"Liu Jingli, there are two maintenance balcony leaks. You strengthened the waterproof before. How did it appear again? "
In the afternoon, I went to the project department to check the monthly work, and the project manager Liu Jianguo has been answering all kinds of "problem" calls.
I asked him: Xiao Liu, are you a fireman? It is not easy. Why are there so many people in the project department and only your leaders are so busy? Ha ha laugh
Liu Jianguo said: Everyone is busy and has many problems to solve, so we have to put up with it every day.
I said: It's too hard to work for "forbearance"! I'll give you a haircut and help you change your mind.
In fact, this is the daily work of many project managers. A thousand threads above and a needle below. The project manager receives many "pots" every day. These pots are large and small, and they are not meant to be dumped. Therefore, a project manager who doesn't want to be a "backpacker" should not only realize the importance of the task and make a good time plan, but also master the process and methods of thinking deeply and solving problems.
I told Xiao Liu to stop first, so as to sharpen the knife and not miss the woodcutter. Let's discuss a thinking method that inspires thinking and find a solution by drawing. From the book Thinking in Images, the subtitle is: Why do smart people think by drawing pictures? How to solve the problem of life and work with one page? Takashi Hirai, the author of this book, has worked for Bain Consulting, Dell, Starbucks and roland berger Strategic Consulting, and is interested in global strategy, new market development and R& D, and has a good research on the formulation and implementation of various strategies such as D strategy and marketing strategy. He systematized the deep thinking mode, flexibly used three kinds of images, such as concept map, structure map and analysis map, and four kinds of structures, such as pyramid map, Tian Zi map, arrow map and chain map, to make thinking visualization structured, thus promoting the development of innovative thinking.
A picture is worth a thousand words. Our ancestors communicated through painting in chaotic times. Our characters are also the earliest "hieroglyphics" of graphic deformation. Even today, in various chats, micro-expressions and various expression packs have given us more accurate and smoother communication conditions. No amount of words can express an expressed meaning. In "thinking in images", the author abstracts and reorganizes the essence of things by drawing pictures, which makes the concepts more organized and helps to accurately grasp the structure and logic of things.
The key to thinking in images is to extract the understanding of something in your mind and present it on a blank sheet of paper in your own way. Unlike exams, there are no standard answers. For the same problem or event, everyone presents a different image, but as long as the problem is considered, the image is useful. From this perspective, we use the tool of "graphic thinking", which is equivalent to giving thinking activities a new operating system, first abstracting our understanding of things (what and how), and then clarifying the structure and relationship of things from graphics, so as to get inspiration for solving problems.
Without the help of graphics, it is difficult for us to draw a complete picture of events in our minds, especially in the face of complex problems, it is even more difficult to express them clearly in words. The incident of Xiao Liu cleaning the gutter in the project can be sorted out clearly with the help of images. The cause of the incident is that after the completion of Project A, it has not been sold to the outside world, and the maintenance of the project has been in a swing state in which both the construction party and Party A's property are in charge. Because the original construction party Jinlong Company has been merged by Xinhui Company, the original construction personnel have also left their posts and withdrawn from the site. Xinhui Project Department, which took over, did not have the motivation to do a good job in the normal maintenance of the house, which led to repeated problems in the use of the house, such as trench blockage. As Party A of the project, Liu Jianguo is often troubled by the above problems. The simple description is: Although he called N times, Xinhui Project Department has not cleaned the drainage ditch, resulting in the use function of the house not being guaranteed.
I asked Xiao Liu: What conditions do you think are needed to complete the "gutter cleaning"? Where are the obstacles now? Let's draw a picture together.
So we took out a piece of A4 paper and a pen and said and drew.
Xiao Liu said: There are no workers and equipment to clean up. Xinhui refused to buy a sweeper.
I said, one by one. Let's talk about equipment first. I don't want to buy it because I'm afraid that Party A won't pay in the end. It's simple. A sweeper is needed for maintenance. Let Xinhui buy it directly and pay it in the monthly payment. Regarding the personnel problem, you drew a solid arrow in the picture to represent the Xinhui project department on site. There are also several dotted arrows, which represent other people we can ask. Now let's think about what other units can do this.
