Product Description

"A witty, literate and, most of all, convincing reflection.[Ackoff] shines an often bright light into corners where problems hide, showing the manager how to understand the consequences of his own behavior; identify real, rather than supposed, elements of problems; perceive another's aims; determine what is controllable; and deal with other nettlesome factors." --Inc. The Art of Problem Solving Russ Ackoff--author, consultant, and teacher extraordinaire. During his long career, he has shown thousands of managers, architects, engineers, attorneys, advertising people, software developers, and scientists the way to more creative, artful problem solving. This new paper edition of The Art of Problem Solving is perhaps the best example of Ackoff in action. Step by step, this practical guide shows you how to develop an understanding of the art of creative thinking and the design of creative solutions. Using "Ackoff's Fables"--humorous yet eminently practical parables, based on real problems by real managers--you'll see why solving a problem seldom solves the problem, but why approaching it from a new, unorthodox angle often does. The result is vintage Ackoff--controversial, funny, and always on target. If you like to dig beyond simple solutions--to imaginative solutions that work--this book is for you.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #424115 in Books
• Published on: 1987-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 232 pages

From the Publisher
Uses a unique perspective to overcome the deficiencies of a purely scientific approach to managerial decision making. Explores the creative art of problem solving, presenting material in a discursive style. Focus is on discussing a serious activity with some humor (with accompanying ``fables''--based on real problems faced by real managers--for illustration). Examines principal obstructions to creative problem solving and provides methods for their correction. Also includes, in the form of case studies, detailed examples of the major points and procedures.

From the Back Cover
"A witty, literate and, most of all, convincing reflection…[Ackoff] shines an often bright light into corners where problems hide, showing the manager how to understand the consequences of his own behavior; identify real, rather than supposed, elements of problems; perceive another’s aims; determine what is controllable; and deal with other nettlesome factors." —Inc. The Art of Problem Solving Russ Ackoff—author, consultant, and teacher extraordinaire. During his long career, he has shown thousands of managers, architects, engineers, attorneys, advertising people, software developers, and scientists the way to more creative, artful problem solving. This new paper edition of The Art of Problem Solving is perhaps the best example of Ackoff in action. Step by step, this practical guide shows you how to develop an understanding of the art of creative thinking and the design of creative solutions. Using "Ackoff’s Fables"—humorous yet eminently practical parables, based on real problems by real managers—you’ll see why solving a problem seldom solves the problem, but why approaching it from a new, unorthodox angle often does. The result is vintage Ackoff—controversial, funny, and always on target. If you like to dig beyond simple solutions—to imaginative solutions that work—this book is for you.

About the Author
RUSSELL L. ACKOFF is the author of Management in Small Doses, Creating the Corporate Future, Redesigning the Future, and many other books. He recently founded INTERACT: The Institute for Interactive Management, a non-profit consulting company. Formerly, he taught at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

Customer Reviews

Moods, Emotions, and Bad manners.
Functional illiteracy has reached one out of five Americans. It robs them of the simplest of abilities, like reading a book to their child. That's because 27 million adults in this country can't read. Or write their names. Some refuse to listen; when I asked a neighbor a question and she didn't respond, I said "some are deaf -- and dumb." When confronted with such inexcusable actions, here's how to snap out of a funk and clear the cobwebs to pull yourself out of a bad mood caused by such people. It's not always moods; sometimes, it is as simple as not getting enough sleep the night before. It takes effort to rise above such rudeness to raise your spirits from dejectedness to the ability to cope with the problems life throws our way. One doctor provoked me into losing my cool. Another doctor's office staff were so rude I almost left without seeing him. A bad mood can keep you from thinking clearly.

It's a good practice to talk to someone who will listen with an open mind. Not a friend, as he/she won't keep your problems private but will talk to those you would not choose to know your business. Talk to a problem-solver, not necessarily a professional. Discuss things and ways you can use to feel better; it helps to find someone else who has endured a similar situation to give you support and pointers on how to go about fixing the problem. It's beneficial to make a list of possibilities to distract your mind from yourself to do something good for someon you love or care about, not always a relative.

Prioratize your list of "do-gooding" in the order you need to accomplish a good result. In this way, you can structure your concerns into a problem-solving mode. When possible, use a visualization imagery approach to get the best results. Using your thoughts to what for you is a successful "positive" picture of contentment. But, to do this, you must calm your emotions down. You can transform the feelings of sadness, anxiety, hopelessness, frustration and anger by a deep-breathing technique. Find a comfortable, quiet place where you won't be disturbed and focus on your breathing. If you imagine and clarify the things which are upsetting to transform them into learning experiences, it will make them easier to manage.

Diversions allow your emotions to "calm down" but, as soon as you can, you need to deal with whatever is bothering you as it stays in your subconscious and keeps gnawing at your brain for a resolution to the problem. You can't be like Scarlett O'Hara and "think about that tomorrow." Problems don't automatically go away as if by magic; they linger and, before you know it, they mount up. The longer you live, t he more probelms you accumulate to solve to get on with a productive life.

Vent your anger and hurts to a responsible person, not a gossip, then let it go. Walking for exercise lifts a person's moods and allows one to think more clearly. Otherwise, you could fall into destructive habits such as over-eating, drinking alcohol, even over-thinking. Read Susan Hucksema's book on this very subject. Create a strategy after you calm down, and stick with it, to lead a peaceful existence and be liked by a variety of people like Larry, a most unusual admire of someone's audacity and spunk. Enjoy live; we're only here once -- make the most of it.

Interesting and useful
A good balance of short, easily-digested messages and more in-depth studies that require careful attention.

The many short fables are described (on page 120) as making "the creative part of problem solving look either too easy or too mysterious. Creativity is not just a flashing insight. Such insights are nurtured in soil prepared by hard and time-consuming work". This is a lead-in to the remaining 80-odd pages of more-realistic detailed examples.

I bought this book while doing the hard work of successfully solving engineering problems at a major corporation. The book helped me to broaden my outlook. I weeded my problem-solving library when I left engineering. This was one of two such books I kept -- the other was Are Your Lights On? by Gause and Weinberg, ISBN: 0932633161. I wrote this review because I wanted people to know that I found Ackoff's book as useful as Are Your Lights On?