Q: Evaluating solutions and answers can give you ideas on how to start working to make a difference and improve. It could also, on the opposite side, help you to see where you want to end up/finish, and then work backwards to make it happen. It is not about focusing entirely on the current situation and how to fix it, but dreaming/thinking/reflecting on what the ideal situation is.
A: I love concepts like Appreciative Inquiry versus Action Research. We call this the Merlin Effect or Benjamin Button Effect which really means looking at what you want and reverse engineering your success. WDYWFY is another one that I am familiar with. What Do You Want For Yourself is the personal goal setting version of this.
This is mostly all from my experience and not research so let me qualify these opinions with that. I love focusing on what is working and what you want over your problems. However, in real practice, there are issues that arise in our personal and professional relationships that require resolving issues and problems. If you ignore the issues of today then you are creating new ideas and initiatives on top of a poor foundation. If you focus too much on the problems then you disempower yourself and others to see what is possible. So I recommend driving with both hands. In my right is dealing with challenges and issues that exist and deserve our attention. In my left is creating an enrolling powerful inspiring future that everyone, or mostly everyone, can see themselves living into. If you drive too much with either hand, to the right or left, you will wreck the car, or at best, drive in circles.
Lastly, I am learning in my personal and professional life that it is really impractical to reverse engineer success. We look at others and try to emulate them. We do this in almost every area of our lives. This is either motivating so we feel like we have a path or it provides a dose of self-loathing that is just enough to motivate us to try harder. In either case, this is a fallacy because it is really not possible, reasonably, to reverse engineer someone’s life or business. There are just too many parts. Education, work ethic, timing, genetics, family, location, courage, creativity, compassion… the list is too long.
What do you think?
Very respectfully,
Steven
Speed > Typos