Skip to main content

The Real Fake Problem

What is the problem with problems? The issue is that there are different kinds of problems. Right now I am thinking about how problems can be categorized into “real” problems and “fake” problems.
 
Real problems are the kind of problems that cause change.  The world is full of real problems such as war, disease, famine, economic, ecological, and political. As a result of these problems, people will determine a course of action to make changes that will try to affect the outcome.
 
On the other side of the problem curve, are fake problems. Fake problems are the kind that distract us from our daily lives and real problems. The media loves to latch on to a fake problem such as determining if a dress is green or gold, hot toy shortages at the holidays, and celebrities with fashion emergencies.
 
In the land of workforce development, we have real problems and fake problems. Many of the job seekers in the workforce system face real issues surrounding poverty each day. Our system faces problems surrounding WIOA implementation into existing systems and the never ending battle of limited resources. Unfortunately, we are not immune to fake problems.
 
As in real life, the fake problems that arise are just a distraction from the real problems. The fake problems cause drama in the navigation of the day to day. Fake problems include choosing the right paper for a poster, where to hang decorations for an event, or whom is in charge of ensuring the pencils are sharpened. Fake problems are the kind of problems that are in the moment problems and can cause misunderstanding and tension.
 
The simplest remedy is to ask yourself a question when faced with a problem. “Is this a real problem or a fake problem?”  Your answer to that one question will determine your level of reaction and keep everything in perspective.


~Karen Cirincione
kcirincione@gmail.com
www.linkedin.com/in/karenjcirincione
Twitter:@kcirincione

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mastering the Grilled Cheese Sandwich Project

An engaging book club discussion about email, how we work, and also just how we as people manage our lives. The more we talked the more I started to realize that essentially project management is essentially a life skill everyone needs to master to be successful. If we simplify Project Management down to the easiest way of explain it and applying, we can define it as taking a big end goal and break it down to smaller goals, figuring out the tasks with each smaller goal, and then allocating lots of resources along the way. Ultimately at the core of project management is planning and organizing, but communication is really at the heart of it all. A project may be big, like building a bridge, creating and implementing software, or it can be as small as figuring out what to make for dinner. Along the way to said goal, every step needs to be clear and everyone needs to communicate about all the said steps along the way. Sounds easy, but apparently it is not so simple. One would think ev...
Post a Comment
Read more

A WIOA Fairy Tale

I thought it was time to have a little fun with WIOA and write a fairy tale. My last fairy tale was published in June of 2014 and was before WIOA legislation. To read the first workforce development fairy tale, check out the archives. Once upon a time in a far off land called Weeoha, lived a community of residents. Many of these residents had jobs and careers, but some found themselves in need of services and assistance to get jobs. Some were reliant on the government for assistance with basic needs because they could not find jobs. Three of these residents, Jack Butcher, John Baker, and Josie Candlemaker, found themselves not satisfied with their lack of opportunity and decided to go on a pilgrimage to find the legendary Cup of Career Success.   According to urban legend, whomever drank from this cup was promised eternal employment and self-sufficient wages as long as they desired. Jack, John, and Josie set out on foot to find the legendary cup. Their first stop was to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

How do you Birthday?

Another year in my life has passed. It’s time for another birthday. Each year as the day approaches, I take the time to reflect on my past year, my accomplishments, and my goals for the year. My birthday is like my personal New Years’ celebration with another opportunity to have the best year ever.   I am not afraid of a birthday. Age is just a number, but each year is what you make of it. Each year I have seen the sun rise, the rain fall, and the snow melt, I have been given a gift from the universe. Many people do not get to see another birthday. I owe myself the opportunity to set goals and feel proud as I work towards achieving them. Sometimes these goals have been born from unhappy feelings and bad situations, but growth brings wisdom.   In my working life, and especially as a workforce professional, I know some of my growth must be professionally. Having experience working with job seekers looking for jobs, I understand how crucial professional growth is...
Post a Comment
Read more