“How to Succeed in Chemical Engineering” Series

Problem Solving Traits To Avoid

q When I fail to solve a problem, I do not examine how I went wrong.

q When confronted wit a complex problem, I do not develop a strategy of finding out exactly what the problem is.

q When my first efforts to solve a problem fail, I become uneasy about my ability to solve the problem (or I panic!).

q I am unable to think of effective alternatives to solve a problem.

q When I become confused about a problem, I do not try to formalize vague ideas or feelings into concrete terms.

q When confronted with a problem, I tend to do the first thing I can think of to solve it.

q Often I do not stop and take time to deal with a problem, but just muddle ahead.

q I do not try to predict the overall result of carrying out a particular course of action.

q When I try to think of possible techniques of solving a problem, I do not come up with very many alternatives.

q When faced with a novel problem, I do not have the confidence that I can resolve it.

q When I work on a problem, I feel that I am grasping or wandering, and not getting a good lead on what to do.

q I make snap judgments (and regret them later).

q I do not think of ways to combine different ideas or rules into a whole.

q Sometimes I get so charged up emotionally that I am unable to deal with my problem.

q I jump into a problem so fast, I solve the wrong problem.

q I depend entirely on the worked-out sample problems to serve as models for other problems.

q I do not plan my time.

q I am afraid of losing face.

q I fail to start on the easy (to me) problems first.

q I ignore words I do not know.

q I am easily distracted by the environment in which I work.

q The stress of problem solving causes blocks and filters out good ideas.

q Lack of background information lead me down the wrong path.