ questions? They may be on to something. Because answering all those ‘why’ questions will help you come up with new and innovative solutions.

Today, we want to be that annoying kid. Ask many ‘whys’ as you want. Be as unsatisfied as that kid is. This is how you’re going to get to the bottom of the problem. With every “why,” you’re digging deeper.

Most notably, you’re gaining insight . This is also related to not going with the first decision you come up with. Never be satisfied with the first solution you find to your first “why.”

After solving the first question, continue asking why. Not sure how many “whys” you need? Here’s an extra trick.

The Five “Whys.”

The technique was created by none other than Toyota– aka, one of the oldest and most reliable car producing companies of all time. The Five Whys were proposed by Japanese inventor and industrialist, Sakichi Toyoda; who was known as the “King of Japanese Inventors”. He’s the one who started the Toyoda family companies. Later on, his son would establish Toyota, the largest automaker in Japan.

So that king of industry made the 5 Whys part of the Toyota Production System. It goes like this: whenever they encounter a problem, Toyota’s scientific approach is to ask “why” a total of five times. Then, not only the solution becomes clear, but also the very nature of the problem.

We’re looking to be problem-solving, analytical business people, and a major part of that is knowing how to make informed decisions. The 5 Whys are magic when it comes to clearing that fog.

The first ‘why’ will reveal a superficial analysis. Being persistent will find the real cause of the problem so that you can find lasting solutions.

Like Toyota, you want to understand what’s happening on the work floor, so you prod and inspect it until a clear reason for that problem is revealed.

The Toyota website states that “whenever a problem cropped up, Taiichi Ohno encouraged his staff to explore problems first-hand until the root causes were found.” “Observe the production floor without preconceptions,” he would advise. “Ask ‘why’ five times about every matter.”

There are a lot of ways you can approach this technique. Some people like to hold meetings to brainstorm. Others work alone. Some move past the five question mark and ask as many ‘whys’ as they want– as many as it takes to get to the root of the problem and clarify the necessary action.

The method depends on following step after step. And we cannot emphasize this enough: don’t hurry. And don’t jump to conclusions.

Your answers to the ‘whys’ should be based on facts and concrete knowledge. Look at the process and assess it before you get started on assessing the people involved.

Since we’re talking about Toyota, let’s use them for an example. Our scenario is a conveyor belt has stopped.

First Why: Why did the conveyor belt stop?

The pulley that rotates the belt isn’t working.

Second Why: Why is the pulley not rotating the belt?

There is not enough power.

Third Why: Why isn’t there enough power?

The motor has stopped working.

Fourth Why: Why isn’t it working?

It burnt out.

Fifth Why: Why is it burnt out?

The motor was overloaded past its power capacity.

Sometimes, it may take more than five whys, but you can usually trace the problem back to its origins and figure out where to go from there.

Where do you go from there? Here is the next trick!

Trick #4: Failure Mode and Effects Analysis

The Failure Mode and Effects Analysis, also shortened to FMEA, is a step by step technique for solving problems that the U.S. military started in the 1940s to identify possible failures in a design, product, service, or manufacturing process.

The gist of it is that FMEA is basically reviewing all that you can– the components, the subsystems, et cetera. This is how you can identify any potential failures, their causes, and effects. There is actually a FMEA worksheet you can use.

While this technique originally began as a military thing, who’s to say it can’t be applied to entrepreneurship? You can use it anytime– when you’re designing a product or a service, when you’re testing quality, when you’re developing control plans, when you’re trying to improve an existing process, or generally throughout the life of your business.

Go Crazy With Generating Ideas

It’s only logical that you’re going to have an abundance of ideas to address to your problem by now. You have all the relevant information on hand, the causes are clear, and you need to get a move on.

Each idea you come up with should be evaluated for practicality and feasibility. Weigh the cost of each solution. With every solution, there is bound to be a trade-off. The advantages and disadvantages of that should be analytically considered as well. Sometimes, while the cost is tempting, it may not be practical. Bounce around ideas and assess each one to find the one that’s most efficient, cost-friendly, and is feasible for all sides involved.

Related: How to Approach Solving Most Common Startup Problems

Walk Through the Execution

It’s show time! This is the moment you implement your solution, but first, the trick to nailing it is to walk through how the execution should go. Test every factor of the solution, each part, and if it wors, you’re good to go.

However, you won’t make it long as an entrepreneur if your implementing skills– and by extension, your problem solving skills– aren’t up to code. The final step in analytical thinking is assessing the final solution. Believe it or not, but this is something that’s often overlooked.

Just because you have a solution doesn’t mean it’s the final solution. Remember that thing about lasting solutions? The final part, the show time, is continually testing whether or not this is the final solution. You never know, knowing all these nifty tricks may be what propels you ahead of the competition!

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6.1 Problem Solving to Find Entrepreneurial Solutions

Portions of the material in this section are based on original work by Geoffrey Graybeal and produced with support from the Rebus Community. The original is freely available under the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license at https://press.rebus.community/media-innovation-and-entrepreneurship/.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Define problem solving in the context of entrepreneurship
• Describe and compare the adaptive model and the innovative model of problem solving
• Identify the skills entrepreneurs need for effective problem solving
• Identify types of problem solvers

As you’ve learned, entrepreneurs often visualize an opportunity gap, a gap between what exists and what could exist, as Hirabayashi and Lidey did with Shine. Entrepreneurial problem solving is the process of using innovation and creative solutions to close that gap by resolving societal, business, or technological problems. Sometimes, personal problems can lead to entrepreneurial opportunities if validated in the market. The entrepreneur visualizes the prospect of filling the gap with an innovative solution that might entail the revision of a product or the creation of an entirely new product. In any case, the entrepreneur approaches the problem-solving process in various ways. This chapter is more about problem solving as it pertains to the entrepreneur’s thought process and approach rather than on problem solving in the sense of opportunity recognition and filling those gaps with new products.

For example, as we read in Identifying Entrepreneurial Opportunity , Sara Blakely (as shown in Figure 6.2 ) saw a need for body contouring and smoothing undergarments one day in the late 1990s when she was getting dressed for a party and couldn’t find what she needed to give her a silhouette she’d be pleased with in a pair of slacks. She saw a problem: a market need. But her problem-solving efforts are what drove her to turn her solution (Spanx undergarments) into a viable product. Those efforts came from her self-admitted can-do attitude: “It’s really important to be resourceful and scrappy—a glass half-full mindset.” 1 Her efforts at creating a new undergarment met resistance with hosiery executives, most of whom were male and out of touch with their female consumers. The hosiery owner who decided to help Blakely initially passed on the idea until running it by his daughters and realizing she was on to something. That something became Spanx , and today, Blakely is a successful entrepreneur. 2

Before getting into the heart of this chapter, we need to make a distinction: Decision making is different from problem solving . A decision is needed to continue or smooth a process affecting the operation of a firm. It can be intuitive or might require research and a long period of consideration. Problem solving , however, is more direct. It entails the solution of some problem where a gap exists between a current state and a desired state. Entrepreneurs are problem solvers who offer solutions using creativity or innovative ventures that exploit opportunities. This chapter focuses on different approaches to problem solving and need recognition that help potential entrepreneurs come up with ideas and refine those ideas.

Two Problem Solving Models: Adaptive and Innovative

There are two prominent established problem-solving models: adaptive and innovative . A renowned British psychologist, Michael Kirton , developed the Kirton Adaption-Innovation (KAI) Inventory to measure an individual’s style of problem solving. 3 Problem-solving preferences are dependent on the personality characteristics of originality, conformity, and efficiency, according to Kirton. The KAI inventory identifies an individual’s problem-solving approach by measuring agreement with statements that align with characteristics, such as the ability to produce many novel ideas, to follow rules and get along in groups, and to systematically orient daily behavior. The results categorize an individual as an innovator or an adaptor. Innovators are highly original, do not like to conform, and value efficiency less than adaptors.

The first and more conservative approach an entrepreneur may use to solve problems is the adaptive model. The adaptive model seeks solutions for problems in ways that are tested and known to be effective. An adaptive model accepts the problem definition and is concerned with resolving problems rather than finding them. This approach seeks greater efficiency while aiming at continuity and stability. The second and more creative approach is the innovative model of entrepreneurial problem solving, which uses techniques that are unknown to the market and that bring advantage to an organization. An innovative problem-solving style challenges the problem definition, discovers problems and avenues for their solutions, and questions existing assumptions—in a nutshell, it does things differently. It uses outside-the-box thinking and searches for novel solutions. Novelty is a shared trait of creative entrepreneurship, and it’s why entrepreneurs gravitate toward this method of problem solving. According to Dr. Shaun M. Powell , a senior lecturer at the University of Wollongong, Australia: “Creative entrepreneurs are notable for a distinctive management style that is based on intuition, informality and rapid decision making, whereas the more conventional thinking styles are not in accord with the unique attributes of creative entrepreneurs.” 4 This way of problem solving doesn’t alter an existing product. It is the creation of something entirely new.

For example, healthcare facilities have long been known as a source of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a deadly infection that can have long-term effects on patients. Vital Vio , led by Colleen Costello , has developed white light technology that effectively disinfects healthcare facilities by targeting a molecule specific to bacteria. The light, safe to humans, can burn constantly to kill regenerative bacteria. An adaptive problem-solving model would seek to minimize harm of MRSA within a hospital—to respond to it—whereas the Vital Vio is an entirely new technique that seeks to eliminate it. Adaptive solutions to MRSA include established processes and protocols for prevention, such as having doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers clean their hands with soap and water, or an alcohol-based hand rub before and after patient care, testing patients to see if they have MRSA on their skin, cleaning hospital rooms and medical equipment, and washing and drying clothes and bed linens in the warmest recommended temperatures. 5

Link to Learning

Visit Inc. Magazine for support and advice for up-and-coming startups to learn more. Examples of how “Dorm Room” entrepreneurs spot and pursue opportunities are shared along with tips and advice for making your startup a success.

Problem-Solving Skills

While identifying problems is a necessary part of the origin of the entrepreneurial process, managing problems is an entirely different aspect once a venture is off the ground and running. An entrepreneur does not have the luxury of avoiding problems and is often responsible for all problem solving in a startup or other form of business. There are certain skills that entrepreneurs possess that make them particularly good problem solvers. Let’s examine each skill (shown in Figure 6.3 ) .

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is the complex analysis of a problem or issue with the goal of solving the problem or making a decision. The entrepreneur analyzes and peels away the layers of a problem to find the core of an issue facing a business. The entrepreneur focuses on the heart of the problem and responds reasonably and openly to suggestions for solving it. Critical thinking is not only important for developing entrepreneurial ideas: it is a sought-after asset in education and employment. Entrepreneur Rebecca Kantar dropped out of Harvard in 2015 to found the tech startup Imbellus , which aims to replace standardized college admissions tests like the SAT with interactive scenarios that test critical-thinking skills. Many standardized tests may include multiple choice questions asking for the answer to a straightforward knowledge question or math problem. Kantar seeks to create tests that are more concerned with the analytic ability and reasoning that goes into the process of solving the problem. Imbellus says it aims to test “how people think,” not just what they know. The platform, which has not yet launched, will use simulations for its user assessments. 6

Read more about problem solving and EnterpriseWorks/Vita’s story at Harvard Business Review .

Communication

Communication skills , the ability to communicate messages effectively to an intended recipient, are the skills entrepreneurs use to pool resources for the purposes of investigating solutions leading to innovative problem solving and competitive advantage. Good communication allows for the free association of ideas between entrepreneurs and businesses. It can illustrate a problem area or a shared vision, and seeks stakeholder buy-in from various constituencies. Networking and communication within an industry allow the entrepreneur to recognize the position of an enterprise in the market and work toward verbalizing solutions that move an organization beyond its current state. By “verbalizing,” we mean communication from and with the company/entity. Internal communications include company emails, newsletters, presentations, and reports that can set strategic goals and objectives, and report on what has been accomplished and what goals and objectives remain, so that employees within an organization are knowledgeable and can work on solving problems that remain within the organization. External communications could include press releases, blogs and websites, social media, public speeches, and presentations that explain the company’s solutions to problems. They could also be investor pitches complete with business plans and financial projections.

