Rough seas are good, yes really

“A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor” This probably means that a rough sea will be able to make a skilled sailor. Why would that be? Well simply because one does not gain real experience when things are going right. When every thing goes like clockwork, runs smoothly, customers stream through your doors, profit increases yearly, your role is merely to maintain your operations. Nothing new, creative or spectacular can come from this.

But if things go wrong! Yes, then you have to start earning your salary. You will have to find ways to solve them, creative ones. You will need to take action, and face the possibility of making mistakes, or worse, accelerating the speed of the downward spiral. This is a great opportunity to learn to become a skilled sailor. You will earn your stripes or t-shirt. You will define the real problem, and not be blinded by the symptoms (role of an explorer). You will start identifying a number of possible alternative to solve the problem (think creatively like an artist). You will look at the feasibility and practicality of the different alternatives – like filtering through a funnel, dropping options not suitable (think like an engineer). Next you will become a judge and decide which is the correct option. Finally you will play the role of a producer, selling the idea to the relevant stakeholders.

Only by going through a problem solving process, a number of times, will you gain the necessary experience to be called a skilled sailor, or perhaps the captain of the ship.

Next time things go wrong, grab this wonderful opportunity to learn, gain further experience and become an accomplished specialist.