Stop Jumping to the solution and think about the problems
Why We Don’t Value Understanding the Problem Problems are abstract. They raise questions, assumptions and gaps in our understanding. They are uncomfortable. Solutions make the abstract concrete and provide specific answers to questions, even if they are just guesses. Solutions make us feel good. Our brains are good at quickly getting to solutions. We often need to quickly get to solutions to communicate effectively. We assess our needs and subconsciously fill in details about what a successful solution might look like in order to be understood. You would not say, “my body is telling me I need food and I am craving something savory and salty.” You might just say, “Let’s go to Wendy’s.” So jumping to solutions is comfortable and often necessary. It just happens to be bad for developing software products. How Understanding the Problem Will Help You The trouble with using solutions as the unit of discussion in product development is that they don’t include the intent. Someo