“For problems of any significant difficulty, you need to start with your hands in your pockets, and your senses open. You need to get out there and study the problem in detail.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“If you believe that success is inevitable, you’re less likely to work your tail off in order to achieve it. Hard problems are definitely… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“To solve truly hard problems, you’ll need to use a method that doesn’t involve guessing in any step.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Defining the acceptable and unacceptable ranges for this variable means that the problem definition is objective and immune to opinion.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Embrace your ignorance. Most people try to solve problems using the knowledge they already have about a process, but it’s what you don’t know… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“When a system isn’t working right, someone has to understand how it’s meant to work, at the right depth, in order to fix it.… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“When you move down your tree, keep in mind there may be multiple variables contributing to the failure.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“There are in fact two things, science and opinion; the former begets knowledge, the latter ignorance. —HIPPOCRATES, ANCIENT GREEK FOUNDER OF THE SCIENCE OF… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“We need to understand what variables most directly control our primary variable by understanding the science behind how the system works.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Perhaps many aid organizations make assumptions about the problem they are solving, and throw hundreds of billions of dollars at the problem to little… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“The last major risk to getting good facts is our own prejudices. While we may not always test a solution based on our opinions… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“most methods disguise the guessing stage in some fancy language, such as “determine possible root causes.” This is making a list of guesses, and… — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Perhaps the most useful approach for defining the problem well is structuring it as a measurable variable.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Don’t confuse believing in a simple solution with hoping that a simple guess will work.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Keep in mind that the method you choose to guide you is of little use without strong problem-solving behaviors.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
“Even when diving into a problem, there’s a fear of looking ignorant or “stupid” by asking questions one is “supposed to know.” — Nat Greene Copy Share Image