Ideation exercises, such as brainstorming sessions (discussed in Creativity, Innovation, and Invention , are good communication tools that entrepreneurs can use to generate solutions to problems. Another such tool is a hackathon —an event, usually hosted by a tech company or organization, which brings together programmers and workers with other degrees of specialization within the company, community, or organization to collaborate on a project over a short period of time. These can last from twenty-four hours to a few days over a weekend. A hackathon can be an internal company-wide initiative or an external event that brings community participants together. A business model canvas , which is covered in Business Model and Plan and other activities outlined in other chapters can be used internally or externally to identify problems and work toward creating a viable solution.

Networking is an important manifestation of useful communication. What better method is there of presenting one’s concept, gaining funding and buy-in, and marketing for the startup than through building a network of individuals willing to support your venture? A network may consist of potential employees, customers, board members, outside advisors, investors, or champions (people who just love your product) with no direct vested interest. Social networks consist of weak ties and strong ties. Sociologist Mark Granovetter studied such networks back in the 1970s, and his findings still apply today, even if we include social media networks in the definition too. Weak ties facilitate flow of information and community organization, he said, whereas strong ties represent strong connections among close friends, family members, and supportive coworkers. 7 Strong ties require more work to maintain than weak ties (as illustrated by the strong lines and weak dotted lines in Figure 6.4 ) and in a business context, they don’t lead to many new opportunities. Weak ties, in contrast, do open doors in that they act as bridges to other weak ties within functional areas or departments that you might not have had access to directly or through strong ties. 8

In fact, many young entrepreneurs, including tech entrepreneur Oliver Isaacs , realize college is a great place to begin building teams. Isaacs is the founder of viral opinion network Amirite.com , which is widely credited as the place where Internet memes started and online slang got a foothold. 9 Amirite.com consists of a large network of pages and partnerships on Facebook and Instagram that reach 15 million users each month. Isaacs recommends using your alumni network to build a team and customer base for your own venture because you never know if you’re talking to a future employee or partner.

Sharing of ideas and resources is highly valued in the entrepreneurial process. Communication is a vital skill in problem solving because the ability to identify and articulate the problem (define the problem space) is necessary to adequately address a problem. A problem can be too vague or broad or narrow. Thus, communicating the problem is important, as is conveying the solution.

Decisiveness

Decisiveness is as it sounds: the ability to make a quick, effective decision, not letting too much time go by in the process. Entrepreneurs must be productive, even in the face of risk. They often rely on intuition as well as on hard facts in making a choice. They ask what problem needs to be solved, think about solutions, and then consider the means necessary to implement an idea. And the decisions must be informed with research.

For example, as explained in Adam Grant’s book The Originals , the co-founders of Warby Parker, a venture-backed startup focused on the eyewear industry, started their company while they were graduate students. At the time they knew little about the industry, but after conducting some detailed research, they learned that the industry was dominated by one major player—Luxottica. They used this information and other data to refine their strategy and business model (focusing mainly on value, quality, and convenience via an online channel). By the time they decided to launch the business, they had thought through the key details, and they attained rapid early success. Today Warby Parker has over 100 retail stores in the US, is profitable, and is valued at almost $2 billion.

Decisiveness is the catapult to progress. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos preaches the importance of decisiveness throughout his organization. Bezos believes that decisiveness can even lead to innovation. Bezos advocates for making decisions after obtaining 70 percent of the information you need to do so: “Being wrong may be less costly than you think, whereas being slow is going to be expensive for sure,” Bezos wrote in a 2017 annual letter to stockholders. 10

Read this LinkedIn blog post on decisiveness to learn more.

Ability to Analyze Data

Data analysis is the process of analyzing data and modeling it into a structure that leads to innovative conclusions. Identifying Entrepreneurial Opportunity covered much of the sources of data that entrepreneurs might seek. But it is one thing to amass information and statistics. It is another to make sense of that data, to use it to fill a market need or forecast a trend to come. Successful founders know how to pose questions about and make meaning out of information. And if they can’t do that themselves, they know how to bring in experts who can.

In addition to public sources of broad data, a business can collect data on customers when they interact with the company on social media or when they visit the company website, especially if they complete a credit card transaction. They can collect their own specific data on their own customers, including location, name, activity, and how they got to the website. Analyzing these data will give the entrepreneur a better idea about the interested audience’s demographic.

In entrepreneurship, analyzing data can help with opportunity recognition, creation, and assessment by analyzing data in a variety of ways. Entrepreneurs can explore and leverage different data sources to identify and compare “attractive” opportunities, since such analyses can describe what has happened, why it happened, and how likely it is to happen again in the future. In business in general, analytics is used to help managers/entrepreneurs gain improved insight about their business operations/emerging ventures and make better, fact-based decisions.

Analytics can be descriptive, predictive, or prescriptive. Descriptive analytics involves understanding what has happened and what is happening; predictive analytics uses data from past performance to estimate future performance; and prescriptive analytics uses the results of descriptive and predictive analytics to make decisions. Data analysis can be applied to manage customer relations, inform financial and marketing activities, make pricing decisions, manage the supply chain, and plan for human resource needs, among other functions of a venture. In addition to statistical analysis, quantitative methods, and computer models to aid decision-making, companies are also increasingly using artificial intelligence algorithms to analyze data and make quick decisions.

Understanding of Business and Industry

Entrepreneurs need sound understanding of markets and industries. Often times, they are already working in a large organization when they see growth opportunities or inefficiencies in a market. The employee gains a deep understanding of the industry at hand. If the employee considers a possible solution for a problem, this solution might become the basis for a new business.

For example, consider a marketing agency that used traditional marketing for thirty years. This agency had an established clientele. An executive in the organization began studying social media analytics and social media. The executive approached the owner of the business to change processes and begin serving clients through social media, but the owner refused. Clients within the agency began to clamor for exposure on social media. The marketing executive investigated the possibility of building an agency in her locale servicing clients who wish to utilize social media. The marketing executive left the organization and started her own agency (providing, of course, that this is in compliance with any noncompete clauses in her contract). Her competitive advantage was familiarity with both traditional and social media venues. Later, the original agency started floundering because it did not offer social media advertising. Our intrepid executive purchased the agency to gain the clientele and serve those wishing to move away from traditional marketing.

A similar experience occurred for entrepreneur Katie Witkin . After working in traditional marketing roles, the University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate, pictured in Figure 6.5 , left agency life behind four years out of college to cofound her own company, AGW Group . In 2009, Witkin had been interning at a music marketing agency that didn’t have a social media department. She knew, both from her time at college and from observing industry trends, that social media was changing the way companies connected with customers. For her own venture, she expanded the focus to all supporting brands to manage all things digital. Today, the cultural and marketing communications agency has fifteen employees and big-name clients ranging from HBO to Red Bull. 11

Resourcefulness

Resourcefulness is the ability to discover clever solutions to obstacles. Sherrie Campbell , a psychologist, author, and frequent contributor to Entrepreneur magazine on business topics, put it this way:

“There is not a more useful or important trait to possess than resourcefulness in the pursuit of success. Resourcefulness is a mindset, and is especially relevant when the goals you have set are difficult to achieve or you cannot envision a clear path to get to where you desire to go. With a resourcefulness mindset you are driven to find a way. An attitude of resourcefulness inspires out-of-the-box thinking, the generation of new ideas, and the ability to visualize all the possible ways to achieve what you desire. Resourcefulness turns you into a scrappy, inventive and enterprising entrepreneur. It places you a cut above the rest.” 12

Entrepreneurs start thinking about a business venture or startup by talking to people and procuring experts to help create, fund, and begin a business. Entrepreneurs are risk takers, passionate about new endeavors. If they don’t have a college degree or a great deal of business experience, they understand there are many resources available to support them in the endeavor, such as the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) and the Small Business Administration (SBA) . There are many sources available to fund the business with little or no debt and options, as you will see in the chapter on Entrepreneurial Finance and Accounting . The entrepreneur follows a vision and researches opportunities to move toward a dream.

For example, in the late 1990s, Bill McBean and his business partner Billy Sterett had an opportunity to buy an underperforming auto dealership that would make their company the dominant one in the market. Neither wanting to take cash from other ventures nor wanting to borrow more money and tie themselves to more debt, the entrepreneurs were resourceful by finding another path forward to obtaining the money necessary for the acquisition they both coveted. They changed banks and renegotiated their banking payback requirements, lowering their interest payments, reducing fees, and lowering their monthly payments, ultimately freeing up a significant amount of cash that allowed them to buy the new company. 13

Types of Problem Solvers

Entrepreneurs have an insatiable appetite for problem solving. This drive motivates them to find a resolution when a gap in a product or service occurs. They recognize opportunities and take advantage of them. There are several types of entrepreneurial problem solvers, including self-regulators, theorists, and petitioners.

Self-Regulating Problem Solvers

Self-regulating problem solvers are autonomous and work on their own without external influence. They have the ability to see a problem, visualize a possible solution to the problem, and seek to devise a solution, as Figure 6.6 illustrates. The solution may be a risk, but a self-regulating problem solver will recognize, evaluate, and mitigate the risk. For example, an entrepreneur has programmed a computerized process for a client, but in testing it, finds the program continually falls into a loop, meaning it gets stuck in a cycle and doesn’t progress. Rather than wait for the client to find the problem, the entrepreneur searches the code for the error causing the loop, immediately edits it, and delivers the corrected program to the customer. There is immediate analysis, immediate correction, and immediate implementation. The self-regulating problem solvers’ biggest competitive advantage is the speed with which they recognize and provide solutions to problems.

Theorist Problem Solvers

Theorist problem solvers see a problem and begin to consider a path toward solving the problem using a theory. Theorist problem solvers are process oriented and systematic. While managers may start with a problem and focus on an outcome with little consideration of a means to an end, entrepreneurs may see a problem and begin to build a path with what is known, a theory, toward an outcome. That is, the entrepreneur proceeds through the steps to solve the problem and then builds on the successes, rejects the failures, and works toward the outcome by experimenting and building on known results. At this point, the problem solver may not know the outcome, but a solution will arise as experiments toward a solution occur. Figure 6.7 shows this process.

For example, if we consider Marie Curie as an entrepreneur, Curie worked toward the isolation of an element. As different approaches to isolating the element failed, Curie recorded the failures and attempted other possible solutions. Curie’s failed theories eventually revealed the outcome for the isolation of radium. Like Curie, theorists use considered analysis, considered corrective action, and a considered implementation process. When time is of the essence, entrepreneurs should understand continual experimentation slows the problem-solving process.

Petitioner Problem Solvers

Petitioner problem solvers ( Figure 6.8 ) see a problem and ask others for solution ideas. This entrepreneur likes to consult a person who has “been there and done that.” The petitioner might also prefer to solve the problem in a team environment. Petitioning the entrepreneurial team for input ensures that the entrepreneur is on a consensus-driven path. This type of problem solving takes the longest to complete because the entrepreneur must engage in a democratic process that allows all members on the team to have input. The process involves exploration of alternatives for the ultimate solution. In organizational decision-making, for example, comprehensiveness is a measure of the extent a firm attempts to be inclusive or exhaustive in its decision-making. Comprehensiveness can be gauged by the number of scheduled meetings, the process by which information is sought, the process by which input is obtained from external sources, the number of employees involved, the use of specialized consultants and the functional expertise of the people involved, the years of historical data review, and the assignment of primary responsibility, among other factors. Comprehensive decision-making would be an example of a petitioner problem-solving style, as it seeks input from a vast number of team members.

A charette —a meeting to resolve conflicts and identify solutions—is another example that employs a petitioner problem-solving approach. Often times, a developer of a new project might hold a community charette to aid in the design of a project, hoping to gain approval from elected officials. In the building example, this could consist of the developer and his team of architects, project designers, and people with expertise in the project working alongside community members, business executives, elected officials, or representatives like staff members or citizen-appointed boards like a planning board. Such an activity is representative of a petitioner problem-solving approach, as opposed to a developer representative designing the project with no input from anyone else.

In summary, there is no right or wrong style of problem solving; each problem solver must rely on the instincts that best drive innovation. Further, they must remember that not all problem-solving methods work in every situation. They must be willing to adapt their own preference to the situation to maximize efficiency and ensure they find an effective solution. Attempting to force a problem-solving style may prevent an organization from finding the best solution. While general entrepreneurial problem-solving skills such as critical thinking, decisiveness, communication, and the ability to analyze data will likely be used on a regular basis in your life and entrepreneurial journey, other problem-solving skills and the approach you take will depend on the problem as it arises.

