Work Tool: Puzzle Mindset

Consider problems as puzzles...

Problems aren't fun. A short timeframe to purchase, assemble, and troubleshoot an experimental chamber. A complicated statistical design. A broken washer.

Why aren't problems fun? I like to think of the reasons as the Four U's. They are often Unpleasant, Unplanned, Urgent, and have Ugly consequences for failure.

Puzzles are fun. Whether they come in the form of riddles, jigsaws, or apps, they provide challenge and reward on the user's own terms. While puzzles can certainly be frustrating and even unpleasant, puzzles are, by design, not bound by the other three U's. Also, unpleasant puzzles can be freely put down.

So, what about adopting a puzzle mindset to problems? Treat every incoming problem like a puzzle to be solved, rather than a difficulty to endure. How might this change each of the Four U's?

Unpleasant: The problem is now framed as a game, so the unpleasantness is tempered with the excitement of a worthy challenge
Unplanned: The puzzle mindset in on the lookout for puzzles in the form of problems, so when one comes, it's not surprised.
Urgent: What's a good puzzle without a timer attached? The deadline can even act as a scoring metric. The faster the solution, the higher the score!
Ugly: Avoiding or delaying problems makes them worse. Motivation to solve problems head on helps avoid the ugliest consequences.

Now this won't work for every problem, especially serious ones like illness or malevolence. But if even a portion of the lower-level problems could be tackled with the puzzle mindset, who knows how much more satisfying and less stressful problems could be?

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The Mark Williamson Creative Universe

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