Xiao Liu said: Well, those dotted arrows are particularly good. I think the current property is ok. Although most of the employees of the former Jinlong Company have left their jobs, from the management logic, he is responsible for the construction and has the obligation to maintain it, and he can also let other Jinlong project personnel come and implement it. In addition, if Xinhui and Jinlong are in trouble, we can pay the cleaning company to clean it up, and the cost will be deducted from Jinlong's contract.
I added what he said to the picture and showed it to Xiao Liu. "Look, do you have any ideas?"
Xiao Liu said: I didn't expect so many channels to solve it. Much clearer!
Therefore, thinking in images can only be done with a schematic diagram, and no painting foundation is needed. All you need is a piece of paper and some pens. The author says it is best to use a thin square grid, so that you don't have to draw regular horizontal and vertical lines on the paper with a ruler. Besides the black pen, it is better to prepare a red pen and a blue pen. In important parts or controversial parts, mark them with pens of different colors, so that the drawn picture is easier to understand. The key to the success of thinking in images lies in making the key information appear and making the deviations, contradictions and weaknesses of thinking clearly visible, that is, the visualization of thinking information. Of course, it doesn't mean that the more information in an image, the better. Navigation will only show the most important street information and guide you to find your destination quickly. Ordinary maps can make people feel lost.
So the definition of image in the book is to draw an image composed of lines, circles, quadrangles and keywords on an A4 piece of paper, which is very simple. When we review the problem of "cleaning the trench" with the concept map mentioned above, we will find that the thinking from the part to the whole is presented in the whole picture. Thinking in images can help us broaden our horizons and observe all the factors that may affect our current thinking. Just as we look at the battle map hanging on the wall in the battle, we can see the influence of terrain, direction, traffic, strength and even weather at a glance.
The above is an example of "cleaning the trench", and some matters needing attention in the basic work of thinking in images and drawing are analyzed. In specific applications, we can think with the help of graphic templates in the book. For example, the pyramid diagram that grasps the overall structure through classification is this type of organization chart that is often used in projects.
Because in the process of rhetorical question, I will be forced to think about the meaning of image presentation from multiple angles, and then find a unique starting point. For example, using the "Toyota Five Questions Method" in combination with the pyramid diagram will achieve better results. From the above analysis, we will gradually understand that the real reason for weak sales ability is not a simple sales problem, but a corporate culture problem. Therefore, "ask the question five times to get at least five conclusions, and then follow the trace to find the reason for staying away from the problem." Therefore, with the help of the above methods, the problem of "balcony seepage" that has plagued the project for a long time is analyzed to help Xiao Liu expand his thinking.
Combined with previous experience, we listed several main reasons of anti-sill seepage. Then combined with the actual situation of the project, Xiao Liu thinks that the reasons of "waterproof treatment", "drainage slope" and "water storage" have no influence on the problem, because these factors can meet the requirements in terms of building materials and practical use. So, we found the two main reasons of "grass-roots cleaning" and "concrete pouring", and conducted the second and third rounds of inquiries respectively. Combined with the actual situation in the process, some non-existent reasons are also ruled out. We found that the main reason of "balcony seepage" was that the original project department lacked a stable and fixed team, that is, there were no workers with reliable technology for long-term construction. Usually, one team works for a period of time and another team enters the site, so the skills and familiarity of the workers cannot be guaranteed.
Seeing this, Xiao Liu patted his head and said, The painting is really clear. I feel that my previous thoughts are all at sixes and sevens, and I often say things. No wonder you put out fires every day. Thank you. The pressure is much less now. With the direction of the problem, I can reflect it to the company and I am no longer confused. I will use images tomorrow, and I will sort out other problems. You can leave the book with me, hahaha!
I am happy to help Xiao Liu. Knowledge has been applied in practice. I reminded him that if we want to be more rigorous, we can look back at the graph just now in three levels: Why? What's next? Is this right? By comprehensively questioning these three questions, the accuracy of pyramid application can be improved. I hope that thinking in images can help more professionals like Xiao Liu to develop their ideas and stop being "backers" in the workplace.