There are a number of resources online that can help analyze your problem-solving abilities. Mindtools.com is one such resource. These are useful to learn your general problem-solving tendencies before being called upon to apply them in a real-world setting. One of the problem-solving techniques available from mindtools.com offers that problems can be addressed from six different perspectives. Called CATWOE , the approach is an acronym for Customers, Actors (people within the organization), Transformative, Worldwide, Owner, and Environment (organizational).

Learn more about the CATWOE technique for problem solving.

• 1 Helen Lock. “‘I Put My Butt on the Line’: How Spanx Took Over the World.” The Guardian. July 11, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/small-business-network/2016/jul/11/put-butt-on-the-line-how-spanx-world
• 2 Gary Keller. “Business Success Series, Part 1: Sara Blakely-Spanx.” The One Thing. n.d. https://www.the1thing.com/blog/the-one-thing/business-success-series-part-1-sara-blakely-spanx/
• 3 “Characteristics of Adaptors and Innovators.” Kirton KAI Inventory Tool . n.d. http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/archive/ci/31/i11/html/11hipple_box3.ci.html
• 4 Shaun Powell. “The Management and Consumption of Organisational Creativity.” Journal of Consumer Marketing 25, no. 3 (2008): 158–166.
• 5 N.C Healthcare-Associated Infections Prevention Program. Healthcare-Associated Infections in North Carolina: 2014 Annual Report, Healthcare Consumer Version. April 2015. https://epi.dph.ncdhhs.gov/cd/hai/figures/hai_apr2015_consumers_annual.pdf
• 6 Romesh Ratnesar. “What If Instead of Taking the SAT You Got to Play a Video Game?” Bloomberg BusinessWeek. March 19, 2019. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-03-19/a-harvard-dropout-s-plan-to-fix-college-admissions-with-video-games
• 7 Mark Granovetter. “The Strength of Weak Ties.” American Journal of Sociology 5 (1973): 1360–1380.
• 8 Jacob Morgan. “Why Every Employee Should Be Building Weak Ties at Work.” Forbes. March 11, 2014. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2014/03/11/every-employee-weak-ties-work/#277851063168
• 9 John White. “Top UK Influencer Oliver Isaacs Reveals What It Takes to Go Viral.” Inc . August 6, 2017. https://www.inc.com/john-white/top-uk-influencer-oliver-isaacs-reveals-what-it-ta.html
• 10 Erik Larson. “How Jeff Bezos Uses Faster Better Decisions to Keep Amazon Innovating.” Forbes . September 24, 2018. https://www.forbes.com/sites/eriklarson/2018/09/24/how-jeff-bezos-uses-faster-better-decisions-to-keep-amazon-innovating/#492c351b7a65
• 11 Stephanie Schomer. “How Getting Laid Off Empowered This Entrepreneur to Start Her Own Award-Winning Marketing Agency.” Entrepreneur. January 15, 2019. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/326212
• 12 Sherrie Campbell. “6 Characteristics of Resourceful People That Bring Them Success.” Entrepreneur. March 10, 2016. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/272171
• 13 “Resourcefulness Is More Important Than Resources.” The Ecommerce Mindset: How Successful Store Owners Think. n.d. https://www.oberlo.com/ebooks/mindset/resourceful-entrepreneur

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4 Ways to Improve Your Analytical Skills

• 07 Jan 2021

Data is ubiquitous. It’s collected at every purchase made, flight taken, ad clicked, and social media post liked—which means it’s never been more crucial to understand how to analyze it.

“Never before has so much data about so many different things been collected and stored every second of every day,” says Harvard Business School Professor Jan Hammond in the online course Business Analytics .

The volume of data you encounter can be overwhelming and raise several questions: Can I trust the data’s source? Is it structured in a way that makes sense? What story does it tell, and what actions does it prompt?

Data literacy and analytical skills can enable you to answer these questions and not only make sense of raw data, but use it to drive impactful change at your organization.

Here’s a look at what it means to be data literate and four ways to improve your analytical skills.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Data Literacy?

Data literacy is the ability to analyze, interpret, and question data. A dataset is made up of numerous data points that, when viewed together, tell a story.

Before conducting an analysis, it’s important to ensure your data’s quality and structure is in accordance with your organization’s needs.

“In order to transform data into actionable information, you first need to evaluate its quality,” says Professor Dustin Tingley in the Harvard Online course Data Science Principles . “But evaluating the quality of your data is just the first step. You’ll also need to structure your data. Without structure, it’s nearly impossible to extract any information.”

When you’re able to look at quality data, structure it, and analyze it, trends emerge. The next step is to reflect on your analysis and take action.

Tingley shares several questions to ask yourself once you’ve analyzed your dataset: “Did all the steps I took make sense? If so, how should I respond to my analysis? If not, what should I go back and improve?”

For example, you may track users who click a button to download an e-book from your website.

After ensuring your data’s quality and structuring it in a way that makes sense, you begin your analysis and find that a user’s age is positively correlated with their likelihood to click. What story does this trend tell? What does it say about your users, product offering, and business strategy?

To answer these questions, you need strong analytical skills, which you can develop in several ways.

Related: Business Analytics: What It Is & Why It’s Important

How to Improve Your Analytical Skills

Analysis is an important skill to have in any industry because it enables you to support decisions with data, learn more about your customers, and predict future trends.

Key analytical skills for business include:

• Visualizing data
• Determining the relationship between two or more variables
• Forming and testing hypotheses
• Performing regressions using statistical programs, such as Microsoft Excel
• Deriving actionable conclusions from data analysis

If you want to provide meaningful conclusions and data-based recommendations to your team, here are four ways to bolster your analytical skills.

Related: How to Learn Business Analytics Without A Business Background

1. Consider Opposing Viewpoints

While engaging with opposing viewpoints can help you expand your perspective, combat bias, and show your fellow employees their opinions are valued, it can also be a useful way to practice analytical skills.

When analyzing data, it’s crucial to consider all possible interpretations and avoid getting stuck in one way of thinking.

For instance, revisit the example of tracking users who click a button on your site to download an e-book. The data shows that the user’s age is positively correlated with their likelihood to click the button; as age increases, downloads increase, too. At first glance, you may interpret this trend to mean that a user chooses to download the e-book because of their age.

This conclusion, however, doesn’t take into consideration the vast number of variables that change with age. For instance, perhaps the real reason your older users are more likely to download the e-book is their higher level of responsibility at work, higher average income, or higher likelihood of being parents.

This example illustrates the need to consider multiple interpretations of data, and specifically shows the difference between correlation (the trending of two or more variables in the same direction) and causation (when a trend in one variable causes a trend to occur in one or more other variables).

“Data science is built on a foundation of critical thinking,” Tingley says in Data Science Principles . “From the first step of determining the quality of a data source to determining the accuracy of an algorithm, critical thinking is at the heart of every decision data scientists—and those who work with them—make.”

To practice this skill, challenge yourself to question your assumptions and ask others for their opinions. The more you actively engage with different viewpoints, the less likely you are to get stuck in a one-track mindset when analyzing data.

2. Play Games or Brain Teasers

If you’re looking to sharpen your skills on a daily basis, there are many simple, enjoyable ways to do so.

Games, puzzles, and stories that require visualizing relationships between variables, examining situations from multiple angles, and drawing conclusions from known data points can help you build the skills necessary to analyze data.

Some fun ways to practice analytical thinking include:

• Crossword puzzles
• Mystery novels
• Logic puzzles
• Strategic board games or card games

These options can supplement your analytics coursework and on-the-job experience. Some of them also allow you to spend time with friends or family. Try engaging with one each day to hone your analytical mindset.

Related: 3 Examples of Business Analytics in Action

3. Take an Online Analytics Course

Whether you want to learn the basics, brush up on your skills, or expand your knowledge, taking an analytics course is an effective way to improve. A course can enable you to focus on the content you want to learn, engage with the material presented by a professional in the field, and network and interact with others in the data analytics space.

For a beginner, courses like Harvard Online's Data Science Principles can provide a foundation in the language of data. A more advanced course, like Harvard Online's Data Science for Business , may be a fit if you’re looking to explore specific facets of analytics, such as forecasting and machine learning. If you’re interested in hands-on applications of analytical formulas, a course like HBS Online's Business Analytics could be right for you. The key is to understand what skills you hope to gain, then find a course that best fits your needs.

If you’re balancing a full-time job with your analytics education, an online format may be a good choice . It offers the flexibility to engage with course content whenever and wherever is most convenient for you.

An online course may also present the opportunity to network and build relationships with other professionals devoted to strengthening their analytical skills. A community of like-minded learners can prove to be an invaluable resource as you learn and advance your career.

Related: Is An Online Business Analytics Course Worth It?

4. Engage With Data

Once you have a solid understanding of data science concepts and formulas, the next step is to practice. Like any skill, analytical skills improve the more you use them.

Mock datasets—which you can find online or create yourself—present a low-risk option for putting your skills to the test. Import the data into Microsoft Excel, then explore: make mistakes, try that formula you’re unsure of, and ask big questions of your dataset. By testing out different analyses, you can gain confidence in your knowledge.

Once you’re comfortable, engage with your organization’s data. Because these datasets have inherent meaning to your business's financial health, growth, and strategic direction, analyzing them can produce evidence and insights that support your decisions and drive change at your organization.

Investing in Your Data Literacy

As data continues to be one of businesses’ most valuable resources, taking the time and effort to build and bolster your analytical skill set is vital.

“Much more data are going to be available; we’re only seeing the beginning now,” Hammond says in a previous article . “If you don’t use the data, you’re going to fall behind. People that have those capabilities—as well as an understanding of business contexts—are going to be the ones that will add the most value and have the greatest impact.”

Are you interested in furthering your data literacy? Download our Beginner’s Guide to Data & Analytics to learn how you can leverage the power of data for professional and organizational success.

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Entrepreneurial skills – ability to build your analytical skills

“Analyze your life your love your future with your improved analytical skills.”

In the digital age that we live in, in order to be able to run a business –either a start-up or large company- it is really important to acquire strong analytical skills; collecting, organizing, analyzing and interpreting data plays a key role in running successfully a business. It is clear to all entrepreneurs of all ages that data is a powerful weapon and, if used wisely, it can help them achieve their goals faster and more effectively and outrun the competition.

Analytical skill is the ability to visualize, articulate, and solve both complex and uncomplicated problems and concepts and make decisions that are sensible and based on available information. Such skills include a demonstration of the ability to apply logical thinking to gathering and analyzing information, designing and testing solutions to problems, and formulating plans.

It is really important to be able to analyse information as, the economic decisions we make impact how we live and the future of companies and markets; The political decisions we make can change the course of legislation locally, regionally and globally; The business decisions we make can enhance the quality of our work and even open doors to new opportunities; The personal decisions we make affect the relationships we have with family, friends and coworkers.

Big data has changed the way startups channel their efforts and the way they create their strategies because it clearly highlights if the company is going in the right direction. Data-driven metrics allow entrepreneurs to make more informed decisions, to create result-driven marketing strategies, to increase sales and better understand their customers and the way their products address the customers’ needs and pains.

A combination of better understanding, filtering, and application of data can help you solve problems faster – leading to smarter and more effective decision-making. You have to learn how to use Microsoft Office, like Excel, PowerPoint and other common data analysis and communication tools, and maybe most importantly, you have to know how to present data to others in a way that gets them engaged in your story and motivated to act.

There are many examples of analytical skills. A few examples include:

• Analyzing abilities: The ability to take large volumes of data and then analyze trends and produce a result
• Dealing with problems: Give examples of problem-solving at work
• Programming: Write a systems programme with accurate results output
• Reporting: A written report on the effectiveness of a particular event such as a political campaign
• Handling assignments effectively: Discovering a more efficient and productive way to complete a particular job task.
• Process: Creating a set of steps to implement a process that may have an outcome.
• Problem handler: Identifying a problem and then finding a solution to avoid becoming a major problem.
• Collect information, analyze the resulting, and a solution to a problem

Supporting evidence and practices

In order to be able to further develop your analytical skills, you have to always ask the right questions; realize what you don’t know; make no assumptions; don’t take what you see at face value; turn information into knowledge. Also, you have to have in mind:  Why do you want to achieve? What support do you need? How will you achieve your goal? How long will it take you to carry out your plans? Where do you want to give emphasis? Thus will be easier for you to analyse all the information and data collected and make the right decision.

