I was frustrated the other day trying to open a new bottle of milk. The milk manufacturer had sealed the opening of the bottle with a special seal so the milk didn’t leak.
Sometimes the solution to one challenge creates another. In this case, this seal was so difficult to open that when I did manage to get it open, it ripped in half. Not only that, a good slurp of the milk flew out onto the floor.
Sometimes we need to find the right balance and be careful that in our attempts to address one challenge, we don’t accidentally create another.
I have no doubt that the manufacturer was trying to do the right thing by making the seal so tight. Unfortunately, it led to an unintended customer frustration.
Next time you have your team together, try taking 20 minutes to ask the following questions as part of a quick Curly Conversation.
When have we solved one challenge but created another?
What impact did it have?
What was our original intention?
How did that influence our choice of solution?
What could we learn from this experience?
Is there an opportunity to apply this lesson in something we’re doing today?
Do we want to do anything differently?
Have a fantastic conversation.
#curlycalm&curious
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