No questioning. No prodding. No poking. No cold stethoscope.

How much confidence would you have with your doctor’s diagnosis?

None at all, right?

Yet time and time again, we see this in the business world. Prescriptions are offered without a thorough diagnosis. So many times, we treat the symptoms of the problem, rather than solving the problem itself because we don’t take the time to discover the real problem.

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Ad hoc diagnosis cost this salesperson a client

We have a friend who sells television commercials. Recently, he told us about one of his new clients. This client had been running radio ads for his high-end grills. They didn’t work. So the radio salesperson put him on another station. That still didn’t work. So the guy switched to television.

Our friend produced a great ad showing people having fun around his client’s grills. Sales are booming! His client is thrilled!

But the radio salesperson missed an opportunity. By thoroughly diagnosing the situation, it could have been determined that the problem wasn’t the station, it was the message. Couldn’t you use sound effects to create a picture in the listeners mind? If you hear the sound of food on the grill, can you put yourself there? If you hear people having fun, do you want to join in?

The radio sales representative could have kept the client by thoroughly diagnosing the problem to come up with the right solution, instead of just trying something else (i.e. changing stations).

5 steps to diagnose the problem

With everybody looking for cost-effective solutions today, diagnostics are increasingly important. If you don’t get to the root of the problem when you prescribe a solution, you’ll damage relationships. So follow this simple five-step process to thoroughly diagnose the problem:

1. Ask probing questions

2. Listen
This is really part of the first step, but it’s so important that we felt it should be listed separately. Listen actively and attentively.

3. Clarify
Keep asking follow-up questions and making clarifying statements until you fully understand the issue. If your client offers a vague answer to your question, ask a question that digs deeper. Or repeat your client’s answer back in your own words. Now you’re ready to …

4. Define the problem

5. Offer the prescription
Now, and only now, are you ready to offer your solution to the underlying problem.

If you care about your clients, you will seek to build the relationship even if it’s not in your best interest today. Without question, it is in your best interest long-term.
 

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Next time, we’ll talk about tapping into your creativity this Halloween to have some bigg fun. Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

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Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file:
http://media.libsyn.com/media/biggsuccess/00249-102208.mp3

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People often get overwhelmed by all of the problems they face. They just don’t know where to start. To help with that, we recently discussed an ancient Chinese secret for solving all of your problems.  It’s a simple two-step process:

• Put all of your problems away into their own individual compartments.

• Pull one problem out at a time when you’re ready to deal with it.

It makes things more manageable when you’re not looking at all of your problems all at once. But many people don’t know what to do once they pull the problem out. It’s a timeless process, but we’ve put our own spin on it to make it easier to remember.

SOLVE IT: The 7-step problem-solving process

Statement
Origin
List
Verify
Eliminate

Implement
Test

Step 1 – Statement
State exactly what the problem is. Until you’ve defined your problem clearly, you can’t solve it!

Step 2 – Origin
Isolate the root cause of the problem. A lot of times, we stop at the symptoms of the problem. You have to find its point of origin or you won’t solve it!

Step 3 – List
Brainstorm for possible solutions. BRAINSTORM, don’t analyze. Get all of your ideas on paper so you can solve it!

Step 4 – Verify
Determine the pros and cons of each solution. You won’t know what’s best until you analyze it. Then you can solve it!

Step 5 – Eliminate
Get rid of all but the single best solution. You’ve done the research. Now go with what you believe is the best option so you can solve it!

Step 6 – Implement
Work your solution to make your solution work. You have to take action to solve it!

Step 7 – Test
You’ve established benchmarks so you know whether or not your solution is working. Check periodically against these benchmarks. Keep an eye on the problem to make sure that you solve it!

So the next time you have a problem – SOLVE IT! Isn’t that simple?

If you found this helpful, pass it on to your friends so they can SOLVE IT, too!

Our bigg quote today is by Voltaire, who said,

And that sustained thinking is most productive when you use an organized process. That’s how you can take any problem and SOLVE IT!

Next time, we’ll look at the fear that often holds people back from their dreams. Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

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Today we’ll share a timeless principle for solving all of your problems that’s amazingly simple. But first, let’s discuss three ways that DON’T solve problems.

• Ignore it and hope it will go away.
  Some people get overwhelmed by an abundance of problems. They don’t know where to begin solving them so they just don’t begin solving them. 

  Result: The problems usually just get bigger and bigger.

• Use a knee-jerk reaction.
  Other people just jump to a solution. They don’t aim; they just fire. It may or may not be the right solution, but it doesn’t matter – they’ve got it off their plate.

  Result: They may end up with a bigger, more complex problem down-the-road.

• Approach it willy-nilly.
  Still other people have no problem-solving process. They try a little of this and little of that. They don’t have any order so they don’t approach their most pressing problems in an orderly way.

  Result: The problems just keep piling up.

Noble endeavors
James Clavell wrote a great novel called Noble House. It inspired a mini-series in which Pierce Brosnan played the CEO of Struan’s. Struan’s was the Noble House, the most prestigious trading firm in Hong Kong.

He inherited a number of problems from his predecessor. Now, he has a severe shortage of cash. He’s overextended with his bank. His stock price is falling rapidly. He faces a raid on his company by an American businessman, who has inside information. His Hong Kong rival is trying to bury him. The founder of Struan’s had made a promise to the locals that he must fulfill.

His world is crashing in around him! It seems that everybody wants something from him. Yet few are willing to give him any help.

In the end, he managed to overcome all the odds and Struan’s remained the Noble House. How did he do it?

By looking at his problems the Chinese way. It’s a simple, two-step process to solve all of your problems:

• Put all of your problems into their individual compartments.

  Picture yourself at your bank. You’re in the safe deposit area. You see box after box after box.

  Take each problem and put it in its own box. You may group similar problems together, but each one should have its very own box. That will be very important for the second step.

  Put them away to de-clutter your mind. Because if you try to solve all of them, you end up solving none of them. So this first step is very important!

  Not to mention, there are new problems surfacing all the time. Just keep putting them away so you’re ready for the second step.

• Pull one problem out at a time when, and only when, you’re ready and able to deal with it.

  Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But how do you determine what problem to pull out? It’s a matter of timing – do you have the resources available? Do you have the time, the money, and any other required resources? If not, keep it tucked away.

  So when you open up the compartment, do you keep it open until it’s completely solved? Not necessarily! You may pull it out, do as much as you can and then put it back and pull out another one. Keep repeating until all your problems are solved!

  A lot of people never look at their problems this way. There’s a real calming effect when you do, because you don’t have all of your problems staring at you all at once!

Just click the “Share This” button below to pass this ancient problem-solving secret on to a friend. You’ll be a hit if you do! But Shhhh … it’s still a secret!

Next week, we’ll expand on this subject by sharing a problem-solving process we call SOLVE IT.

For our bigg quote today, we thought it only appropriate to consult with Confucius, who said,

Even when complications arise, keep it simple and SOLVE IT!

Next time, we’ll offer some advice that’s not for the faint-of-heart. Consider yourself warned! We’ll discuss a common perception that keeps many people from succeeding bigg! Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

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