A logic tree is a tool that can help you to push the thought process to cover all aspects of a problem, analyse the collected information and data and make a decision. The logic tree will help you determine right focus and priorities; form foundation for data collection; support establishing stakeholder buy-in; facilitate teamwork. A logic tree cannot replace thinking and creativity, and it cannot replace detailed analysis. There are three main types of logic trees:

• issue tree – breaks up a problem in subcomponents to identify possible causes;
• hypothesis tree – structure to test/evaluate a hypothesis by finding and verifying sub-arguments;
• decision tree – structures key questions to select one of several solutions.

Simon, Herbert (1991). “Bounded Rationality and Organizational Learning,“ Organization Science 2 (1): 125–134

Simon, Herbert (1955). “A Behavioral Model of Rational Choice,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 69, 99-188

McShane, S. L. & Glinow M. (2009). Organizational Behavior. McGraw Hill

Additional resources and links

Recommended articles, how we will overcome fear of failure, entrepreneurial skills – constant learning habit, entrepreneurial skills – the ability to recognise the opportunity.

7 Critical Thinking Skills Needed for Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is exciting, isn’t it? As an entrepreneur, you can start with nothing and go as far as your skills will take you. Entrepreneurship requires several different types of skills . You need to be resilient, hardworking, and motivated. You also need to have some critical thinking skills too.

Critical thinking is a cognitive process that involves evaluating information, identifying assumptions, analyzing arguments, and drawing logical conclusions. They are the thinking skills that allow entrepreneurs to drive their businesses forward. 

There are many types of critical thinking skills. And, different skills are required for different professions. But which critical thinking skills are the most important for entrepreneurship? In this article, we’ll look at some of the most important ones that entrepreneurs should focus on.

Problem-Solving

Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Group, once said, “To launch a business means successfully solving problems.” I couldn’t agree more. Most of entrepreneurship is solving problems, including your problems, the business’s problems, and the problems of your customers.

Having problem-solving skills allows you to identify, analyze, and overcome a variety of challenges that arise.

Problem-solving skills can also help entrepreneurs identify market gaps and innovate. By applying this creative thinking skill, they can uncover unmet customer needs and develop solutions that give them a competitive edge.

To problem-solve effectively, follow these steps:

• Identify the problem: Clearly define the problem you’re facing. 
• Analyze the problem: Gather information, data, or insights. Determine the severity of the problem and who is affected by it.
• Generate possible solutions: Brainstorm multiple potential solutions to the problem without immediately judging their feasibility.
• Evaluate and select the best solution: Assess the pros and cons of each and pick the most suitable solution.
• Develop an action plan: Define the objectives, resources, and timelines required for successful execution.
• Implement the solution: Execute the action plan.
• Evaluate the outcome: Assess your plan’s effectiveness and try again if needed.

Learning how to problem-solve the right way can take time, but it is worth it. Once you have this skill, running a business becomes easier.

Analytical Thinking

Entrepreneurs must possess strong analytical skills to make data-driven decisions that can drive their businesses forward. Analytical thinking involves examining information and breaking it down into its constituent parts to understand the underlying structure or relationships.

To enhance analytical thinking, entrepreneurs can begin by gathering relevant data and information from various sources. This may include market research, customer feedback, or industry trends.

 Identifying patterns, trends, and relationships within the data helps entrepreneurs make informed decisions about their business strategies. Entrepreneurs should also utilize appropriate tools and methods to analyze the information, such as spreadsheets or data visualization software. Drawing logical conclusions based on the analysis will help entrepreneurs make well-informed decisions for their businesses.

Creative Thinking

All types of entrepreneurship often involve developing new ideas. These ideas are used to create new and better products and services. Whether you have a mobile car wash business or an AI startup, all entrepreneurs need to apply creativity to their businesses.

Learning to use your creative thinking skills starts with having an open mind and a curious attitude. Regularly brainstorm new ideas and challenge existing assumptions. By doing this, you will begin to find innovative solutions.

As an entrepreneur, work towards improving your ability to be creative. Start thinking about the problems you’re facing and look at them from a different perspective. Also, ask others to take a look at your problems. Get their opinions and decide if they make sense for your issues. Begin to find other ways to do what you’ve been doing. All of this will help build your creativity muscles and contribute to your business innovation.

Deductive Reasoning Skills

This is an often overlooked skill needed to run a successful business effectively. Deductive reasoning is a logical process in which a conclusion is drawn based on a set of premises that are assumed to be true. You may also have heard it called “top-down” reasoning. This skill comes in handy when there isn’t enough verifiable data available to make crucial decisions.

In the face of limited information, entrepreneurs can use logical reasoning to make educated assumptions about market trends, customer preferences, and competitive landscapes. This enables them to proactively anticipate changes and adapt their business strategies accordingly, thereby staying ahead of the competition and ensuring the continued success of their enterprises.

For example, a customer tells you they are unhappy with the response time for customer service. So, if you shorten response time, you will have happier customers. In this example, you are assuming something that is not immediately verifiable. However, you’re doing it based on what you already know to be true – in this case, your customer is unhappy with response times.

Deductive reasoning can be practiced throughout your business. There are also times when inductive reasoning should be used. However, for the uncertainty of entrepreneurship, this skill will come in handy very often.

Decision Making Skills

An unavoidable critical thinking skill needed to succeed as an entrepreneur is the ability to make decisions. If you are an indecisive person, you may struggle as an entrepreneur. This is because a significant part of entrepreneurship is decision-making. Here are just a few examples of some important decisions all entrepreneurs will make:

• What product you’ll offer.
• Which marketing strategy to follow.
• Who should join your team?
• How much to price your products.
• How to allocate resources.

And these are just some of the major ones. Entrepreneurship also involves making micro-decisions throughout the day. That is one reason why entrepreneurs are at risk of experiencing decision fatigue .

To improve decision-making skills, entrepreneurs should be clear on their goals. This first step will help many of the decisions make themselves. Then, gather relevant information and weigh the pros and cons of each option. Doing this helps you make more informed decisions. From there, consider the possible short-term and long-term consequences of each decision. Also, think about how those decisions will impact yourself, employees, customers, and investors.

Being decisive and taking responsibility for your decisions is an essential part of becoming a better decision-maker . Understand and recognize that not all decisions will be perfect. And some will just be downright bad decisions . But by learning from your experiences, you can continually refine your decision-making skills and improve your business over time.

The Adaptability Skill Set

The skill of adaptability means being able to adjust and evolve when things around you are changing. If the marketing strategy you used for years is no longer working because there is more competition, you need to learn to adapt to the situation. This skill is becoming even more important as AI technology is changing the landscape of business as well as other areas.

To develop this skill, entrepreneurs can start by embracing change. Look at the things around you that are changing as an opportunity for growth and improvement. Try not to resist new developments or fear the unknown. Instead, view change as a chance to refine your strategies and explore new possibilities.

Also, be willing to pivot or change direction when needed. Entrepreneurs who want to be adaptable should recognize when a particular strategy or product is not working anymore and be open to exploring alternative approaches. Learn from setbacks and use them as a chance for growth and improvement.

Communication

A critical thinking skill for entrepreneurs that cannot be understated is the ability to communicate well. Nearly 70% of people sa y they’ve personally wasted time as a result of communication issues in their business. Some entrepreneurs believe that this skill is only important for leaders of teams. However, solopreneurs also need great communication skills.

As an entrepreneur, you need to communicate with your customers, partners, and employees.

 Being able to effectively communicate enables entrepreneurs to build strong relationships with clients, customers, partners, and team members. It also allows them to articulate their ideas, visions, and objectives clearly, ensuring that everyone involved in the business is on the same page. This can only be done when you’re able to communicate well.

But communication is not just speaking; it is also listening. As mentioned before, you need to ask others for their opinions as part of the decision-making process. Being able to actively listen to their thoughts is important. Also, you need to be able to ask good questions in order to fully understand situations and problems. When you’re a good communicator , you can accomplish this.

Although critical thinking skills are not the only skills needed to be an entrepreneur , they are among the most important. Take time to develop these skills while growing your business. As you do, they will become easier to practice over time.

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The Importance Of Problem Solving Skills For Entrepreneurs

Problem-solving is essential for entrepreneurs who want to succeed in today’s business world. Entrepreneurs face numerous challenges, and identifying and solving problems is crucial to achieving success. For that, it is crucial to have problem solving skills for entrepreneurs.

Typically, problem solving skills help to think critically and creatively to develop effective solutions to improve business performance. They also help entrepreneurs communicate effectively, lead confidently, and identify opportunities to grow their businesses.

In this blog, we will explore the importance of problem solving skills for entrepreneurs and provide practical tips and strategies to help them develop and enhance these skills.

Table of Contents

What Are The Skills Of Problem Solving?

Problem-solving skills are an essential element of successful entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurs must be able to recognize issues, evaluate them for possible remedies, and select the best one.

Creative thinking, critical thinking, and analytical skills are essential for effective problem solving. Communication and people skills are also important, as entrepreneurs need to effectively communicate their ideas and work with others to implement solutions.

Additionally, leadership skills are critical for leading teams and driving business success. The problem-solving process is key for entrepreneurs, who must identify opportunities and develop innovative solutions to drive their businesses forward.

Entrepreneurship is creating, developing, and managing a new business venture. Success requires a unique set of skills, abilities, and approaches. One of the most important skills for entrepreneurs is problem-solving. Below, we will discuss the importance of problem-solving skills for entrepreneurs and how it can impact their businesses.

Critical Thinking and Creative Problem-Solving Skills

One of the most critical elements of problem-solving is critical thinking . Entrepreneurs need to be able to analyze situations, identify problems, and develop potential solutions. This requires them to have strong analytical and creative thinking skills. They need to be able to approach problems from different angles, identify patterns, and think outside the box to find innovative solutions.

Effective Solutions and Business Performance

Effective problem-solving can significantly impact the performance of a business. Entrepreneurs who are skilled at problem-solving can identify and address issues quickly, leading to increased efficiency and productivity. They can also identify opportunities for improvement and develop new and innovative solutions to stay ahead of the competition.

Communication and Leadership Skills

Problem-solving also requires strong communication and leadership skills. Entrepreneurs need to communicate their ideas and solutions effectively to their teams, stakeholders, and customers. They need to motivate and inspire their team to take action and implement the solutions. This requires strong leadership skills, including delegating tasks and responsibilities, building a positive company culture, and leading by example.

Entrepreneurial Mindset and Opportunity Identification

Entrepreneurs with strong problem-solving skills often have an entrepreneurial mindset. They are always looking for new opportunities and ways to improve their businesses. They are unafraid to take risks and try new approaches to solve problems. This mindset is essential for identifying entrepreneurial opportunities and developing new and innovative business models.

How To Develop Problem Solving Skills For Entrepreneurs?

Entrepreneurs encounter numerous challenges while starting and managing their businesses, and the ability to solve problems creatively is an essential element of entrepreneurship. Here, we will explore different approaches entrepreneurs can use to develop their problem-solving skills.

Develop Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinking is an essential skill for entrepreneurs to solve problems effectively. Entrepreneurs need to analyze a situation critically, identify the root cause of the problem, and evaluate potential solutions. Entrepreneurs can engage in activities such as reading challenging books, debating, and solving puzzles to improve critical thinking skills .

Enhance Creative Thinking Skill

Entrepreneurs should have the ability to think creatively when solving problems. Entrepreneurs can cultivate their creative thinking skills by exploring new experiences, brainstorming ideas, and challenging assumptions. When entrepreneurs use creative thinking, they can develop innovative solutions to complex problems.

Improve Communication and Leadership Skills

Entrepreneurs need to have excellent communication and leadership skills to solve problems effectively. Good communication skills help entrepreneurs communicate their ideas and solutions effectively to others. Similarly, leadership skills help entrepreneurs to motivate and guide their teams toward finding solutions to problem.

Think Outside the Box

Entrepreneurs can develop their problem-solving skills by thinking outside the box. When entrepreneurs use divergent thinking, they can generate many potential solutions to a problem. Entrepreneurs can develop innovative and effective solutions to complex problems by exploring different perspectives and considering unconventional solutions.

Utilize Tools and Resources

Entrepreneurs can also utilize various tools and resources to develop their problem-solving skills. These tools and resources include business books, online courses, mentorship programs, and workshops. Such resources can help entrepreneurs to learn new problem-solving techniques and strategies.

Get to Know:   What Is Self Discipline In Entrepreneurship ?

Steps to Effective Problem-Solving for Entrepreneurs

Effective problem-solving is a crucial element of entrepreneurship. Successful entrepreneurs need to possess strong problem-solving skills to identify and resolve challenges in their businesses. Here are the seven steps to effective problem-solving for entrepreneurs:

Step 1: Identify the Problem

The first step in solving any problem is to identify it. Entrepreneurs should use critical thinking skills to recognize the problem and what caused it. The ability to pinpoint the problem accurately will help in developing an effective solution.

