The Problem Solving Process: Steps to Success

Problem solving is a universal process that allows us to make decisions on everything from what to eat and what to wear. These steps contain the necessary knowledge that has been constructed through previous life experiences. Without sufficient experience the supports designed to strengthen our choices are weakened ending in the ultimate failure of the problem.

There are many different strategies that good problem solvers use to solve a problem. The steps of the problem solving process are systematic and organized. First, take your time and identify the problem very carefully. Do the research, and become informed about your subject. Few good problem solvers solve problems fast. Life choices need to be supported with well thought-out planning. Second, deteremine the goals related to the problem and filter out the extra information. Third, devise a plan and possible approaches to achieve success. This require’s flexibility and an open mind as the means could be an undesirable process. The ends however, would justify the means or the problem would not be worth solving. Fourth, carry out and implement the plan in the step-by-step manner it was designed to follow. The fifth and final step is evaluation. After completeing the steps in the plan look and see if your goals were achieved.

The problem solving process became instrumental in supporting my choices which eventually lead to a successful career in education. At age twenty, I found myself stalled at the crossroads between a minimum-wage job and my current failing marks at university. The scholarships that had supported my academic career had ceased and working fulltime meant no time for anything else. The problem: Attending school and paying for it while working fulltime. The...

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...ary had and continues to pay huge monetary and emotional dividends in my life. The problem solving process is based on the idea that incremental “steps” can build upon each other and help guide us around everyday obstacles to achieve our goals.

Works Cited

Bingham, A. (1998). Çocuklarda problem çözme yeteneklerinin geliştirilmesi [Improving children’s facility in problem-solving]. (Translator: A. Ferhan Oğuzhan). İstanbul: Milli Eğitim Basımevi.

D’Zurilla, T. J., & Goldfried, M. R. (1971). Problem solving and behavior modification. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 18, 407-426.

Peterson, G. W., Sampson, J. P., Jr., Reardon, R. C, & Lenz, J. G. (2002). Becoming

career problem solvers and decision makers; A cognitive information processing approach.

In D. Brown (Ed.), Career choice and development (4th ed., pp. 312-346).

San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.