Identifying solutions. Working on a problem involves the process of coming up with possible solutions. The following are some ways two parties in disagreement can identify solutions to their problem. Brainstorm. Brainstorming is the process of coming up with as many ideas as you can in the shortest time possible. It makes use of diversity of personalities in a group so that one can come up with the widest range of fresh ideas. Quantity of ideas is more important than quality of ideas in the initial stage of brainstorming. You can filter out the bad ones later on with an in-depth review of their pros and cons. Hypothesize. Hypothesizing means coming up with what-if scenarios based on intelligent guesses. A solution can be made from imagining alternative setups and studying these alternative setups against facts and known data. Adopt a model. You may also look for a solution in the past. If a solution has worked before, perhaps it may work again. Find similar problems and study how it was handled. You don’t have to follow a model to the letter; you are always free to tweak it to fit the nuances of the current problem. Invent options. If there has been no precedence for a problem, it’s time to exercise one’s creativity and think of new options. A way to go about this is to list down each party’s interests and come up with proposed solutions that have benefits for each party. Survey. If the two parties can’t come up with a solution between the two of them, maybe it’s time to seek other people’s point of view. Survey people with interest or background in the issue in contention. Find an expert if possible. Just remember, though, at the end of the day, the decision is still yours. Identify a solution based on facts, not on someone’s opinion.