Step 2: Gather Information

Once the problem is identified, the next step is to gather as much information as possible. Entrepreneurs should use their research skills to collect data, analyze trends, and look for insights into the problem. This step provides a better understanding of the issue, which is crucial in problem-solving.

Step 3: Analyze the Problem

After gathering the relevant information, entrepreneurs should analyze the problem to determine the root cause. Analyzing the problem enables entrepreneurs to understand the situation more deeply and identify possible barriers to finding an effective solution.

Step 4: Generate Possible Solutions

The next step is to brainstorm and generate potential solutions to the problem. Entrepreneurs should use their creative thinking skills to develop innovative solutions to address the issue. There may be various approaches to solving the problem, and entrepreneurs should consider them all.

Step 5: Evaluate and Select the Best Solution

Entrepreneurs should evaluate all potential solutions to determine which ones are feasible, effective, and have the highest chances of success. They should consider the potential impact of each solution on the business and choose the best one that aligns with their business goals.

Step 6: Implement the Solution

After selecting the best solution, entrepreneurs should create a plan to implement it effectively. The implementation plan should outline the steps required to implement the solution, including the timelines and resources needed.

Step 7: Monitor and Evaluate the Solution

Once the solution is implemented, entrepreneurs should monitor its progress and evaluate its effectiveness. This step helps identify any issues that may arise during the implementation process and make adjustments as necessary. Continuous monitoring and evaluation are crucial to ensure that the solution is sustainable and effective in the long run.

Wrapping Up

The discussion above has highlighted the importance of problem solving skills for entrepreneurs. Problem-solving skills are essential to identify, analyze, and develop solutions.

Entrepreneurs must also be able to adapt to the ever-changing business landscape and come up with innovative solutions. Problem-solving skills help entrepreneurs make better decisions, improve their productivity and increase their chances of success.

Problem solving skills enable entrepreneurs to anticipate problems and take proactive steps to prevent them. Clearly, problem solving skills play a major role in the success of entrepreneurs and should be developed and practiced regularly.

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Creative Problem-Solving Skills are Critical for Business. That's Where 'Brilliant' Comes In. It offers more than 60 courses in STEM learning fields to help expand your mind and your abilities.

By StackCommerce • Dec 28, 2021

Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you'll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.

When you start a business, you're opening yourself up to challenges you never dreamed possible before. And it's a lot more than monitoring inventory and launching marketing and making sure paperwork gets done.

Somewhere along the way, very involved sales or delivery or collections issues will arise. Or you could be faced with the biggest problem an entrepreneur has to solve, a dispute between people.

What do you do?

Well, sometimes the best way to solve a problem is to follow patterns that have worked before. And those solutions can often come from the places you'd least expect. But think about it...doesn't it make sense that the logical, orderly steps to solve a math problem or explain a scientific process can be applied outside those fields too?

Business learning can come from lots of unexpected sources. And with Brilliant , it doesn't hurt to pick up some really useful knowledge along the way.

Brilliant is a new way of thinking about learning.

Brilliant is smart learning for smart people. Smart people have a natural curiosity about the world around them and systems they don't already understand. That need to know plays right into the Brilliant model, offering more than 60 courses in math, science, and computer science, crafted to strengthen your quantitative and analytical skills.

Designed by award-winning teachers and professionals from MIT, Caltech, Microsoft, Google, and more, Brilliant training veers hard away from rote lessons with their often-heavy emphasis on reading and lectures. Brilliant teaches through engagement, presenting new concepts visually and intuitively while solving challenging interactive problems from the start.

These STEM fields are often training areas that can elude young students, but if you're ready to circle back, whether you're looking to refresh the fundamentals of algebra and geometry, learn how to train a neural network, or program a quantum computer, Brilliant will walk you through.

Unlike more formal learning that centers around memorization of facts and figures, Brilliant is more interested in contextualizing knowledge, offering up fun storytelling, short lessons, and thought-provoking puzzles and exercises that let learners really apply the information to real world examples.

Want to understand the physics of motion? Work with virtual pendulum clocks drives the point home. Unclear on algebraic functions? A sequence working with rockets will make it clear. And you'll be surprised how playing a little blackjack can drive home some important points about probability and statistics.

Meanwhile, all this training reinforces principles of critical thinking and problem-solving that can be applied to any walk of life, including your business. Even learning about these unrelated fields opens your mind, perhaps even offering just the right methodology or openness of thought to answer pressing big business questions. Who knows when a supply chain foul-up or a logistics issue can be resolved with something you learned in science class?

Sign up and get Brilliant.

The full collection of training in dozens of intriguing subjects is all available now for visitors to check out at the Brilliant website . Users can sign on and unlock everything with either annual or even monthly subscription offers, starting at less than $12.50 per month – plus, the first 200 to sign up will get 20 percent off a yearly subscription.

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Why the Combination of Analytical Skills and Creativity Is So Valuable

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Why the Combination of Analytical Skills and Creativity Is So Valuable was originally published on Vault .

Many people believe that analytical skills and creativity are opposites and cannot exist (or only rarely exist) in the same person. Sometimes this is framed as the “left brain/right brain”  dichotomy or as “logic” versus “intuition”. In reality, this sharp division is not only unhelpful, but it also doesn't really stand up under scrutiny.

In fact, many people are both analytical and creative in different situations or even at the same time. And in the fifteen years I've been running my custom web design and development company , I've seen how valuable that combination can be in the workplace. 

Here's why. 

Adaptable people tend to make the best employees

If 2020 has taught us anything, it's the importance of adaptability at work and in our daily lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed so many things about the ways we live and work, and the people – and businesses – that have thrived are those that have remained adaptable. 

A person who is able to be both creative and analytical understands the importance of adaptability. Since they can bring both skills to any given situation, they're likely to display flexibility and be able to adapt to a wide range of situations. Likewise, an analytical/creative person is likely to be great at thinking on their feet, making good decisions based on all the information they have available. 

Analytical thinking can fuel the creative process  

In my experience, it is a mistake to see analytical skills as a hindrance to creativity or something that shuts the creative process down.

For example, imagine you're working on a new marketing campaign for your business. A person who is both creative and analytical will be able to take the results from your last campaign and examine them to figure out what worked and what didn't. They will then be able to use that information to feed their ideas for the new campaign. 

People with this combination of skills think outside the box 

Out-of-the-box thinkers are tremendously valuable in a forward-thinking workplace. The combination of analytical and creative thinking will result in a person who can present new and innovative ideas, while also thinking through their implications and analyzing their potential. 

A person who was purely a creative thinker might present ideas that seem great on paper but are completely impractical. Meanwhile, a purely analytical thinker might be rigid in their way of approaching a problem, or resistant to change and taking risks. A person with both these skills can offer creative solutions that are grounded in logic and facts. 

Analytical/creative people are often better communicators 

Good communication in the workplace is essential if you want people to get along and the business to function harmoniously. However, since a typical workplace contains many different personality types, great team communication is not always easy. 

People who are able to think both analytically and creatively tend to be great communicators. Why? Their logical side makes them inclined to think things through and assess the situation before they speak, while their intuitive side makes them highly empathetic and able to relate to others with ease. Since they can adapt their way of thinking to suit different situations, it also follows that they are able to communicate effectively with a wide range of people. 

Great communication goes beyond interpersonal relationships in the office, too. Creative/analytical people are likely to be great with customers thanks to their adaptable nature and stellar people skills. If you want an employee who will provide fantastic service to your customers, look for someone who can be both creative and analytical as the situation calls for. 

Can this combination of skills be taught? 

Yes, absolutely. People tend to think of themselves as either analytical or creative thinkers , and this is true to an extent, in that most people lean more towards one side or the other. However, skills are often less innate than people think they are. With practice, it is possible to become a better analytical thinker, a better creative thinker, or both. 

If you're an employee or jobseeker , why not put effort into improving your abilities in whichever of these two areas you're currently weaker in? Becoming a more rounded employee with a wider range of abilities can only help you in your career. 

If you're a manager or business owner, you can nourish these skills in the people you work with, and encourage your team members to seek to improve their abilities in both areas. Why not cross-train your employees on different workplace functions that allow them to use and develop different skills?

If you can spot great analytical/creative thinkers when you're hiring, as well as nourish it in your existing employees, you'll soon see the benefits for your company. 

Ian Loew is a web entrepreneur and inbound marketing expert, and the Owner and Creative Director of Lform Design . After four years of helping Fortune 500 companies with MGT Design, Ian embarked on his freelance career before establishing Lform Design in 2005. He leads a team of creative professionals to deliver inspired online experiences via modern, responsive websites that reflect his clients' core values. When not at the helm, Ian can be found mountain biking with friends or spending time with his family. 

How to improve your problem solving skills and build effective problem solving strategies

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Effective problem solving is all about using the right process and following a plan tailored to the issue at hand. Recognizing your team or organization has an issue isn’t enough to come up with effective problem solving strategies. 

To truly understand a problem and develop appropriate solutions, you will want to follow a solid process, follow the necessary problem solving steps, and bring all of your problem solving skills to the table.  

We’ll first guide you through the seven step problem solving process you and your team can use to effectively solve complex business challenges. We’ll also look at what problem solving strategies you can employ with your team when looking for a way to approach the process. We’ll then discuss the problem solving skills you need to be more effective at solving problems, complete with an activity from the SessionLab library you can use to develop that skill in your team.

Let’s get to it! 

What is a problem solving process?

• What are the problem solving steps I need to follow?

Problem solving strategies

What skills do i need to be an effective problem solver, how can i improve my problem solving skills.

Solving problems is like baking a cake. You can go straight into the kitchen without a recipe or the right ingredients and do your best, but the end result is unlikely to be very tasty!

Using a process to bake a cake allows you to use the best ingredients without waste, collect the right tools, account for allergies, decide whether it is a birthday or wedding cake, and then bake efficiently and on time. The result is a better cake that is fit for purpose, tastes better and has created less mess in the kitchen. Also, it should have chocolate sprinkles. Having a step by step process to solve organizational problems allows you to go through each stage methodically and ensure you are trying to solve the right problems and select the most appropriate, effective solutions.

What are the problem solving steps I need to follow? 

All problem solving processes go through a number of steps in order to move from identifying a problem to resolving it.

Depending on your problem solving model and who you ask, there can be anything between four and nine problem solving steps you should follow in order to find the right solution. Whatever framework you and your group use, there are some key items that should be addressed in order to have an effective process.

We’ve looked at problem solving processes from sources such as the American Society for Quality and their four step approach , and Mediate ‘s six step process. By reflecting on those and our own problem solving processes, we’ve come up with a sequence of seven problem solving steps we feel best covers everything you need in order to effectively solve problems.

1. Problem identification 

The first stage of any problem solving process is to identify the problem or problems you might want to solve. Effective problem solving strategies always begin by allowing a group scope to articulate what they believe the problem to be and then coming to some consensus over which problem they approach first. Problem solving activities used at this stage often have a focus on creating frank, open discussion so that potential problems can be brought to the surface.

2. Problem analysis 

Though this step is not a million miles from problem identification, problem analysis deserves to be considered separately. It can often be an overlooked part of the process and is instrumental when it comes to developing effective solutions.

The process of problem analysis means ensuring that the problem you are seeking to solve is the right problem . As part of this stage, you may look deeper and try to find the root cause of a specific problem at a team or organizational level.

Remember that problem solving strategies should not only be focused on putting out fires in the short term but developing long term solutions that deal with the root cause of organizational challenges. 

Whatever your approach, analyzing a problem is crucial in being able to select an appropriate solution and the problem solving skills deployed in this stage are beneficial for the rest of the process and ensuring the solutions you create are fit for purpose.

3. Solution generation

Once your group has nailed down the particulars of the problem you wish to solve, you want to encourage a free flow of ideas connecting to solving that problem. This can take the form of problem solving games that encourage creative thinking or problem solving activities designed to produce working prototypes of possible solutions. 

The key to ensuring the success of this stage of the problem solving process is to encourage quick, creative thinking and create an open space where all ideas are considered. The best solutions can come from unlikely places and by using problem solving techniques that celebrate invention, you might come up with solution gold. 

