Application of steps in problem solving
Lesson Objective
Solving problems means making choices. This lesson is for Teacher Student interaction (TSI). It is a live class.
Reading content on the topic
💭 What is the need for problem solving skills?
When you tackle problems on your own, or in a group, you become resilient. You learn to look at challenges from a fresh perspective. The root objective or the most basic objective of problem solving is to make everyday mundane life easy.
Problem-solving enables one to identify and exploit opportunities in the environment and exert (some level of) control over the future. Problem solving skills and the problem-solving process are a critical part of daily life for both individuals as well as organisations.
Problem solving provides a radically new way of approaching and solving problems in general.
Quick Recap
Importance of Problem Solving
Good problem solving skills help to portray that you have a range of competencies such as logic, creativity, resilience, imagination, lateral thinking and determination.
It is indeed a vital skill for your professional and personal life.
While we often think about these skills in the work context, problem solving isn’t just helpful in the workplace. Let's take a look at a few applications of problem solving in everyday life to better understand the concept and how it can make tasks easier for you in the future.
Let’s look at few different scenarios and do some brainstorming
(In case you missed your TSI session, you can register your thoughts here)
Scenario 1: Tim is responsible for giving a bonus to factory workers that have perfect attendance during the month. One worker missed one day due to a death in the family. The worker has an emotional outburst in Tim’s office and tells Tim that she needs the bonus desperately since she is behind on her rent. The rules are clear and the bonus is for perfect attendance period no if, buts, or maybes. However, Tim does have the authority to make exceptions to the rule. What should Tim do?
Scenario 2: It has come to Rohan’s attention that there are some outrageous rumours about his behaviour involving his team members. These rumours might affect how people interact with him at work. Rohan thinks he has traced the source of these rumours but he is not 100% sure if the person he suspects is the culprit. What should Rohan do?
Scenario 3: Rahul shares an office with two other co-workers.One of them, Sameer, often likes to talk about his family and personal life. However, his other co-worker Gaurav thinks the workplace is strictly for work and not a place to vent. Rahul finds Sameer’s monologues amusing but is aware that Gaurav is getting angrier by the second. Sameer has also started noticing that Gaurav is disinterested since he stares at the computer and ignores him when he talks which Sameer finds rude and disrespectful. Rahul thinks that sooner or later Sameer and Gaurav are going to have an altercation which might increase the negativity in the workplace. What should Rahul do?
Scenario 4: Working as a software developer, Aman is concerned by the lack of advancement in a project. The lack of ideas and innovation is leading nowhere. But he is not the lead for the project. He wants to take the project forward. What should Aman do?
Scenario 5: Rahul is a web developer at an IT company. He is leading a team and has been assigned a project where his manager has asked to use a new framework for developing the web application. Rahul knows this framework is the future but because it’s new there aren’t a lot of resources available to learn it and to resolve difficulties that may arise during development. How should Rahul approach this?
Scenario 6: Arshil has a coworker, Saanvi, who likes to talk about politics. Arshil does not care about politics all that much but finds her co-workers' political views to be a little extreme. Arshil likes her coworker and wants to get along with her. She can either pretend to agree with Saanvi or tell her that she would rather talk about other subjects. Saanvi might feel insulted if she decides to go with the latter. What should Arshil do?
Scenario 7: Aadil is a software engineer. He is working on a project and halfway through he realises that he has made a significant mistake that may require him to restart the project to resolve it. How should he approach this so that he is still able to meet the deadline?
Scenario 8: Alia has been asked to schedule in a rush project but she cannot complete the piece of work she needs to, since she requires essential information from another colleague who is not currently available. How should she deal with the situation?
Scenario 9: Zain is interning at a company in his second year. It is Friday and Zain has a midterm exam on Wednesday. He just found out that he has been scheduled to work all weekend and has classes all day Monday and Tuesday. If he does not work this weekend, he risks the chance of getting fired, and he is in need of this job. This is leaving him very little time to study. What should Zain do?
Scenario 10: Kartik is a software developer at a software engineering firm. He has been asked by his leader to work with a technology which he is not aware of and was not hired for but the success of this project is crucial for his growth in this company. How should Kartik approach this situation?
Let us now go through some important interview questions to help you bag that internship and job!
Interview questions for brainstorming on problem solving scenarios:
Interview question 1: What was the most stressful situation you faced so far? How did you handle it?
Interview question 2: Have you ever recognized a potential problem and addressed it before it occurred?
Interview question 3: A teammate on a time-sensitive project confesses that he’s made a mistake, and it’s putting your team at risk of missing key deadlines. How would you respond?
Interview question 4: Describe a personal weakness that you had to overcome to improve your performance at work? How did you do it?
Interview question 5: How do you know when to solve a problem by yourself? And when to ask for help from someone else?
Interview question 6: Describe a situation where you could trace an active opportunity hidden in a problem? How did you make use of the opportunity?
Interview question 7: Have you ever faced a bottleneck while understanding a tool or technology at work? How did you overcome the challenges?
Interview question 8: Have you ever missed an important work deadline? How did you handle the situation?
Interview question 9: What would you do if a situation arrives in which you are not able to do effective problem solving and complete your task because you do not have enough information about the project at hand?
Interview question 10: Imagine you made a terrible mistake in a crucial project at work. What would you do to deal with such a situation?
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