Lessons From The Buddha … Ask ‘Why’ 5 Times
The Buddha’s Upajjhatthana Sutta discourse explains that contemplating five facts can help weaken or overcome conceit, lust, and irresponsibility. The discourse suggests that contemplating these facts can help cultivate the Noble Eightfold Path.
We can take the lesson of the five facts from spiritual quests and apply it to our day-to-day leadership and management activities. Quite frankly, we spend a lot of our day solving problems. So, turn the five Facts into the five Whys.
The 5 Whys technique is a problem-solving method that involves repeatedly asking “why” to uncover the root cause of a problem. The steps for using the 5 Whys technique are:
Start with a description of the problem
Ask “why” and provide a clear and concise answer
Repeat the process until you reach the root cause of the problem
The 5 Whys technique is best suited for simple or moderately difficult problems. It can be used in troubleshooting, problem-solving, and quality-improvement initiatives
What is 5 Whys Problem Solving?
The 5 Whys Problem-Solving technique is a simple process for solving any problem. It involves repeatedly asking the question “Why” (five times is a good rule of thumb) to peel away the layers of symptoms that can lead to the root cause of a problem. This strategy relates to the principle of systematic problem-solving.
Proper use of the technique is to help identify the root cause of a problem. (A root cause is the most basic reason that, if eliminated, would prevent recurrence.) Then, to provide a framework for a team to work through more complex problems.
Make sure that you avoid using the 5 Whys to assign blame for the problem or to turn it into a tedious, desk-intensive project
Read more about silence and asking questions
How?
Write down the specific problem. Writing about the issue helps you formalize it and describe it completely, allowing the team to focus on the same problem. Always describe the current condition and use data whenever possible.
For example, overall customer complaints are up by 50%.
Ask why the problem occurs and write the answer below the problem.
If the answer doesn’t identify the root cause of the problem you wrote in step 1, ask why again and write that answer down. Repeat step 3 until the team agrees on the root cause of the problem identified.
For Example:
Create a Problem Statement: IE Your company could not get the customer’s product request on time.
1st Why: Why were you unable to produce the product on time? Because the equipment failed.
2nd Why: Why did the equipment fail? Because the circuit board burned out.
3rd Why: Why did the circuit board burn out? Because it overheated.
4th Why: Why did it overheat? Because the air filter wasn’t changed.
5th Why: Why wasn’t the filter changed? Because there was no afternoon maintenance shift scheduled to change it.
Et Voila
Inner peace is found through enlightenment.
Now, go down to the shop floor and enlighten your maintenance team.
How? Read about the 4 Fs of addressing concerns with your boss, or anyone: The 4 F’s (And @#$% isn’t one) of dealing with a boss with low EI