Another Way to Problem Solve

You’ve experienced this – as both the leader and meeting participant. The leader asks a question of the group, wanting and needing a response and gets…crickets. Having asked hundreds of leaders what they are thinking at that moment, about half say they wonder why people don’t care enough to say something or share their thoughts. But is that the only reason they might not be responding?

Asking that question, rather than operating based on our intuition, allows us to do what I call plausible cause analysis.

So back to you at the front of the room…

You’ve asked a well-prepared (so you thought) question, but you aren’t getting any responses. Why might that be?

• They didn’t hear the question.
• They weren’t paying attention or were distracted.
• They didn’t understand the question.
• They are thinking about their response.
• They have a response but are considering whether to share it, considering these thoughts (or others):
  • People aren’t sure you really want their response – they think you have already decided.
  • They aren’t sure their response is smart enough – what if people laugh or disagree?
  • They don’t want their response to be judged by you or the group.
  • They don’t want to be “voluntold” – Fearing a response from you like: “That is a good idea! Why don’t you take the lead on that?
• They have another issue outside of the meeting on their mind.
• They don’t want to be involved.
• (And yes, maybe:) They don’t care.

All of these are plausible or possible reasons why people might not respond when you ask your question in the meeting.

Doing this plausible cause analysis doesn’t give us more certainty in problem solving – the factors might be unknown. Rather this analysis helps us see more options. And with options, we can better determine what to do next.

Once you have done a plausible cause analysis, you have a far different/better perspective about this quiet group situation. Your next question in problem solving could be:

• Which of these do I think is most likely?
• How can I get the group to engage, even if I don’t know which of these plausible causes are at play?

Doing Plausible Cause Analysis

Doing this analysis requires four things:

• Awareness of the strategy.
• Willingness to try the strategy.
• Willingness to suspend judgment.
• Choosing to stop, think, and consider alternatives.

In a complex world where we often can’t know everything about our situation, plausible cause analysis can be a valuable thinking tool for us personally. But it can also be used by leaders with groups when they look at complex situations. When we slow down enough to do this analysis, we will uncover additional options to consider, and likely find better next steps to take.