The coach's guide to creative problem solving powerpoint

The Coach’s Guide
To Creative
Problem Solving

There are many approaches to coaching. This pack explores one
aspect. It focuses on how to help people to find solutions to
challenges.
There are also many approaches to creative problem solving. This
pack focuses on the 3C model. It explores how to help people to
find solutions by focusing on clarity, creativity and concrete
results.
The pack can be used by mentors, coaches, trusted advisors and
people in all walks of life. It offers practical tools that can help
individuals and teams to achieve their picture of success.
Imagine that you are facilitating such a session. You will start by
helping the person or the group of people to feel welcome and at
ease.
Introduction

There are many models for creative problem solving. One approach is
to focus on clarity, creativity and concrete results. You can then work
through the stages that are described on the following page.
Creative Problem Solving
Clarity
Creativity
Concrete
Results

Clarity
Challenges. The specific challenge I want to tackle is: ‘How to …?’
Clarity. The real results I want to achieve are:
Controllables. The specific things I can control in the situation are:
Creativity
Choices. The possible options for achieving the results are:
Consequences. The pluses and minuses of each option are:
Creative Solutions. The other possible creative solutions are:
Concrete Results
Conclusions. The specific route I want to follow is:
Contracts. The contracts I need to make to achieve the results are:
Concrete Results. The specific action plan for achieving the results is:

The next step will be to invite them to describe the challenges or
themes they want to explore.
Different people will want to explore different questions. Here are
some of the questions that individuals and teams have asked
explored when I have been facilitating such sessions.
“How can I take the next step in my career? How can I feel more
in control of my life and work? How can I get on better with my
manager?”
“How can I deal with a specific illness? How can I help my son to
deal with school, even though his interests lie elsewhere? How
can I set up and run my own business?”
“How can we turn around a difficult team? How can we get our
people to take more responsibility? How can we introduce a new
approach across the business?”

“How can we manage our head office so we can get on with our
jobs? How can we build a values driven organisation? How can we
continue to be pacesetters and stay ahead of the game?”
Imagine that a person has asked for your help to tackle a
particular challenge. They may want to do satisfying work, build a
successful team, shift an organisation’s culture or whatever.
The following pages show how it is possible to help them by
focusing on clarity, creativity and concrete results. Each person
will, of course, adapt the model in their own way.
The 3C approach can be used with individuals, teams and
organisations. When helping teams, for example, the word ‘I’ is
simply changed to ‘We’. You can then encourage people to
channel their ideas towards achieving the picture of success.

Clarity is crucial. Peak performers clarify the real results they
want to achieve – the real ‘What’ – before moving on to the
‘How’. Dare to spend a long time on this stage.
You can go through the following steps to help a person establish
their goals.
Challenges - the specific challenges they want to explore before
settling on the first challenge they want to tackle.
Clarity - the real results they want to achieve and the picture of
success.
Controllable - the specific things they can control in the situation.
Let’s explore each of these stages.
Introduction

Challenges
Invite the person to start by listing the various challenges or
themes they may want to explore. You can then focus on the first
topic they want to tackle.
Invite them to frame the challenge in positive terms. For
example: “How to stay healthy?” rather than “How to stop
smoking?”
It can also be useful to frame the challenge in terms of “How to
…?” or ‘How can I …?” For example: “How can I do fulfilling
work?” rather than “I want to change my career.”
The “How to …?” phrase also encourages them to begin using
their imagination to generate solutions.
You can also invite the person to give more background about the
situation. Invite them to complete the following sentences.

The specific challenges
I want to explore are:
* How to …
* How to …
* How to …
Challenges

The first of these specific
challenges that I want to explore is:
* How to …
Here is some more information about the
situation and the specific goals I want to achieve:
*
*
*

Clarity
Clarify the real ‘What’ before moving on to the ‘How’. A person
often starts by presenting their view of ‘How’ they can tackle an
issue. But it is useful to clarify the real results they want to
achieve and translate these into a clear picture of success.
Sometimes the person may want to achieve lots of things related
to this topic. If so, clarify all their goals and list these in order of
priority.
The person may, for example, have both short and long term
aims. You can work to help them to achieve these goals.
Bearing this in mind, start by looking at the first challenge the
person wants to tackle. Ask them:
“What are the real results you want to achieve?”

