Stop Guessing: The 9 Behaviors of Great Problem Solvers

I have a door at the entrance of my apartment that would never stay shut. It would always burst open after a few minutes. I never did anything about it but after reading Stop Guessing I got inspired to get to the bottom of this problem and, by displaying the right behaviors, I found the root cause and solved it. That particular door caused a lot of cold air to enter the apartment, so solving that problem even took a chunk out of my energy bill!I didn’t know I naturally exhibited behaviors that were preventing me from solving problems before I read this book. However, all the great anecdotes mentioned here illustrate really well how each of the nine behaviors play a crucial role in solving tough problems.I really enjoyed the pragmatism of the message as well as its applicability to almost any problem in life, from a dysfunctional relationship to an industrial machine going too slow. We are all constantly facing problems, and this book definitely helps introspecting and arming oneself with the right tools to tackle – and solve – them.

I consider myself a mediocre problem-solver, but am always looking for ways to improve, so Greene's book caught my attention. It was a fast read, but chock-full of practical advice and helpful illustrations (his and other's) which demonstrate effective problem-solving skills in action. Greene starts out by laying the foundation for why many popular problem-solving methods are ineffective, and why it should matter to us. He makes a point of continually tying the more abstract ideas to very practical problems many of of us face: technical problems at home or work, organizational problems, health and behavior concerns, personal or relational conflict, and even societal problems in the community or across the globe. I found his emphasis on relating each method to particular "real-life" situations very helpful. Reading this book will give you a much greater ability to tackle the next challenge in work, home, or your community with confidence and effectiveness. Plus, it gets bonus points for including quotes from Yoda, Indiana Jones, and Sherlock Holmes!

Nat, did a great job going over a proven problem solving behaviors. The idea of stop guessing and using fact based information, asking the experts to teach you not just fix the issue is a great concept. Getting out there and smelling the problem, puts you out there so you can actually see the issue. I know personally many times, by actually reading the whole manual that came with the equipment helped me when called on to troubleshoot an issue. The book was a quick first read, but made you want to go back and re-read and apply the concepts. I know he just had an webinar going over the concepts, that was a quick 30 minute overview of the book.I hope that you can get as much as I did out of reading Nat's book as I did.

An easy read on a short plane flight, but immediately valuable. If you've ever been frustrated in a meeting where the main goal seemed to be brainstorming a million possible solutions but not truly understanding the problem you were trying to solve, this book is for you. The author does a good job of unmasking "problem-solving strategies" that are not based on first principles.One challenge of reading the book is that it's easy to agree with the concepts here, but hard to put them into practice. I think that the author's advice of talking about challenges/roadblocks with others and getting coaching (even from a coworker) will lead to immensely more successful results than trying to go it alone. It's hard to see your own blind spots!

This is one of those books that helps you no matter where on the spectrum of problem solving skill you are.B-players will be empowered to become A-players, and A-players will sharpen their sword.There are succinct and clear examples throughout the book that illustrate each of the 9 behaviors. Ranging from simple and easy (common personal problems) to relatively complex (supply chain issues), this book hammers home ways you can incorporate problem solving best practices.Expect to walk away from this read eager and confident to stare down problems that have previously given you anxiety. I would recommend thinking of a problem or two in your life and using this book as a guide to solving them.

I have to agree with the other person that gave this one star. He did an awful lot of babbling/bragging about how awesome he is at solving problems. Before he would get to the point of telling you “HOW”… he was off to the next fabulous case study. I usually don’t return books because you can always find a nugget or two. This book was returned because it had nothing useful to offer me.BTW, when someone says, “There is no step-by-step, here are ‘guidelines’ to use to solve the problem”, they don’t have a concrete way for you to resolve issues. They don’t have a logical order/manner for you to resolve problems. They’re telling you; this is what worked for me, now from this info “guess” at what will work best for you. Hilarious! Irony is just so ironic.

Great book.It's easy to agree with the title of the book: if you have a hard problem, stop guessing. What's hard is trying to figure out when, where, and how to apply the right kind of effort to tackle the kinds of hard problems that Nat talks about in this book. The subtext to a lot of the book is that most problems aren't that hard and don't require any particular effort to solve. Being able to switch into a mode where you admit that a problem is hard and attack it methodically is important.The writing style is clear and fun. There's a lot learn in this book, but it was a quick read. Highly recommended!

Excellent livre que je recommande a ceux qui aime résoudre des problèmes

The cases help to get the idea clearly. It explain the right mentality towards problem solving attitude. Give it a try

Nothing earth shattering but a very useful reminder about not guessing our way into problem solving. The book is summarised in the last chapter , so it could has been shorter but I enjoyed the read anyway. To be honest I often use the 5W or Ishikawa diagram so I'm kind of guessing sometimes, now I will lean more towards properly smelling the problem ( when I can) and determining the measurable and relevant variables.

I dont know how this book got all these high reviews, the book was just common sense, if that.A very disappointing read.