December 23, 2023

Look for herrings

Eiffel

Sometimes the answer presents itself. If we do this, and this, and this … ta da! … everything will be good. Fifteen minutes of thought turns into fifteen hours or days or weeks of work. And sometimes, sometimes that presentable looking answer was pretty much on the money. You had to wriggle a bit, tidy things up around the edges, but yeah, the ta da! moment really came through.

Some other times, (most times?), it doesn’t. That immediate answer is a red herring that chews through the cables. Wasted effort. It couldn’t work and was never going to work.

Treat the ta da! as a candidate. Don’t jump straight in. Turn it over for a while, investigate, look for herrings, do the research.

If the candidate was a good fit, the process will add value anyway. And if was a fish, you’re saved.

Skippy strategy: It’s always in the last place you look.

Category:
Focus