Disentangle

To disentangle and detach from an emotion that's tied to a problem, first understand the problem.

-- doug smith

Problems AND People

Centered leaders solve problems without hurting people.

That takes time. That takes attention. That takes focus.

-- Doug Smith

Center Yourself First

Your problem can wait for just one thing. Your problem can wait until you are centered. You'll be better equipped. You'll be less likely to grab incomplete solutions. You'll be calm, focused, and flexible.

Our problems are easier to solve once we ourselves are centered.

Try that first.

-- Doug Smith

Focus On What You Really Want

Do you ever find yourself midway through solving a problem and wondering why you are bothering with that problem?

Or, do you ever think you've solved a problem only to discover it was just a symptom of a bigger problem?

Before solving a problem it helps to focus on what we really want.

What's the goal?

I like to reframe each problem into a goal-statement so that the work becomes positive: we work on what we want to achieve, rather than what we seek to avoid.

It makes a difference. It's much easier to stay centered with a goal in mind, and it's much easier to keep that goal in mind when we stay centered.

What problem can you convert into a positive goal?

-- Doug Smith

Front Range Leadership: Training Supervisors for Success

doug smith training: how to achieve your project goals

Remember We're Part of The Problem

Have you ever gotten so deep into solving a problem that you missed the fact that you were part of the problem?

I don't like it when it happens, but sometimes I realize that the problem only exists because I've created it. I put it there. It's the results of my actions.

Sobering. Disconcerting. Not fun. But, sometimes we're the problem.

Centered problem solvers realize that their part in the problem may be tough to see, yet it's likely there. What we do in looking at the problem has a lot to do with who we are. When we take the time to center ourselves before reaching conclusions, we end up with better conclusions.

Sometimes as we analyze a problem we are also analyzing ourselves.

Are you open to that?

-- Doug Smith

Front Range Leadership: Training Supervisors for Success

doug smith training: how to achieve your project goals

Centered Leaders Stay Focused

Are you easily distracted?

Many of us are blessed with the ability to shift our focus instantly. We can move our attention from the problem we're working on to a few items on our phone. We can forget what's pressing on us and drift into long periods of cat videos or project management cartoons.

Centered leaders stay focused. Centered problem solving keeps us focused whether or not the problem is solved. 

The goal, to put it simply, is the goal. All the problem is doing is standing in the way of the goal.

Are you a centered leader?

What are you doing to continue in your leadership development?

- Douglas Brent Smith

Front Range Leadership offers fast, affordable leadership training through workshops and webinars.