{"id":30116,"date":"2018-02-22T22:08:40","date_gmt":"2018-02-23T02:08:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/?p=30116"},"modified":"2018-02-22T22:08:40","modified_gmt":"2018-02-23T02:08:40","slug":"get-better-solving-difficult-business-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/2018\/get-better-solving-difficult-business-problems\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Get Better At Solving Difficult Business Problems"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As an entrepreneur, you face a wide variety of challenges each and every day in business. Although some may have simple solutions, others can be tough to resolve. Unfortunately, these more intractable problems could either raise your costs, lower your profits, or completely\u00a0derail your business project.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>However, what often appears to be impossible to solve may, in fact, be amenable to\u00a0a systematic process for problem-solving. In short, simply by changing your approach to a problem, you might be able to turn things around for your business, transforming business\u00a0threats into unexpected business growth\u00a0opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>One common\u00a0problem\u00a0you might face as an entrepreneur is\u00a0uncertainty about\u00a0how a particular project will work\u00a0out. This nervousness is not due to a lack of confidence but due to the fact\u00a0that\u00a0you have difficulty\u00a0in defining\u00a0the project,\u00a0struggle with\u00a0finding relevant data on what your target audience wants, needs and desires, and feel overwhelmed when trying to decide on what\u00a0direction to\u00a0go. As a result of your confusion,\u00a0you are not sure\u00a0how to\u00a0deliver on the promises you boldly made to stakeholders who funded the project nor\u00a0what instructions to give your team on how to move forward.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3>How to Solve Business Problems\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/article\/303407\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/assets\/most-important-business-skill.jpg\" alt=\"most-important-business-skill\" width=\"700\" height=\"350\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-30120 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 700px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 700\/350;\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<em>Entrepreneurs Solve Problems Differently Than Other Professionals. Really! Here Are the 6 Ways.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>One way to solve the more difficult\u00a0types of problems you will come across as an entrepreneur\u00a0is\u00a0to earn <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/goleansixsigma.com\/online-lean-six-sigma-green-belt-training\/\">Green Belt Certification<\/a>, which is a\u00a0lean six sigma\u00a0methodology.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>As an example of how effective this type of training can be for your business, let&#8217;s take a look at how this type of problem-solving training\u00a0can help you manage your business projects better.\u00a0<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>\n<p>You will run\u00a0your business\u00a0projects more cost-effectively.\u00a0When resources are wasted in a project, costs rise and production efficiency drops. Resources\u00a0in a project are wasted\u00a0when\u00a0there are defects in a process, when there is overproduction, and when\u00a0there\u00a0are\u00a0long wait times. For instance, a\u00a0defect in a project might be due to\u00a0broken parts, overproduction issues may arise\u00a0because\u00a0there\u00a0are too many extra reports which cause information\u00a0overload,\u00a0and long wait\u00a0times could be due to delays related to waiting for approvals, equipment, or large order batches.\u00a0Resources might also be wasted\u00a0when skilled worker&#8217;s\u00a0talents are not\u00a0utilized or\u00a0under-utilized;\u00a0when there is an unnecessary movement of staff, equipment, information, or materials;\u00a0or\u00a0when there is too little or too much inventory.\u00a0By recognizing that these wastes exist in the first place, it will be\u00a0possible to take measures to reduce or eliminate them.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> You will understand\u00a0the story behind\u00a0your project,\u00a0clarifying your comprehension\u00a0through\u00a0greenbelt\u00a0storyboard checklists and one-page\u00a0executive summaries.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> You will be able to define why your business project exists in the first place. You will get clear on what problem it is trying to solve, what\u00a0your overall\u00a0goals\u00a0should be,\u00a0and what the scope of the project might be.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> You\u00a0get better at gathering the information that you need to make informed decisions. You will learn how to\u00a0make\u00a0plans for collecting data. It will make a huge difference\u00a0when\u00a0you make clear\u00a0decisions\u00a0on what type of data\u00a0you need to\u00a0collect, how much\u00a0data\u00a0you will need\u00a0to collect, how\u00a0the data\u00a0will collect it, and who will do the work.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>You will find the root cause of the problem that your business project is trying to resolve, \u00a0understanding\u00a0what issues you are trying to deal with\u00a0and what hidden opportunities might arise once you find the best solution.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>You will improve the solution once you find it. You will use tools like Proof of Improvement, Run Charts, Box Plots, and Histograms to measure the efficacy of your discovered\u00a0solution.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>You will\u00a0get closure on the project by reviewing the lessons you&#8217;ve learned, evaluating\u00a0what soft or hard savings you achieved, and what potential the solution has for use in\u00a0a similar situation\u00a0in the future. <\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.huffingtonpost.com\/entry\/2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us_5a42a4d0e4b06cd2bd03dce0\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/assets\/2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us.png\" alt=\"2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us\" width=\"820\" height=\"820\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-30121 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/assets\/2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us.png 820w, https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/assets\/2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/assets\/2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/assets\/2018-entrepreneurs-recipe-for-problem-solving_us-65x65.png 65w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 820px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 820\/820;\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<em>2018 Entrepreneur\u2019s recipe for Problem Solving<\/em><\/p>\n<p>In the final analysis, your success as an entrepreneur boils down to one thing\u2014how effective are you at solving problems. Chances are that the better you are as a problem-solver, the more your business ventures will flourish. However, problem-solving is not always easy. While common sense solutions and intuition may resolve some\u00a0problems,\u00a0others can only be cracked through the use of a formal\u00a0problem-solving\u00a0methodology.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As an entrepreneur, you face a wide variety of challenges each and every day in business. Although some may have simple solutions, others can be tough to resolve. Unfortunately, these<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[109,5695,5633],"tags":[5891,5367,6053,2177,988,2452,593,6087,2856,520,15,8224,595,2179,628,442,115],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How To Get Better At Solving Difficult Business Problems<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"As an entrepreneur, you face a wide variety of challenges each and every day in business. 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