Too Busy Chasing the Cows to Fix the Fence...Root Causes

Too Busy Chasing the Cows to Fix the Fence...Root Causes

Be ready to dig

Oftentimes, we get swept up in the busyness of a busy life and end up just going where the flow of the day/week/month/year/decade takes us...sometimes without much thought or intentionality.  This can be all well and good if the path your particular river is flowing is a good path.  By that, I mean, if it's generally getting you and your family closer to your desired, stated end state in a strategic sense.  The problem arises when our patterns and habits of life lead us further away from who and what we say we want to become over the decades.  When we notice that our particular river path is leading us away from where we say we want to go, it's important to figure out why...and make changes.  

Bring a team.

There is an old adage that I'm "too busy chasing the cows to fix the fence" or said another way, we often fight the symptoms of a particular problem without stopping to recognize or attack the underlying problem.  If we'd find the time to invest in building a better fence...we'd get out of the crazy cycle of always chasing the cows.  Translating this into another context, let's take weight gain/obesity trends.  Say that you wake up one day and realize playing on the ground with the kids or going on a hike is now troublesome due to a few extra pounds...a few years in a row.  

Zero in on the
problem.

If we immediately go to a symptom-style solution, instead of a root cause analysis, we likely won't impact or influence the underlying system causing the trouble.  Consequently, even if we do achieve a short-term result of dropping a few pounds, we'll likely put them back on quickly.  In this example, we can use the 5 Why's method of root cause analysis to tackle the real issue...and get real, lasting results.  Starting by asking the "Why" question...five times in a row, we often get to the bottom of the heap where we should be applying our investment of time, energy, resources, etc.  

Bring a 
helmet.

In our example, stating the problem vs prescribing a solution starts our 5 Why process.  Our problem is weight gain...saying it that way, instead of "weight loss" helps us start our analysis on the right foot...not limiting our brainstorming by giving a solution upfront.  Now, we ask, why did we gain weight?  Turns out crappy eating habits.  Why do we have crappy eating habits (second why)?  Because we eat out too much.  Why do we eat out too much (third why)?  Because we're too busy in the evenings to go to the grocery store.  Why are we too busy in the evenings (fourth why)?  Because we have activities each night.  Why do we have too many activities (fifth why)?  Because we hate saying no to friends who ask us to volunteer for something.

Dig deeper.

In this example, had we started with weight loss, it leads us to strategies and tactics of diet and exercise.  Turns out that perhaps our problem is more concentrated on practicing saying "no" to friends so that we buy back evening time during the week so that we can cook healthy meals.  We may also be able to glean items from the five questions that point toward strategies and tactics for solutions.  Could we do grocery pick-up/delivery?  Could we cook a bunch of freezer meals ahead of time?  Could we do intentional meal planning?  Shopping with a list that doesn't include junk food?  Stop driving down the "main street" that tempts us when we pass the burger joint every night when you're hungry?  Chances are those changes in the underlying system help ooch us toward success.

Look snazzy 
digging.

As we've talked before, how you do one thing is how you do all things.  To this end, getting good (or at least better) at saying "no" to volunteer activities helps us build our self-control muscles...which helps us say "no" to second dessert helpings.  Or it may help us say "yes" to going out on a hike or walking around the block after dinner...instead of plopping in front of the TV.  Slowly, with intentional investment into the root causes of our problems, we begin to make meaningful, life-changing, impactful changes to our lives that move us strategically toward where we say we want to end up.  

Build a fort
while you dig

Think about how the process could be applied in your life - budget, getting to church,screen time, connecting with kids, school troubles, etc.  You can get in the habit of making the 5 Why questioning more habitual with practice...eventually, it becomes fairly automatic as a thought process more than a separate process.  

Sometimes to dig deeper
you have to get margin.

Lastly, before we depart, think about the lack of margin that many of us have in our lives (lack of time, energy, money, etc.) as part of a root cause in many of our problems.  In other words, for many problems in modern life, the "slow down" answer is probably one that can be beneficial.  Like Stephen Covey said years ago in his legendary book, spending time in the Q2 category (the not urgent, but important parts of life) is huge.  When we slow down enough to "stop fix the fence" instead of "chasing the cows" we are in a Q2 mindset where we start to get to the crux or core of the problem...and we begin to prevent the problem from being a problem tomorrow.  

With you in the arena, from ours to yours...Happy Trails!

Call to Action: 

• Pick out an area that has frustrated you in life.  Define the problem (not prescribe a solution), and then go through the 5 Why analysis to come up with a few root causes...attack those and apply your resources there.  
• 1 - ___________________ 
• 2 - ___________________
• 3 - ___________________
• Discussion: Consider what you/your family could/would/should (level of commitment) and start/stop/sustain (action) regarding a problem you have faced.  Will you post the 5 Why's on your kitchen wall?  Will you go through the thought exercise as a family?  Can you make the analysis a habit?  

Further Reading, Motivation, and References:

- Love and Respect Crazy Cycle

- Q2 Covey Quadrants