Sometimes this process takes a little time, but it is a vital step in
creative problem solving.
Here are some examples of how a person’s original topic can
change during the process of exploring the real results they
wanted to achieve.
Person A originally said: “How can I get promotion in my
company?”
They settled on: “How can I build a satisfying career where I do
stimulating work and get a good salary?”
Person B originally said: “How can I as a leader turnaround
difficult people in my organisation?”
They settled on: “How can I build a successful organisation?”

Person C originally said: “How can I deal with my manager who
insists on micro-managing me every day?
They settled on two things:
“How can I deal with the present situation by behaving
professionally towards my manager and delivering positive
results? How can find a rewarding role where I work with a
manager whom I respect?”
Imagine you are helping a person to tackle a specific challenge.
Invite them to do two things.
First, to clarify the real results they want to achieve. If
appropriate, brainstorm all these goals.
Second, to list these results in order of priority.

The real results I therefore want to
achieve - in order of priority - are:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Clarity

Controllables
Let’s assume the person is clear on the results they want to
achieve. Before pitching into finding solutions, however, it is good
to do a reality check.
Peak performers control the controllables. They can, for example,
control their attitude, professionalism and other things. They
can’t necessarily control the outcome of their efforts. They can,
however, do their best to influence it. Peak performers build on
what they can control and manage what they can’t.
The same rule applies to your client. Returning to the results they
wants to achieve, invite them to describe the things they can
control in the situation.
It will then be time to move on to the next stage.

The specific things I can
control in the situation are:
*
*
*
Controllables

So far the person has clarified the challenge, the results to
achieve and the controllables.
It is then time to move on to exploring possible solutions. This
will involve going through the following stages.
Choices - the potential options for tackling the challenge.
Consequences - the pluses and minuses involved in pursuing
each option together with the attractiveness of each option.
Creative Solutions - the other possible creative solutions.
Let’s consider these stages.
Introduction

Choices
Bearing in mind the goals they want to achieve, invite the person
to explore all the possible options they can pursue. These can
range from the obvious options – such as maintaining the status
quo and doing nothing – to the more outlandish ones.
It’s important to list all the options, even the ones they are not
going to pursue, to consider the whole picture. This provides the
whole context for choosing their way forward. So invite them to
outline the following choices.
Option A is: To …
Option B is: To …
Option C is: To …
Etc.

Consequences
Looking at each option in turn, invite the person to consider what
they see as the pluses and minuses of each route.
Great decision makers often base their decisions on the
consequences of each option, rather than the options themselves.
They then build on the pluses and minimise the minuses.
Bearing this in mind, invite the person to outline the various
options. They can then rate the attractiveness of each option on a
scale 0 – 10.
The overview of the potential options may look something like the
illustration on the next page.
The pages that follow the illustration provide a framework that
the person can use to describe these options in more detail.

Pluses: …
Minuses: …
____ / 10
The attractiveness of each option is:
Pluses: …
Minuses: …
____ / 10
Pluses: …
Minuses: …
____ / 10
Choices and Consequences
B
* To …
C
* To …
A
* To …
The possible options are:

* To …
The pluses are:
*
*
*
The minuses are:
*
*
*
The attractiveness of this option is: ____ / 10
Option A Is:

* To …
The pluses are:
*
*
*
The minuses are:
*
*
*
Option B Is:

* To …
The pluses are:
*
*
*
The minuses are:
*
*
*
Option C Is:

Creative Solutions
Looking at the goals the person wants to achieve, are there any
other possible creative solutions?
This is where trusted advisors earn their corn. They pass on
knowledge in a way the client can accept and use.
You may want to begin by recapping what has been covered so
far in the session.
When appropriate, however, you can ask the person: “Is it okay
for me to share some ideas?” They will probably say: “Yes.”
Let’s assume the person would welcome your ideas. It can be
important to move from the concept to the concrete and offer
practical tools that work. You can share these in a way the person
can use in their daily life and work. Look for the suggestions that
resonate.

