| In business, over the years, I have seen many | | | | fifty percent sales a problem or a challenge? Is a |
| common words and phrases become adapted to | | | | leader who will bring down the house a problem or a |
| management for specific or altogether new meanings. | | | | challenge? |
| Challenge and problem are two of them. | | | | The first three questions are clearly not problems. |
| Anxious to rouse up their teams to motivation, | | | | They are definite challenges that one wants to dare. |
| leaders have brought their creative language, picked | | | | The other three questions are problems that have |
| up from business academia, to rallies and | | | | manifested themselves and that will require a solution, |
| conferences. Accountable is another word that | | | | a process of resolve. That solution process is what |
| turned out, in my opinion, to be more of a cop out | | | | will (or should) become a challenge to take on. |
| for managers than an inspiration for staff members. | | | | Why don't we call it what it is? And why is this |
| Remembering well in the late eighties, early nineties | | | | important? Again, as I always say, because focus in |
| when I was working in a top global company, I have | | | | business is important. A problem is a problem. A |
| seen more times than I want to think about, | | | | challenge is a challenge. They represent two different |
| situations when managers have used this new word | | | | feats, they require two different approaches. |
| application to get out of their responsibility to their | | | | Dictionaries define problem as: a question or a |
| own team. "You're accountable for your actions now, | | | | difficulty needing a solution. A question proposed for |
| therefore I'm not responsible for your poor | | | | solution, decision, or determination; a subject given |
| performance". Of course, if the performance is grand, | | | | for examination or proof; any question involving |
| they immediately take the credit! | | | | doubt, uncertainty, or difficulty. Etc. |
| Well, another twist of common sense has crept up in | | | | Challenge is defined as: a call to fight, a call to |
| challenge vs problem. In about the same era, leaders | | | | account, a dispute, a claim. An invitation or summons, |
| introduced to the workforce the replacement of | | | | verbal or written, to decide a controversy. An |
| problem for challenge. They didn't want business folks | | | | invitation to a contest of any kind; as, a challenge to |
| to call a problem a "problem" anymore, they wanted | | | | a public debate. Etc. |
| them -- actually insisted they refer to it as a | | | | A challenge can be a problem in itself sometimes. A |
| "challenge". If you did call it what it really was, you | | | | problem cannot be a challenge - the action to solve |
| were swiftly corrected. | | | | that problem is what becomes the challenge. |
| However, is an expedition to climb Mount Everest a | | | | So next time a staff member comes to us saying |
| problem or a challenge? Is entering a yacht race a | | | | "We have a problem" or "There's a problem in the |
| problem or a challenge? Is taking on a political | | | | graphics department", let's not "correct" them but |
| opponent a problem or a challenge? Is a computer | | | | let's hear them out and work with them to solve a |
| breakdown a problem or a challenge? Is the loss of | | | | real problem. |