4. Solution development

No solution is likely to be perfect right out of the gate. It’s important to discuss and develop the solutions your group has come up with over the course of following the previous problem solving steps in order to arrive at the best possible solution. Problem solving games used in this stage involve lots of critical thinking, measuring potential effort and impact, and looking at possible solutions analytically. 

During this stage, you will often ask your team to iterate and improve upon your frontrunning solutions and develop them further. Remember that problem solving strategies always benefit from a multitude of voices and opinions, and not to let ego get involved when it comes to choosing which solutions to develop and take further.

Finding the best solution is the goal of all problem solving workshops and here is the place to ensure that your solution is well thought out, sufficiently robust and fit for purpose. 

5. Decision making 

Nearly there! Once your group has reached consensus and selected a solution that applies to the problem at hand you have some decisions to make. You will want to work on allocating ownership of the project, figure out who will do what, how the success of the solution will be measured and decide the next course of action.

The decision making stage is a part of the problem solving process that can get missed or taken as for granted. Fail to properly allocate roles and plan out how a solution will actually be implemented and it less likely to be successful in solving the problem.

Have clear accountabilities, actions, timeframes, and follow-ups. Make these decisions and set clear next-steps in the problem solving workshop so that everyone is aligned and you can move forward effectively as a group. 

Ensuring that you plan for the roll-out of a solution is one of the most important problem solving steps. Without adequate planning or oversight, it can prove impossible to measure success or iterate further if the problem was not solved. 

6. Solution implementation 

This is what we were waiting for! All problem solving strategies have the end goal of implementing a solution and solving a problem in mind. 

Remember that in order for any solution to be successful, you need to help your group through all of the previous problem solving steps thoughtfully. Only then can you ensure that you are solving the right problem but also that you have developed the correct solution and can then successfully implement and measure the impact of that solution.

Project management and communication skills are key here – your solution may need to adjust when out in the wild or you might discover new challenges along the way.

7. Solution evaluation 

So you and your team developed a great solution to a problem and have a gut feeling its been solved. Work done, right? Wrong. All problem solving strategies benefit from evaluation, consideration, and feedback. You might find that the solution does not work for everyone, might create new problems, or is potentially so successful that you will want to roll it out to larger teams or as part of other initiatives. 

None of that is possible without taking the time to evaluate the success of the solution you developed in your problem solving model and adjust if necessary.

Remember that the problem solving process is often iterative and it can be common to not solve complex issues on the first try. Even when this is the case, you and your team will have generated learning that will be important for future problem solving workshops or in other parts of the organization. 

It’s worth underlining how important record keeping is throughout the problem solving process. If a solution didn’t work, you need to have the data and records to see why that was the case. If you go back to the drawing board, notes from the previous workshop can help save time. Data and insight is invaluable at every stage of the problem solving process and this one is no different.

Problem solving workshops made easy

Problem solving strategies are methods of approaching and facilitating the process of problem-solving with a set of techniques , actions, and processes. Different strategies are more effective if you are trying to solve broad problems such as achieving higher growth versus more focused problems like, how do we improve our customer onboarding process?

Broadly, the problem solving steps outlined above should be included in any problem solving strategy though choosing where to focus your time and what approaches should be taken is where they begin to differ. You might find that some strategies ask for the problem identification to be done prior to the session or that everything happens in the course of a one day workshop.

The key similarity is that all good problem solving strategies are structured and designed. Four hours of open discussion is never going to be as productive as a four-hour workshop designed to lead a group through a problem solving process.

Good problem solving strategies are tailored to the team, organization and problem you will be attempting to solve. Here are some example problem solving strategies you can learn from or use to get started.

Use a workshop to lead a team through a group process

Often, the first step to solving problems or organizational challenges is bringing a group together effectively. Most teams have the tools, knowledge, and expertise necessary to solve their challenges – they just need some guidance in how to use leverage those skills and a structure and format that allows people to focus their energies.

Facilitated workshops are one of the most effective ways of solving problems of any scale. By designing and planning your workshop carefully, you can tailor the approach and scope to best fit the needs of your team and organization. 

Problem solving workshop

• Creating a bespoke, tailored process
• Tackling problems of any size
• Building in-house workshop ability and encouraging their use

Workshops are an effective strategy for solving problems. By using tried and test facilitation techniques and methods, you can design and deliver a workshop that is perfectly suited to the unique variables of your organization. You may only have the capacity for a half-day workshop and so need a problem solving process to match. 

By using our session planner tool and importing methods from our library of 700+ facilitation techniques, you can create the right problem solving workshop for your team. It might be that you want to encourage creative thinking or look at things from a new angle to unblock your groups approach to problem solving. By tailoring your workshop design to the purpose, you can help ensure great results.

One of the main benefits of a workshop is the structured approach to problem solving. Not only does this mean that the workshop itself will be successful, but many of the methods and techniques will help your team improve their working processes outside of the workshop. 

We believe that workshops are one of the best tools you can use to improve the way your team works together. Start with a problem solving workshop and then see what team building, culture or design workshops can do for your organization!

Run a design sprint

Great for: 

• aligning large, multi-discipline teams
• quickly designing and testing solutions
• tackling large, complex organizational challenges and breaking them down into smaller tasks

By using design thinking principles and methods, a design sprint is a great way of identifying, prioritizing and prototyping solutions to long term challenges that can help solve major organizational problems with quick action and measurable results.

Some familiarity with design thinking is useful, though not integral, and this strategy can really help a team align if there is some discussion around which problems should be approached first. 

The stage-based structure of the design sprint is also very useful for teams new to design thinking.  The inspiration phase, where you look to competitors that have solved your problem, and the rapid prototyping and testing phases are great for introducing new concepts that will benefit a team in all their future work. 

It can be common for teams to look inward for solutions and so looking to the market for solutions you can iterate on can be very productive. Instilling an agile prototyping and testing mindset can also be great when helping teams move forwards – generating and testing solutions quickly can help save time in the long run and is also pretty exciting!

Break problems down into smaller issues

Organizational challenges and problems are often complicated and large scale in nature. Sometimes, trying to resolve such an issue in one swoop is simply unachievable or overwhelming. Try breaking down such problems into smaller issues that you can work on step by step. You may not be able to solve the problem of churning customers off the bat, but you can work with your team to identify smaller effort but high impact elements and work on those first.

This problem solving strategy can help a team generate momentum, prioritize and get some easy wins. It’s also a great strategy to employ with teams who are just beginning to learn how to approach the problem solving process. If you want some insight into a way to employ this strategy, we recommend looking at our design sprint template below!

Use guiding frameworks or try new methodologies

Some problems are best solved by introducing a major shift in perspective or by using new methodologies that encourage your team to think differently.

Props and tools such as Methodkit , which uses a card-based toolkit for facilitation, or Lego Serious Play can be great ways to engage your team and find an inclusive, democratic problem solving strategy. Remember that play and creativity are great tools for achieving change and whatever the challenge, engaging your participants can be very effective where other strategies may have failed.

LEGO Serious Play

• Improving core problem solving skills
• Thinking outside of the box
• Encouraging creative solutions

LEGO Serious Play is a problem solving methodology designed to get participants thinking differently by using 3D models and kinesthetic learning styles. By physically building LEGO models based on questions and exercises, participants are encouraged to think outside of the box and create their own responses. 

Collaborate LEGO Serious Play exercises are also used to encourage communication and build problem solving skills in a group. By using this problem solving process, you can often help different kinds of learners and personality types contribute and unblock organizational problems with creative thinking. 

Problem solving strategies like LEGO Serious Play are super effective at helping a team solve more skills-based problems such as communication between teams or a lack of creative thinking. Some problems are not suited to LEGO Serious Play and require a different problem solving strategy.

Card Decks and Method Kits

• New facilitators or non-facilitators 
• Approaching difficult subjects with a simple, creative framework
• Engaging those with varied learning styles

Card decks and method kids are great tools for those new to facilitation or for whom facilitation is not the primary role. Card decks such as the emotional culture deck can be used for complete workshops and in many cases, can be used right out of the box. Methodkit has a variety of kits designed for scenarios ranging from personal development through to personas and global challenges so you can find the right deck for your particular needs.

Having an easy to use framework that encourages creativity or a new approach can take some of the friction or planning difficulties out of the workshop process and energize a team in any setting. Simplicity is the key with these methods. By ensuring everyone on your team can get involved and engage with the process as quickly as possible can really contribute to the success of your problem solving strategy.

Source external advice

Looking to peers, experts and external facilitators can be a great way of approaching the problem solving process. Your team may not have the necessary expertise, insights of experience to tackle some issues, or you might simply benefit from a fresh perspective. Some problems may require bringing together an entire team, and coaching managers or team members individually might be the right approach. Remember that not all problems are best resolved in the same manner.

If you’re a solo entrepreneur, peer groups, coaches and mentors can also be invaluable at not only solving specific business problems, but in providing a support network for resolving future challenges. One great approach is to join a Mastermind Group and link up with like-minded individuals and all grow together. Remember that however you approach the sourcing of external advice, do so thoughtfully, respectfully and honestly. Reciprocate where you can and prepare to be surprised by just how kind and helpful your peers can be!

Mastermind Group

• Solo entrepreneurs or small teams with low capacity
• Peer learning and gaining outside expertise
• Getting multiple external points of view quickly

Problem solving in large organizations with lots of skilled team members is one thing, but how about if you work for yourself or in a very small team without the capacity to get the most from a design sprint or LEGO Serious Play session? 

A mastermind group – sometimes known as a peer advisory board – is where a group of people come together to support one another in their own goals, challenges, and businesses. Each participant comes to the group with their own purpose and the other members of the group will help them create solutions, brainstorm ideas, and support one another. 

Mastermind groups are very effective in creating an energized, supportive atmosphere that can deliver meaningful results. Learning from peers from outside of your organization or industry can really help unlock new ways of thinking and drive growth. Access to the experience and skills of your peers can be invaluable in helping fill the gaps in your own ability, particularly in young companies.

A mastermind group is a great solution for solo entrepreneurs, small teams, or for organizations that feel that external expertise or fresh perspectives will be beneficial for them. It is worth noting that Mastermind groups are often only as good as the participants and what they can bring to the group. Participants need to be committed, engaged and understand how to work in this context. 

Coaching and mentoring

• Focused learning and development
• Filling skills gaps
• Working on a range of challenges over time

Receiving advice from a business coach or building a mentor/mentee relationship can be an effective way of resolving certain challenges. The one-to-one format of most coaching and mentor relationships can really help solve the challenges those individuals are having and benefit the organization as a result.

A great mentor can be invaluable when it comes to spotting potential problems before they arise and coming to understand a mentee very well has a host of other business benefits. You might run an internal mentorship program to help develop your team’s problem solving skills and strategies or as part of a large learning and development program. External coaches can also be an important part of your problem solving strategy, filling skills gaps for your management team or helping with specific business issues. 

Now we’ve explored the problem solving process and the steps you will want to go through in order to have an effective session, let’s look at the skills you and your team need to be more effective problem solvers.

Problem solving skills are highly sought after, whatever industry or team you work in. Organizations are keen to employ people who are able to approach problems thoughtfully and find strong, realistic solutions. Whether you are a facilitator , a team leader or a developer, being an effective problem solver is a skill you’ll want to develop.

Problem solving skills form a whole suite of techniques and approaches that an individual uses to not only identify problems but to discuss them productively before then developing appropriate solutions.

Here are some of the most important problem solving skills everyone from executives to junior staff members should learn. We’ve also included an activity or exercise from the SessionLab library that can help you and your team develop that skill. 

If you’re running a workshop or training session to try and improve problem solving skills in your team, try using these methods to supercharge your process!

Active listening

Active listening is one of the most important skills anyone who works with people can possess. In short, active listening is a technique used to not only better understand what is being said by an individual, but also to be more aware of the underlying message the speaker is trying to convey. When it comes to problem solving, active listening is integral for understanding the position of every participant and to clarify the challenges, ideas and solutions they bring to the table.

Some active listening skills include:

• Paying complete attention to the speaker.
• Removing distractions.
• Avoid interruption.
• Taking the time to fully understand before preparing a rebuttal.
• Responding respectfully and appropriately.
• Demonstrate attentiveness and positivity with an open posture, making eye contact with the speaker, smiling and nodding if appropriate. Show that you are listening and encourage them to continue.
• Be aware of and respectful of feelings. Judge the situation and respond appropriately. You can disagree without being disrespectful.   
• Observe body language. 
• Paraphrase what was said in your own words, either mentally or verbally.
• Remain neutral. 
• Reflect and take a moment before responding.
• Ask deeper questions based on what is said and clarify points where necessary.   

