The Simplest Problem Solving Tool in the World

You can never solve a problem on the level at which it was created. - Albert Einstein

There are a great many problem solving techniques taught in both business and therapy schools, ranging from complex software simulations to Jay Haley's model of "Symptoms, metaphors, hierarchy, and power". Yet the simplest problem solving tool in the world exists inside our own minds, and we can learn to use it effectively in a matter of minutes.

Try this little experiment...
Look around the room you are in and make a mental note of everything that's blue - everything in your environment that is the color blue. Don't read any further until you've done it. (I'll wait here... :-)
Did you find lots of blue things? Remember where they are. Now fix your eyes on the screen or on the page you're reading from. Don't look around, no matter what. As soon as you finish reading this sentence, close your eyes, then mentally list everything in the room that's brown! (No peeking, now...)

How'd you do?
If you're like most people, you were only able to identify a small percentage of the brown objects in the room. That's because we human beings can only pay attention to between 5 and 9 things at a time (according to George Miller, a scientist who had an almost unhealthy obsession with these things). When those 7+/-2 bits of attention are occupied with your problem, there's no room left in your awareness to find the solution!
Any time you find yourself stuck on a problem, you can be certain of one thing:
The answer you are looking for is somewhere (anywhere) other than where you're currently focusing.
Therefore, if you want to gain an insight, solve a problem, or just get moving again, you must begin by shifting your focus.
-Psy.Visesh, 94401 35779

-విశేష