FROM "i HAVE A PROBLEM" TO "HOW I'M STRUCTURING THIS?"
In English we say, “I have a problem.” In Spanish: “Tengo un problema.” I had never noticed how easily ordinary language makes a problem sound like a thing—something already formed, something I possess. Five-Minute Manager disrupted that representation for me.
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5-Minute Manager Reflection
The following is from Hernan who lives
In Argentina and who has been part of my
Think Team for the 5 Minute Manager.
He attended the training last week via
Zoom and offers numerous insights about
The Problem-Solving Conversation
FROM “I HAVE A PROBLEM”
TO
“HOW AM I STRUCTURING THIS?”
In English we say, “I have a problem.” In Spanish: “Tengo un problema.” I had never noticed how easily ordinary language makes a problem sound like a thing—something already formed, something I possess. Five-Minute Manager disrupted that representation for me.
Michael kept returning to distinctions that sounded simple and then began reorganizing how I thought: an external condition is not the problem; the person is not the problem; a goal is not a result; and even the gap between where I am and where I want to be is not automatically the problem. What exists outside is the condition. The problem emerges in how I am thinking about that condition in relation to something I want.