Imagine you are helping a person to explore their potential
options. You may say something like the following in your own
way.
“Let’s start by re-establishing your goals. What are the real
results you want to achieve?
“Let’s look at the different options you have outlined. Which is
the most attractive option? How could you build on the pluses
and minimise the minuses?
“Looking at the various options, is it possible to take the best
parts of each route and create a new road?
“Sometimes it can be useful to learn from our own successes.
Looking back, have you ever been in a similar situation before
and managed it successfully? What did you do right then? Is it
possible to follow any of these principles to achieve the goals?

“Sometimes it can be useful to learn from how other people have
succeeded. Are there any other people, teams or organisations
that have tackled this kind of issue successfully? What did they
do right? How can you follow these principles in your own way?
“Is it okay for me to share some ideas? If so, looking at the goals
you want to achieve, here are some options you may wish to
consider:
“Option D could be to: …
“Option E could be to: …
“Looking at all the options, which are the ones that make sense?
Which of these would you like to explore further? Looking at your
chosen options, let’s consider how these might look in practice.

“Looking at all the things we have explored, let’s summarise
things before moving on to the next stage.
“Looking at the goals you want to achieve, let’s consider the
following question.
“What do you believe are the three things you can do to give
yourself the greatest chance of success?”
Keep going until the client feels they have explored all the
possible options.
If appropriate, they can complete the following page. It will then
be time to move on the next stage.

The other possible
creative solutions are:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Creative Solutions

It is then time to translate the ideas in action. The person can do
this by going through the following stages.
Conclusions - the specific route they want to follow to do their
best to achieve the results.
Contracts - the specific contracts they may need to make with
people to do the work involved on the way to achieving the
results.
Concrete Action Plans - the specific action plans for achieving the
results.
Let’s consider these stages.
Introduction

Conclusions
Sometimes it can be useful for a person to take time out to
reflect before settling on the way forward. Sometimes they may
also need to cross over an emotional threshold before committing
to their chosen way forwards.
Imagine that the person is ready to take this step. Looking at the
various ways forward, they can settle on the route they want to
follow. Sometimes they will choose to pursue one main option;
sometimes they will want to pursue multiple options.
Imagine they have settled on their chosen route. What will be the
pluses and minuses involved? How can they build on the pluses
and minimise the minuses?
Looking at the results they want to achieve, invite them to
complete the following sentence.

The route – or combination of routes – I want to follow
for tackling the challenge and achieving the results is:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Conclusions

The pluses of following this route will be:
*
*
*
The minuses of following this route will be:
*
*
*
The specific things I can do to build on
the pluses and minimise the minuses are:
*
*
*

Contracts
Looking at the road ahead, invite the person to consider if they
need to make any contracts with people.
Their main contract, of course, is with themselves. Looking at the
whole package – the pluses and minuses involved – do they want
to make the commitment to achieving the goals?
They may also need to make clear working contracts with other
people who can help them to reach the goals. If so, it is
important to consider the following themes.
How can they make sure everybody is clear on the picture of
success? How can they make sure people have the required
support? How can they ensure people will proactively keep them
informed about their progress toward achieving the agreed goals?
Invite them to complete the following sentence.

The specific things I can do to
make clear contracts with people are:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Contracting

Concrete Results
The person can then make a clear action plan and build in some
early successes. Different people make action plans in different
ways. Some people focus on the following themes.
Who will be responsible for
delivering certain specific results
What - what they will actually deliver in terms of specific results.
How - how they will aim to deliver the specific results.
When - when they will actually deliver the specific results.
Each person will, however, have their approach to action
planning. Bearing this in mind, invite the person to complete the
following step.

Concrete Results
The person can then make a clear action plan. It is also good if
they build in some early successes. Different people make action
plans in different ways, but many focus on the following themes.
Who will be responsible for
delivering the specific results
The What - The specific results they will aim to deliver.
The How - The strategies they will follow to deliver the specific
results.
The When - The specific times when they will deliver each of the
specific results.
If appropriate, you can invite the person to follow their preferred
style of doing their action plan.