Active Listening   #hyperisland   #skills   #active listening   #remote-friendly   This activity supports participants to reflect on a question and generate their own solutions using simple principles of active listening and peer coaching. It’s an excellent introduction to active listening but can also be used with groups that are already familiar with it. Participants work in groups of three and take turns being: “the subject”, the listener, and the observer.

Analytical skills

All problem solving models require strong analytical skills, particularly during the beginning of the process and when it comes to analyzing how solutions have performed.

Analytical skills are primarily focused on performing an effective analysis by collecting, studying and parsing data related to a problem or opportunity. 

It often involves spotting patterns, being able to see things from different perspectives and using observable facts and data to make suggestions or produce insight. 

Analytical skills are also important at every stage of the problem solving process and by having these skills, you can ensure that any ideas or solutions you create or backed up analytically and have been sufficiently thought out.

Nine Whys   #innovation   #issue analysis   #liberating structures   With breathtaking simplicity, you can rapidly clarify for individuals and a group what is essentially important in their work. You can quickly reveal when a compelling purpose is missing in a gathering and avoid moving forward without clarity. When a group discovers an unambiguous shared purpose, more freedom and more responsibility are unleashed. You have laid the foundation for spreading and scaling innovations with fidelity.

Collaboration

Trying to solve problems on your own is difficult. Being able to collaborate effectively, with a free exchange of ideas, to delegate and be a productive member of a team is hugely important to all problem solving strategies.

Remember that whatever your role, collaboration is integral, and in a problem solving process, you are all working together to find the best solution for everyone. 

Marshmallow challenge with debriefing   #teamwork   #team   #leadership   #collaboration   In eighteen minutes, teams must build the tallest free-standing structure out of 20 sticks of spaghetti, one yard of tape, one yard of string, and one marshmallow. The marshmallow needs to be on top. The Marshmallow Challenge was developed by Tom Wujec, who has done the activity with hundreds of groups around the world. Visit the Marshmallow Challenge website for more information. This version has an extra debriefing question added with sample questions focusing on roles within the team.

Communication  

Being an effective communicator means being empathetic, clear and succinct, asking the right questions, and demonstrating active listening skills throughout any discussion or meeting. 

In a problem solving setting, you need to communicate well in order to progress through each stage of the process effectively. As a team leader, it may also fall to you to facilitate communication between parties who may not see eye to eye. Effective communication also means helping others to express themselves and be heard in a group.

Bus Trip   #feedback   #communication   #appreciation   #closing   #thiagi   #team   This is one of my favourite feedback games. I use Bus Trip at the end of a training session or a meeting, and I use it all the time. The game creates a massive amount of energy with lots of smiles, laughs, and sometimes even a teardrop or two.

Creative problem solving skills can be some of the best tools in your arsenal. Thinking creatively, being able to generate lots of ideas and come up with out of the box solutions is useful at every step of the process. 

The kinds of problems you will likely discuss in a problem solving workshop are often difficult to solve, and by approaching things in a fresh, creative manner, you can often create more innovative solutions.

Having practical creative skills is also a boon when it comes to problem solving. If you can help create quality design sketches and prototypes in record time, it can help bring a team to alignment more quickly or provide a base for further iteration.

The paper clip method   #sharing   #creativity   #warm up   #idea generation   #brainstorming   The power of brainstorming. A training for project leaders, creativity training, and to catalyse getting new solutions.

Critical thinking

Critical thinking is one of the fundamental problem solving skills you’ll want to develop when working on developing solutions. Critical thinking is the ability to analyze, rationalize and evaluate while being aware of personal bias, outlying factors and remaining open-minded.

Defining and analyzing problems without deploying critical thinking skills can mean you and your team go down the wrong path. Developing solutions to complex issues requires critical thinking too – ensuring your team considers all possibilities and rationally evaluating them. 

Agreement-Certainty Matrix   #issue analysis   #liberating structures   #problem solving   You can help individuals or groups avoid the frequent mistake of trying to solve a problem with methods that are not adapted to the nature of their challenge. The combination of two questions makes it possible to easily sort challenges into four categories: simple, complicated, complex , and chaotic .  A problem is simple when it can be solved reliably with practices that are easy to duplicate.  It is complicated when experts are required to devise a sophisticated solution that will yield the desired results predictably.  A problem is complex when there are several valid ways to proceed but outcomes are not predictable in detail.  Chaotic is when the context is too turbulent to identify a path forward.  A loose analogy may be used to describe these differences: simple is like following a recipe, complicated like sending a rocket to the moon, complex like raising a child, and chaotic is like the game “Pin the Tail on the Donkey.”  The Liberating Structures Matching Matrix in Chapter 5 can be used as the first step to clarify the nature of a challenge and avoid the mismatches between problems and solutions that are frequently at the root of chronic, recurring problems.

Data analysis 

Though it shares lots of space with general analytical skills, data analysis skills are something you want to cultivate in their own right in order to be an effective problem solver.

Being good at data analysis doesn’t just mean being able to find insights from data, but also selecting the appropriate data for a given issue, interpreting it effectively and knowing how to model and present that data. Depending on the problem at hand, it might also include a working knowledge of specific data analysis tools and procedures. 

Having a solid grasp of data analysis techniques is useful if you’re leading a problem solving workshop but if you’re not an expert, don’t worry. Bring people into the group who has this skill set and help your team be more effective as a result.

Decision making

All problems need a solution and all solutions require that someone make the decision to implement them. Without strong decision making skills, teams can become bogged down in discussion and less effective as a result. 

Making decisions is a key part of the problem solving process. It’s important to remember that decision making is not restricted to the leadership team. Every staff member makes decisions every day and developing these skills ensures that your team is able to solve problems at any scale. Remember that making decisions does not mean leaping to the first solution but weighing up the options and coming to an informed, well thought out solution to any given problem that works for the whole team.

Lightning Decision Jam (LDJ)   #action   #decision making   #problem solving   #issue analysis   #innovation   #design   #remote-friendly   The problem with anything that requires creative thinking is that it’s easy to get lost—lose focus and fall into the trap of having useless, open-ended, unstructured discussions. Here’s the most effective solution I’ve found: Replace all open, unstructured discussion with a clear process. What to use this exercise for: Anything which requires a group of people to make decisions, solve problems or discuss challenges. It’s always good to frame an LDJ session with a broad topic, here are some examples: The conversion flow of our checkout Our internal design process How we organise events Keeping up with our competition Improving sales flow

Dependability

Most complex organizational problems require multiple people to be involved in delivering the solution. Ensuring that the team and organization can depend on you to take the necessary actions and communicate where necessary is key to ensuring problems are solved effectively.

Being dependable also means working to deadlines and to brief. It is often a matter of creating trust in a team so that everyone can depend on one another to complete the agreed actions in the agreed time frame so that the team can move forward together. Being undependable can create problems of friction and can limit the effectiveness of your solutions so be sure to bear this in mind throughout a project. 

Team Purpose & Culture   #team   #hyperisland   #culture   #remote-friendly   This is an essential process designed to help teams define their purpose (why they exist) and their culture (how they work together to achieve that purpose). Defining these two things will help any team to be more focused and aligned. With support of tangible examples from other companies, the team members work as individuals and a group to codify the way they work together. The goal is a visual manifestation of both the purpose and culture that can be put up in the team’s work space.

Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is an important skill for any successful team member, whether communicating internally or with clients or users. In the problem solving process, emotional intelligence means being attuned to how people are feeling and thinking, communicating effectively and being self-aware of what you bring to a room. 

There are often differences of opinion when working through problem solving processes, and it can be easy to let things become impassioned or combative. Developing your emotional intelligence means being empathetic to your colleagues and managing your own emotions throughout the problem and solution process. Be kind, be thoughtful and put your points across care and attention. 

Being emotionally intelligent is a skill for life and by deploying it at work, you can not only work efficiently but empathetically. Check out the emotional culture workshop template for more!

Facilitation

As we’ve clarified in our facilitation skills post, facilitation is the art of leading people through processes towards agreed-upon objectives in a manner that encourages participation, ownership, and creativity by all those involved. While facilitation is a set of interrelated skills in itself, the broad definition of facilitation can be invaluable when it comes to problem solving. Leading a team through a problem solving process is made more effective if you improve and utilize facilitation skills – whether you’re a manager, team leader or external stakeholder.

The Six Thinking Hats   #creative thinking   #meeting facilitation   #problem solving   #issue resolution   #idea generation   #conflict resolution   The Six Thinking Hats are used by individuals and groups to separate out conflicting styles of thinking. They enable and encourage a group of people to think constructively together in exploring and implementing change, rather than using argument to fight over who is right and who is wrong.

Flexibility 

Being flexible is a vital skill when it comes to problem solving. This does not mean immediately bowing to pressure or changing your opinion quickly: instead, being flexible is all about seeing things from new perspectives, receiving new information and factoring it into your thought process.

Flexibility is also important when it comes to rolling out solutions. It might be that other organizational projects have greater priority or require the same resources as your chosen solution. Being flexible means understanding needs and challenges across the team and being open to shifting or arranging your own schedule as necessary. Again, this does not mean immediately making way for other projects. It’s about articulating your own needs, understanding the needs of others and being able to come to a meaningful compromise.

The Creativity Dice   #creativity   #problem solving   #thiagi   #issue analysis   Too much linear thinking is hazardous to creative problem solving. To be creative, you should approach the problem (or the opportunity) from different points of view. You should leave a thought hanging in mid-air and move to another. This skipping around prevents premature closure and lets your brain incubate one line of thought while you consciously pursue another.

Working in any group can lead to unconscious elements of groupthink or situations in which you may not wish to be entirely honest. Disagreeing with the opinions of the executive team or wishing to save the feelings of a coworker can be tricky to navigate, but being honest is absolutely vital when to comes to developing effective solutions and ensuring your voice is heard. 

Remember that being honest does not mean being brutally candid. You can deliver your honest feedback and opinions thoughtfully and without creating friction by using other skills such as emotional intelligence. 

Explore your Values   #hyperisland   #skills   #values   #remote-friendly   Your Values is an exercise for participants to explore what their most important values are. It’s done in an intuitive and rapid way to encourage participants to follow their intuitive feeling rather than over-thinking and finding the “correct” values. It is a good exercise to use to initiate reflection and dialogue around personal values.

Initiative 

The problem solving process is multi-faceted and requires different approaches at certain points of the process. Taking initiative to bring problems to the attention of the team, collect data or lead the solution creating process is always valuable. You might even roadtest your own small scale solutions or brainstorm before a session. Taking initiative is particularly effective if you have good deal of knowledge in that area or have ownership of a particular project and want to get things kickstarted.

That said, be sure to remember to honor the process and work in service of the team. If you are asked to own one part of the problem solving process and you don’t complete that task because your initiative leads you to work on something else, that’s not an effective method of solving business challenges.

15% Solutions   #action   #liberating structures   #remote-friendly   You can reveal the actions, however small, that everyone can do immediately. At a minimum, these will create momentum, and that may make a BIG difference.  15% Solutions show that there is no reason to wait around, feel powerless, or fearful. They help people pick it up a level. They get individuals and the group to focus on what is within their discretion instead of what they cannot change.  With a very simple question, you can flip the conversation to what can be done and find solutions to big problems that are often distributed widely in places not known in advance. Shifting a few grains of sand may trigger a landslide and change the whole landscape.

Impartiality

A particularly useful problem solving skill for product owners or managers is the ability to remain impartial throughout much of the process. In practice, this means treating all points of view and ideas brought forward in a meeting equally and ensuring that your own areas of interest or ownership are not favored over others. 

There may be a stage in the process where a decision maker has to weigh the cost and ROI of possible solutions against the company roadmap though even then, ensuring that the decision made is based on merit and not personal opinion. 

Empathy map   #frame insights   #create   #design   #issue analysis   An empathy map is a tool to help a design team to empathize with the people they are designing for. You can make an empathy map for a group of people or for a persona. To be used after doing personas when more insights are needed.

Being a good leader means getting a team aligned, energized and focused around a common goal. In the problem solving process, strong leadership helps ensure that the process is efficient, that any conflicts are resolved and that a team is managed in the direction of success.

It’s common for managers or executives to assume this role in a problem solving workshop, though it’s important that the leader maintains impartiality and does not bulldoze the group in a particular direction. Remember that good leadership means working in service of the purpose and team and ensuring the workshop is a safe space for employees of any level to contribute. Take a look at our leadership games and activities post for more exercises and methods to help improve leadership in your organization.

