Option Solving Blog

In our prior option solving exercise, we aimed to answer the above question and derived the appropriate six option – A thru F – possibilities.  After sleeping on it, your editor’s intuitive mind helped him to decide on Option P: What is the optimum PURPOSE for motivating people to participate in the survey. We again used PEACAM factors as our guide, but deliberately decided to mix them up across ellipses A thru F to see if you can spot them?

So now he had to create another appropriate rational question, as follows, to begin the process of finding a sub-level solution for his survey project. That question became: “Choosing Option P: What is the optimum PURPOSE for motivating team members to participate in an online survey, soonest; considering 1) it needs to strongly resonate with people, 2) it needs to be realistic, 3) it shouldn’t be too difficult to accomplish, and 4) it shouldn’t be an undue burden on people’s time?” He did see other considerations, but felt these were the key ones without making the exercise overly complicated.

It was time then to draft two unlikely  choice “bookends”, the yin and yang, in order to focus his intuitive capabilities and stimulate his creative thinking toward producing a sub-range of viable options. The sub-bookends he chose turned-out to be: “To beat out everyone else” and “Come-up with most idealistic purpose,” both not especially viable in the circumstances. The reasons for why these outliers would not be chosen are given in our worked example. However, using option-framers like these help to focus participants’ brilliant intuitive minds, which can so easily be distracted, before figuring out their most likely and realistic options – again, see our Latest Worked Example.

Since it’s vital to come up with at least five realistic options to stretch ones thinking, you will see this writer produced six. Look at our Latest ‘Peeling the Onion’ Example and you will see those six sub-level options, with one of them being: “Option D – To find a team purpose bigger than any one team member.” With his “pictogram” now in place, indicating his range of six sub-level options, this writer could now set aside some time to allow for emotional distancing. Emotional distancing would allow his intuitive mind to sub-consciously ponder those six sub-level options, while doing other things, and enable him to be more objective when he returned to it.

Since one’s intuition enjoys pictures, a pictogram aids fast intuitive absorption. He then allowed his intuition to work on it. An hour later, he returned to it for helping with an optimum choice, relative to all four question considerations. Which option would you have chosen, if you were in his shoes? As his day progressed he figured out how to approach sub-level option D, while all the factors were fresh in his mind.

If you have an example of your own, please share it with this blogger, through the COMMENTS area.  Thanks Option Solving. (NOTE: Next posting will be in two weeks time: “What is Patriots’ coach’s optimal change to enhance chances of repeating, playing-winning the Superbowl trophy in 2018?” Let’s have your COMMENTS or go to peter@ileadershipsolutions.com to connect with the blogger. Also consider buying the book: “Smart Decisions: Goodbye Problems, Hello Options” through amazon.com)

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