First PrinciplesWorking from what you know or hold to be true. | Keep it SimpleAvoiding overthinking to choose a reasonable option quickly. |
Design ThinkingDesigning problems out. | JugaadA practical fix that’s temporary and cheap. |
Working BackwardsStarting with goals and determining how to achieve them. | Pareto AnalysisFinding the 20% of things that will solve 80% of your problem. |
Corrective ActionFixing what’s broken. | Good FailureLooking for value in failure. |
WorkaroundQuickly addressing symptoms of a problem with a temporary process. | Root Cause AnalysisDetermining the root cause of a problem to permanently fix it. |
Data AnalysisJumping into the data to find explanations and ways out of a problem. | Trial and ErrorTrying things to see if they work. |
Fail WellDesigning tests to fail quickly, cheaply and safely. | SWOT AnalysisListing out your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. |
TroubleshootingTaking steps to determine the cause of a problem. | Problem StatementClearly defining the problem and redefining the problem as required. |
5 WhysAsking why five times in succession to dig deeper into a problem. | Working HypothesisDeveloping possible explanations and testing them out. |
BrainstormingBrainstorming possible solutions without validation. | Reverse BrainstormingListing what could go wrong with potential solutions. |
TradeoffsListing pros and cons of different solutions. | Challenging AssumptionsChallenging what people, including yourself, assume to be true. |
Preserving AmbiguityNot assuming things too early in the problem solving process or jumping to the first solution that presents itself. | No Nothing StrategyThe possibility that doing nothing is your best option. |
PragmatismDealing with the world as it really exists to accept imperfect solutions that are achievable. | Sanity CheckAsking yourself – does this actually make any sense whatsoever? |
