How to Get Your Team to Solve Problems—Before You Even Ask: A Culture of Empowerment | Ep 229

🎙 In this episode of Systemize Your Success, I dive into a common frustration many business owners face: team members bringing problems without proposing solutions. Over the years, I've developed a framework called the ‘Ideas Over Issues’ Framework, which has transformed how my staff approaches challenges. I share the importance of empowering employees to think critically and take ownership of their actions, rather than relying on me for answers.    By implementing this framework, we’ve improved the efficiency of our meetings and fostered a culture of proactive problem-solving. I also provide a real-life example from a recent meeting to illustrate how this approach works in practice. Plus, I offer a free downloadable resource to help you integrate this framework into your own business.    Join me as we explore how to cultivate a team of independent thinkers who can drive your business forward! KEY TAKEAWAYS 💡 Empower Staff to Think Independently: Encourage team members to come up with their own solutions rather than just presenting problems. This fosters a culture of critical thinking and accountability. 💡 Implement the ‘Ideas Over Issues Framework’: Use a structured approach where team members present issues along with potential solutions and any relevant checks they have performed. This streamlines meetings and enhances productivity. 💡 Encourage Ownership of Actions: When discussing proposed solutions, managers should guide team members to take responsibility for their actions without taking over the decision-making process. This helps build confidence and independence. 💡 Provide Constructive Feedback: If a proposed solution raises concerns, managers should ask for deeper analysis rather than simply rejecting the idea. This encourages further thought and refinement of solutions. 💡 Utilise Real-Life Examples: Sharing specific instances of how the framework has been successfully applied can illustrate its effectiveness and motivate team members to adopt the approach in their own problem-solving efforts. BEST MOMENTS 02:24 - 💬 “If the culture in the business is simply to bring that problem to the table and expect somebody else to answer it, it's super inefficient and it's totally unscalable.” 04:24 - 💬 “We can empower and train our staff to become those great thinkers, those great solvers of problems, the people that are the most valuable in the business.” 06:03 - 💬 “The idea of the 'Ideas Over Issues' framework is to give people a mechanism to force them to actually think of the next step before they bring an issue.” 10:31 - 💬 “Even if it wasn't a great solution in the end, we still encourage them by actually complimenting them on taking action and coming up with a solution themselves and actually pushing it forward without having that total certainty it was going to work.” TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW 00:00 Empower Teams to Solve Problems 05:58 “Ideas Over Issues for Solutions” 07:15 “Efficient Problem-Solving Framework” 13:20 Framework Download for Business Improvement VALUABLE RESOURCES Our Best Guides, Frameworks, and Templates: https://sys.academy/guides LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/ Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/ LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42 ABOUT THE HOST Steve used to be a slave to his business, but moving to Sweden in 2015 forced him to change how he worked. He switched to running his businesses remotely. After totally nailing this concept, he spent his time helping other small business owners do the same. Steve has been investing in property since 2002, has a degree in computing, and worked as a doctor in the NHS before quitting to focus full-time on sharing his systems and outsourcing methodology with the world. He now lives in Sweden and runs his UK-based businesses remotely with the help of his team of Filipino and UK-based Virtual Assistants.   Most business owners feel overwhelmed because they don’t know how to create systems or get the right help.   Our systems and outsourcing Courses and coaching programme will help you automate your business and work effectively with affordable virtual assistants. That way, you will stop feeling overwhelmed and start making more money.