Turning Problems Into Opportunities

What makes a problem a problem? 

A problem always contains two parts: 

One-half of a problem is an expectation or desire for a different reality or outcome. What would we like to see or experience? 

The second half is the reality that conflicts with that expectation or desire. For instance, if a leader wants the team to take risks, it is only a problem if the team is risk-averse. A problem only exists when the two halves are at odds. It is the desire for a different outcome or reality that creates any problem.

Hence, when it comes to problems, there are only two types: a reality where something is missing that we think should be there, or a reality where something is there that we think should not be. What makes it a problem is the contrast between the objective reality and our desire to paint a different picture. 

Solving a problem is certainly one way to address the contrast. We can invent tactics and strategies to change the reality and realize our desired outcomes. Or, we transform the problem and, instead, turn it into an opportunity. Good leaders look for ways to do exactly that. 

Not all problems can be turned into opportunities, but many can. It is our resistance to let go of what should be that gets in the way. When leaders open their minds to what could be, they are on the path toward finding opportunities buried inside a problem. 

A great example of finding an opportunity in a problem occurred during the filming of the first Indiana Jones movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark. 

During a chase scene in Egypt, the movie’s protagonist was supposed to engage in a highly choreographed swordfight with a fearsome assailant. Indiana Jones actor Harrison Ford practiced for weeks to prepare for the scene, but unfortunately fell ill and couldn’t perform the fight when it was scheduled to be filmed. 

After thinking about the problem (Fact: The scene called for a swordfight the ailing star couldn’t perform), Ford looked for an opportunity in the problem and came up with a marvelous idea. He suggested to the Director Steven Spielberg that it would be even better if they didn’t have the fight, but instead had Indiana Jones nonchalantly shoot his massive blade-wielding attacker. The scene became an instant classic.  

The best way to excavate an opportunity is to separate our desires from the facts of the problem. Accepting those facts, at least temporarily, is what creates breakthrough thinking. 

In accepting the facts of a problem, we recognize that we can’t change them. If they are truly facts (and not our desires or expectations), they represent an immutable reality. But what we CAN change is what we do with those facts!

Harrison Ford knew he couldn’t change the fact that he was not up to performing the swordfight. But he found an opportunity in the problem by thinking about what the scene could be. Separating what should be from what could be is how good leaders find opportunities inside problems. 

So, the next time you confront a particularly worrisome problem, divorce yourself from your hopes and desires, accept the facts, and ask yourself what opportunity it presents. You might be surprised at what you come up with.