Leadership Pizza   #leadership   #team   #remote-friendly   This leadership development activity offers a self-assessment framework for people to first identify what skills, attributes and attitudes they find important for effective leadership, and then assess their own development and initiate goal setting.

In the context of problem solving, mediation is important in keeping a team engaged, happy and free of conflict. When leading or facilitating a problem solving workshop, you are likely to run into differences of opinion. Depending on the nature of the problem, certain issues may be brought up that are emotive in nature. 

Being an effective mediator means helping those people on either side of such a divide are heard, listen to one another and encouraged to find common ground and a resolution. Mediating skills are useful for leaders and managers in many situations and the problem solving process is no different.

Conflict Responses   #hyperisland   #team   #issue resolution   A workshop for a team to reflect on past conflicts, and use them to generate guidelines for effective conflict handling. The workshop uses the Thomas-Killman model of conflict responses to frame a reflective discussion. Use it to open up a discussion around conflict with a team.

Planning 

Solving organizational problems is much more effective when following a process or problem solving model. Planning skills are vital in order to structure, deliver and follow-through on a problem solving workshop and ensure your solutions are intelligently deployed.

Planning skills include the ability to organize tasks and a team, plan and design the process and take into account any potential challenges. Taking the time to plan carefully can save time and frustration later in the process and is valuable for ensuring a team is positioned for success.

3 Action Steps   #hyperisland   #action   #remote-friendly   This is a small-scale strategic planning session that helps groups and individuals to take action toward a desired change. It is often used at the end of a workshop or programme. The group discusses and agrees on a vision, then creates some action steps that will lead them towards that vision. The scope of the challenge is also defined, through discussion of the helpful and harmful factors influencing the group.

Prioritization

As organisations grow, the scale and variation of problems they face multiplies. Your team or is likely to face numerous challenges in different areas and so having the skills to analyze and prioritize becomes very important, particularly for those in leadership roles.

A thorough problem solving process is likely to deliver multiple solutions and you may have several different problems you wish to solve simultaneously. Prioritization is the ability to measure the importance, value, and effectiveness of those possible solutions and choose which to enact and in what order. The process of prioritization is integral in ensuring the biggest challenges are addressed with the most impactful solutions.

Impact and Effort Matrix   #gamestorming   #decision making   #action   #remote-friendly   In this decision-making exercise, possible actions are mapped based on two factors: effort required to implement and potential impact. Categorizing ideas along these lines is a useful technique in decision making, as it obliges contributors to balance and evaluate suggested actions before committing to them.

Project management

Some problem solving skills are utilized in a workshop or ideation phases, while others come in useful when it comes to decision making. Overseeing an entire problem solving process and ensuring its success requires strong project management skills. 

While project management incorporates many of the other skills listed here, it is important to note the distinction of considering all of the factors of a project and managing them successfully. Being able to negotiate with stakeholders, manage tasks, time and people, consider costs and ROI, and tie everything together is massively helpful when going through the problem solving process. 

Record keeping

Working out meaningful solutions to organizational challenges is only one part of the process.  Thoughtfully documenting and keeping records of each problem solving step for future consultation is important in ensuring efficiency and meaningful change. 

For example, some problems may be lower priority than others but can be revisited in the future. If the team has ideated on solutions and found some are not up to the task, record those so you can rule them out and avoiding repeating work. Keeping records of the process also helps you improve and refine your problem solving model next time around!

Personal Kanban   #gamestorming   #action   #agile   #project planning   Personal Kanban is a tool for organizing your work to be more efficient and productive. It is based on agile methods and principles.

Research skills

Conducting research to support both the identification of problems and the development of appropriate solutions is important for an effective process. Knowing where to go to collect research, how to conduct research efficiently, and identifying pieces of research are relevant are all things a good researcher can do well. 

In larger groups, not everyone has to demonstrate this ability in order for a problem solving workshop to be effective. That said, having people with research skills involved in the process, particularly if they have existing area knowledge, can help ensure the solutions that are developed with data that supports their intention. Remember that being able to deliver the results of research efficiently and in a way the team can easily understand is also important. The best data in the world is only as effective as how it is delivered and interpreted.

Customer experience map   #ideation   #concepts   #research   #design   #issue analysis   #remote-friendly   Customer experience mapping is a method of documenting and visualizing the experience a customer has as they use the product or service. It also maps out their responses to their experiences. To be used when there is a solution (even in a conceptual stage) that can be analyzed.

Risk management

Managing risk is an often overlooked part of the problem solving process. Solutions are often developed with the intention of reducing exposure to risk or solving issues that create risk but sometimes, great solutions are more experimental in nature and as such, deploying them needs to be carefully considered. 

Managing risk means acknowledging that there may be risks associated with more out of the box solutions or trying new things, but that this must be measured against the possible benefits and other organizational factors. 

Be informed, get the right data and stakeholders in the room and you can appropriately factor risk into your decision making process. 

Decisions, Decisions…   #communication   #decision making   #thiagi   #action   #issue analysis   When it comes to decision-making, why are some of us more prone to take risks while others are risk-averse? One explanation might be the way the decision and options were presented.  This exercise, based on Kahneman and Tversky’s classic study , illustrates how the framing effect influences our judgement and our ability to make decisions . The participants are divided into two groups. Both groups are presented with the same problem and two alternative programs for solving them. The two programs both have the same consequences but are presented differently. The debriefing discussion examines how the framing of the program impacted the participant’s decision.

Team-building 

No single person is as good at problem solving as a team. Building an effective team and helping them come together around a common purpose is one of the most important problem solving skills, doubly so for leaders. By bringing a team together and helping them work efficiently, you pave the way for team ownership of a problem and the development of effective solutions. 

In a problem solving workshop, it can be tempting to jump right into the deep end, though taking the time to break the ice, energize the team and align them with a game or exercise will pay off over the course of the day.

Remember that you will likely go through the problem solving process multiple times over an organization’s lifespan and building a strong team culture will make future problem solving more effective. It’s also great to work with people you know, trust and have fun with. Working on team building in and out of the problem solving process is a hallmark of successful teams that can work together to solve business problems.

9 Dimensions Team Building Activity   #ice breaker   #teambuilding   #team   #remote-friendly   9 Dimensions is a powerful activity designed to build relationships and trust among team members. There are 2 variations of this icebreaker. The first version is for teams who want to get to know each other better. The second version is for teams who want to explore how they are working together as a team.

Time management 

The problem solving process is designed to lead a team from identifying a problem through to delivering a solution and evaluating its effectiveness. Without effective time management skills or timeboxing of tasks, it can be easy for a team to get bogged down or be inefficient.

By using a problem solving model and carefully designing your workshop, you can allocate time efficiently and trust that the process will deliver the results you need in a good timeframe.

Time management also comes into play when it comes to rolling out solutions, particularly those that are experimental in nature. Having a clear timeframe for implementing and evaluating solutions is vital for ensuring their success and being able to pivot if necessary.

Improving your skills at problem solving is often a career-long pursuit though there are methods you can use to make the learning process more efficient and to supercharge your problem solving skillset.

Remember that the skills you need to be a great problem solver have a large overlap with those skills you need to be effective in any role. Investing time and effort to develop your active listening or critical thinking skills is valuable in any context. Here are 7 ways to improve your problem solving skills.

Share best practices

Remember that your team is an excellent source of skills, wisdom, and techniques and that you should all take advantage of one another where possible. Best practices that one team has for solving problems, conducting research or making decisions should be shared across the organization. If you have in-house staff that have done active listening training or are data analysis pros, have them lead a training session. 

Your team is one of your best resources. Create space and internal processes for the sharing of skills so that you can all grow together. 

Ask for help and attend training

Once you’ve figured out you have a skills gap, the next step is to take action to fill that skills gap. That might be by asking your superior for training or coaching, or liaising with team members with that skill set. You might even attend specialized training for certain skills – active listening or critical thinking, for example, are business-critical skills that are regularly offered as part of a training scheme.

Whatever method you choose, remember that taking action of some description is necessary for growth. Whether that means practicing, getting help, attending training or doing some background reading, taking active steps to improve your skills is the way to go.

Learn a process 

Problem solving can be complicated, particularly when attempting to solve large problems for the first time. Using a problem solving process helps give structure to your problem solving efforts and focus on creating outcomes, rather than worrying about the format. 

Tools such as the seven-step problem solving process above are effective because not only do they feature steps that will help a team solve problems, they also develop skills along the way. Each step asks for people to engage with the process using different skills and in doing so, helps the team learn and grow together. Group processes of varying complexity and purpose can also be found in the SessionLab library of facilitation techniques . Using a tried and tested process and really help ease the learning curve for both those leading such a process, as well as those undergoing the purpose.

Effective teams make decisions about where they should and shouldn’t expend additional effort. By using a problem solving process, you can focus on the things that matter, rather than stumbling towards a solution haphazardly. 

Create a feedback loop

Some skills gaps are more obvious than others. It’s possible that your perception of your active listening skills differs from those of your colleagues. 

It’s valuable to create a system where team members can provide feedback in an ordered and friendly manner so they can all learn from one another. Only by identifying areas of improvement can you then work to improve them. 

Remember that feedback systems require oversight and consideration so that they don’t turn into a place to complain about colleagues. Design the system intelligently so that you encourage the creation of learning opportunities, rather than encouraging people to list their pet peeves.

While practice might not make perfect, it does make the problem solving process easier. If you are having trouble with critical thinking, don’t shy away from doing it. Get involved where you can and stretch those muscles as regularly as possible. 

Problem solving skills come more naturally to some than to others and that’s okay. Take opportunities to get involved and see where you can practice your skills in situations outside of a workshop context. Try collaborating in other circumstances at work or conduct data analysis on your own projects. You can often develop those skills you need for problem solving simply by doing them. Get involved!

Use expert exercises and methods

Learn from the best. Our library of 700+ facilitation techniques is full of activities and methods that help develop the skills you need to be an effective problem solver. Check out our templates to see how to approach problem solving and other organizational challenges in a structured and intelligent manner.

There is no single approach to improving problem solving skills, but by using the techniques employed by others you can learn from their example and develop processes that have seen proven results. 

Try new ways of thinking and change your mindset

Using tried and tested exercises that you know well can help deliver results, but you do run the risk of missing out on the learning opportunities offered by new approaches. As with the problem solving process, changing your mindset can remove blockages and be used to develop your problem solving skills.

Most teams have members with mixed skill sets and specialties. Mix people from different teams and share skills and different points of view. Teach your customer support team how to use design thinking methods or help your developers with conflict resolution techniques. Try switching perspectives with facilitation techniques like Flip It! or by using new problem solving methodologies or models. Give design thinking, liberating structures or lego serious play a try if you want to try a new approach. You will find that framing problems in new ways and using existing skills in new contexts can be hugely useful for personal development and improving your skillset. It’s also a lot of fun to try new things. Give it a go!

Encountering business challenges and needing to find appropriate solutions is not unique to your organization. Lots of very smart people have developed methods, theories and approaches to help develop problem solving skills and create effective solutions. Learn from them!

Books like The Art of Thinking Clearly , Think Smarter, or Thinking Fast, Thinking Slow are great places to start, though it’s also worth looking at blogs related to organizations facing similar problems to yours, or browsing for success stories. Seeing how Dropbox massively increased growth and working backward can help you see the skills or approach you might be lacking to solve that same problem. Learning from others by reading their stories or approaches can be time-consuming but ultimately rewarding.

A tired, distracted mind is not in the best position to learn new skills. It can be tempted to burn the candle at both ends and develop problem solving skills outside of work. Absolutely use your time effectively and take opportunities for self-improvement, though remember that rest is hugely important and that without letting your brain rest, you cannot be at your most effective. 

Creating distance between yourself and the problem you might be facing can also be useful. By letting an idea sit, you can find that a better one presents itself or you can develop it further. Take regular breaks when working and create a space for downtime. Remember that working smarter is preferable to working harder and that self-care is important for any effective learning or improvement process.

Want to design better group processes?

Over to you

Now we’ve explored some of the key problem solving skills and the problem solving steps necessary for an effective process, you’re ready to begin developing more effective solutions and leading problem solving workshops.

Need more inspiration? Check out our post on problem solving activities you can use when guiding a group towards a great solution in your next workshop or meeting. Have questions? Did you have a great problem solving technique you use with your team? Get in touch in the comments below. We’d love to chat!

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