The Crow and the Pitcher

Do you remember the children's fable? It's a tale of a crow that had a problem (being thirsty) and tested some solutions before finding the right one. That crow was inventive, persistent and eventually successful in the outcome.

The Story (for reference): "The story concerns a thirsty crow that comes upon a pitcher with water at the bottom, beyond the reach of its beak. After failing to push it over, the bird drops in pebbles one by one until the water rises to the top of the pitcher, allowing it to drink. In his telling, Avianus follows it with a moral that emphasises the virtue of ingenuity: "This fable shows us that thoughtfulness is superior to brute strength."

In today's world we have a lot to solve: what to eat for breakfast, how to juggle daily tasks, which route to take on our journey home, and the list goes on. Everyday personal life and business challenges we face create opportunity, but for whom?

The SOLUTIONAIRS!!

Yes, in the age of everything digital, consumers want everything faster, better and simpler. There is an app for everything, thousands of software solutions, and the race is on for industries to keep up with their competitors. But, if you are not inventive or harvesting solutionary people then you could go thirsty.

As a personal advocate for change, my perspective is that now is not the time to batten down the hatches and merely survive. We are in this for the long haul. Sure, times are tough, budgets are tight and Covid has taken its toll on most, if not all industries. However, crisis is a perfect time to reset strategy, seek new innovations, push improvement initiatives, assess competitive advance and create an army of solutionairs.

These are the people who replace the traditional problem solvers. The difference in my opinion is that problem solvers tackle a problem once it arises versus solution finders who go out looking for opportunity.

The similarity in getting to an outcome for both is (no secret) DATA! But that is not the only thing you need to succeed. It's testing ideas, experimenting and, most importantly, talking to the right people.

Here are my tips on activating the now:

• Talk to your customers - this is now more important than ever. Understand their thinking. As new problems arise, diversify!

• Make innovation part of your agenda and culture - monthly team meetings shouldn't only be progress updates. They are the perfect place for ideas discussion.

• Educate on customer centricity - everyone should know who the customer is and why they do the job they do.

• Encourage ideas - nurture those ideas, invest and investigate, prototype, pivot (don’t fall in love with an idea) and ... if it doesn't work, set it free.

Whether you are a leader, employee, entrepreneur or tackling a personal project, get out there and be brave to test your solution ideas.

Reference: There’s always a way - one of Aesop's Fables,

The Lesson: "Little by little does the trick. When at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! Persistence is the key to solving any problem. If your first solution doesn’t solve the problem, think of another solution. Keep trying until you get the answer. After all, it’s better than doing nothing at all!"