My specific action plan for
delivering the results is:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Concrete Results

This section has looked at how you can use the creative problem
solving model when working with individuals.
As mentioned earlier, this approach can also be adapted to work
with teams.
The following section provides a framework you can use when
helping teams to find solutions to challenges.
Conclusion To This Section On
Creative Problem Solving With Individuals

Creative
Problem Solving
With Teams

Imagine that a team has asked you to help them to find solutions to
several challenges. The following pages provide a framework you
can use to make this happen.
During the session people will form small groups to tackle the
various challenges. They will work on the respective challenges and
then present back their suggestions to the whole team.
Bearing this in mind, before the session you can prepare several
sets of Flip Charts. There should be one set per small group. For
example, if you expect the team to want to tackle three challenges,
there should be three sets of Flip Charts. These should replicate the
pages described later in this pack that cover the stages of Clarity,
Creativity and Concrete Results.
This is a lot of work, but it will make it easier for people to work
through the stages.
Introduction

Imagine that the whole team is gathered together at the start of the
session.
You can start by explaining the 3C Model. Give examples of how this
works by talking people through the stages of Clarity, Creativity and
Concrete Results.
You may wish to underline the importance of establishing clarity -
the real results to achieve - before going on to explore solutions. If
possible, give relevant examples to bring the model to life. You can
then go through the following stages.
First, you can invite people to brainstorm the challenges they want
to tackle.
Second, you can then invite people to settle on the challenges they
want to explore.

People can work through the stages that are described on the
following page.
Creative Problem Solving In Teams
Clarity
Creativity
Concrete
Results

Clarity
Challenges. The specific challenge we want to tackle is: ‘How to …?’
Clarity. The real results we want to achieve are:
Controllables. The specific things we can control in the situation are:
Creativity
Choices. The possible options for achieving the results are:
Consequences. The pluses and minuses of each option are:
Creative Solutions. The other possible creative solutions are:
Concrete Results
Conclusions. The specific route we want to follow is:
Contracts. The contracts we need to make to achieve the results are:
Concrete Results. The specific action plan for achieving the results is:

Third, you can invite people to form small groups. Each group is to be
made up of people who want to tackle that particular challenge.
Fourth, you can then give the following instructions to the small
groups.
One person in each group is to act as a facilitator. This person can also
share their own ideas for tackling the challenge, but their main role is
to guide the team through the process.
Fifth, you can explain that each team can then go through the
following steps.
- They can focus on the challenge they want to tackle and work
through the stages of clarity, creativity and concrete results.
- They can use the pre-prepared flip charts for making this happen.
This process may seem laborious, but it can be good practice for
internalising the model and applying it more quickly in the future.

Finally, you can invite each group to present back to the whole group
their suggestions for tackling the challenges.
When making these presentations, people are to present a summary of
the following things.
Clarity
The specific challenge they chose to tackle and the real results they
finally decided they wanted to achieve.
Creativity
Some of the potential options they considered.
Concrete Results
Their suggested action plan for moving forward and delivering the
required results.

The exercise can take up to 2 hours to do properly. This includes
time for presenting back. But the exercise provides people with a
tool for life. People can use this approach:
- To be even more self managing.
- To make good decisions.
- To find creative solutions to challenges.
They can then continue to develop both as individuals and as a
team in the future.
Here are the Flip Charts that you can prepare before the session.
There should be one set per group. People can then work through
these before making their presentations.

The Team Flip Charts
For Doing
Creative Problem Solving

The specific challenge that we have chosen to explore is:
* How to …
Here is some more information about the
situation and the specific goals we want to achieve:
*
*
*
Challenge

The real results we therefore want to
achieve - in order of priority - are:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Clarity

The specific things we can
control in the situation are:
*
*
*
Controllables

The route – or combination of routes – we want to follow
for tackling the challenge and achieving the results is:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Conclusions

The pluses of following this route will be:
*
*
*
The minuses of following this route will be:
*
*
*
The specific things we can do to build on
the pluses and minimise the minuses are:
*
*
*

The specific things we can do to
make clear contracts with people are:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Contracting

The specific action plan for
delivering the results is:
* To …
* To …
* To …
Concrete Results

This pack has described one approach to helping individuals and
teams to find creative solutions to challenges.
There are, of course, many dimensions to the themes that have
been described in this pack. You can discover more about the
background and practical tools on the following website.
http://www.thepositiveencourager.global/
There is lots of material on the website. If you want to explore a
particular theme further, it may therefore be best to contact me
directly. You can reach me at the following address.
mike@thepositiveencourager.global
Conclusion

The coach's guide to creative problem solving powerpoint

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