The Solving Equation: A Simple Process to Spark Creative Solutions

In business and in life, solving problems is a daily necessity. But there’s a subtle trap that we often fall into. One that slows innovation, stifles creativity, and creates unnecessary friction.

It starts with a challenge, and quickly turns into a flood of what can’t be done:

“That’ll cost too much.”

“We don’t have enough people.”

“The system can’t handle it.”

“We tried that before.”

These reactions feel practical, even responsible. But they shut the door on possibility before solutions ever get a chance to take shape. Instead of solving the real problem, we often end up solving the wrong one. Or worse, defending why it can’t be solved at all.

That’s where The Solving Equation comes in. It’s a simple mental shift that helps teams move away from limiting thoughts and toward focused, outcome-driven solutions.

Let’s walk through the method.

Step 1: State What You Want – Clearly and Positively

The first step in The Solving Equation is deceptively simple: define exactly what you want to achieve. Don’t include how you’ll do it. Don’t mention obstacles. Don’t justify why it’s hard.

Just state the outcome as if success is expected.

Manufacturing Example:

“We want the assembly line to maintain full speed and accuracy while incorporating the new inspection camera.”

That’s it. Not:

• “We can’t slow down production just to add quality checks,” or

• “The inspection camera will mess up the timing.”

Those are objections—not goals. And objections cloud creativity.

The goal statement is clean, clear, and focused on what you want, not what you fear.

Step 2: Extract the Creative Targets

This is the heart of The Solving Equation. Take your positive goal statement and identify the key outcome words. These are your “creative targets”. They are the parts of your goal that define success. Once identified, they become the focus of your brainstorming.

From our example:

“We want the assembly line to maintain full speed and accuracy while incorporating the new inspection camera.”

Extracted Targets:

• Full speed

• Accuracy

• With inspection camera

  
  

Notice what’s not included:

• No mention of what might go wrong

• No mention of current limitations

• No speculation about budget or people or space

  
  

Just the pieces of the end result you’re aiming for.

This extraction step is powerful because it gives your team permission to be creative. It removes mental clutter and gives them something concrete—but open-ended—to solve for.

Step 3: Solve for the Targets

Now that you have your creative targets, the real work begins. Ask focused questions around each target:

• “How might we preserve full speed even with the new equipment?”

• “What adjustments ensure accuracy stays consistent?”

• “How do we integrate the inspection camera without disrupting flow?”

  
  

The magic here is that you’re not debating whether it’s possible—you’re already committed to the outcome. You’re solving a puzzle, not arguing about the pieces.

At this point, your team will likely generate more creative, workable ideas because their energy is focused on achieving, not resisting.

Step 4: Refine and Choose Realistic Solutions

After brainstorming freely, now is the time to bring in real-world constraints: cost, time, staffing, feasibility.

But here’s the key difference—you’re not using constraints to shut ideas down. You’re using them to refine the path to your outcome, not reject the outcome itself.

Now with solutions in hand, ask:

• “What would make this idea viable with our current resources?”

• “Could we test this on a small scale first?”

• “Is there a simpler version that still meets the target?”

Instead of stopping at “we can’t,” you start moving toward “here’s how we could.”

Why “The Solving Equation” Works

Most teams struggle with innovation not because they lack ideas—but because they get tangled up in obstacles too early. They define problems based on what they don’t want, or what’s in the way.

The Solving Equation flips that. It forces teams to:

1. Define what success looks like.

2. Identify the key targets that make success real.

3. Solve only for those targets.

   
   

This structure creates clarity and momentum. It keeps people focused, inspired, and productive without spinning their wheels in negativity.

The next time your team faces a challenge – whether in operations, product development, or process improvement – try walking them through The Solving Equation. Use this prompt:

“Let’s define exactly what we want to happen. Then we’ll identify the key parts of that goal and focus on solving just those—no negativity, no excuses.”

You’ll be surprised how often what seemed like an impossible roadblock becomes a creative opportunity.

Because when you define your outcome clearly,

you’re already halfway to solving it.