Principles
These principles inform how Solution Focused Change works with your organisation to achieve your desired outcomes.
Every Case is Different
Your organisation is unique and complex. It’s not a factory where repeatable Best Practices can be transplanted from other businesses to yours. These Best Practices are usually forced to fit your unique context by consultants who think they know more about your business than your do and will charge you large sums for the privilege of telling you so.
You're the expert in your business. Your organisation faces unique problems and challenges. It also has the unique talent, skills, understanding and resources to solve these problems.
By approaching your situation with a beginner’s mindset, we guide you to discover creative emergent solutions that are fit for purpose and context. These solutions will work better because they are right for you.
“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few”
Change is Constant
Like the seasons, change is constant. By embracing change, you can notice and amplify what is useful, and dampen what is not useful. Rather than having to put energy into creating change, you can keep an eye out for small signs that move you in the direction you want to go and do more of that.
Knowing what to look for comes from developing a rich, detailed description of what’s wanted. Staying attuned to constant change helps you notice new trends and take advantage of them before your competitors.
“Change is the only constant”
Conversations not Diagnosis
If you are dealing with complex problems, you can waste a lot of time and money trying to diagnose the cause. The assumption is that finding the cause will allow you to provide a solution. This only works when there is a clear relationship between cause and effect such as a flat tire or a server outage. For complex problems, another approach is required.
What if conversations were the primary means of creating change?
Change your conversations - change your culture
Change your conversations - change the way you solve problems
Change your conversations - change your leadership style
Learn how to have constructive conversations that enable the desired change.
Focus on Wants
It’s easy to identify what’s wrong and what the problem is. It’s much rarer to ask “What’s wanted, instead?”. What’s wanted instead is not always “not the problem”, especially for complex issues.
Identifying what’s wanted, how that would make a difference and where there is evidence of this happening already, will bring you more directly towards the desired solution than endlessly exploring the problem.
A rich, full-sensory, concrete observable description of what's wanted, the interactions it brings the ideas much closer to becoming real.
“Identify your problems but give your power and energy to solutions.”
The MacGyver Principle
There is a fictional TV character called “MacGyver” who was famous for getting out of tough situations by making use of whatever was on hand. When MacGyver was in a difficult spot, the first thing he did was take inventory of what was on hand and figure out how he could use it.
This principle can be applied in organisations as well. When looking to get unstuck, take an inventory of the talents, strengths, equipment, mindset, skills, spaces, furniture, etc. that is on hand that can help. Start by investigating in areas where there is some evidence of what’s wanted happening already.
“I don’t care what anything was designed to do. I care about what it can do.”
Solutions are Emergent
With complex problems, it’s a waste of time to try to discern the “best” or “ideal” approach. When you let go of the need to apply Best Practices or find the one “right” solution, you open yourself up for something new to emerge.
This creative process comes from the perspectives, insights, ideas and strengths that you and your people bring to the situation. What emerges is fit for context and purpose. The people involved will champion the solution as they were part of coming up with it. Make the most of the talented people in your organisation.
Emergent ideas are a start. They then need to be tested with small, safe-to-fail experiments that give valuable feedback. If it works (even a little bit), do more of it. If not, then do something different. The solutions are emergent because they become clearer over time, especially with frequent learning cycles.
Minimal Touch Points
Real change can take time yet you don’t want to be paying consultants to be there when they’re not needed. We want to coach and assist your organisation and also give you time to practice and absorb new behaviours until they are natural.
It’s your organisation and you own the desired outcomes. We assist, guide and coach but the hard work happens in the day to day work. This is something only you can do so we want to get out of the way and let you get on with it.