Don’t just do something
It’s one of the greatest pieces of advice ever issued. “Don’t just do something, stand there.” Originally uttered by the White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, it is a quote that is probably long overdue being made into inspirational wall art says David Haslam.
The key is that word “just”.
Just doing something is rarely the correct solution to any problem. All too frequently in the world of Health and Care we see the following entirely logical sequence of events.
- This is a crisis. Something must be done.
- “X” is something. Therefore let’s do it.
The missing step in this sequence is all too obvious. Before doing something, it is far better to know that the thing you are going to do will have some impact on solving whatever the crisis might be.
In Kaleidoscope Health and Care, we pride ourselves on finding new solutions to old problems. To be honest, sometimes the new solutions are as old as the hills – they are just new to the client.
If your organisation is struggling, don’t just do something. Stand there. And think.
Sometimes we are asked to help develop a new strategy for an organisation. Whilst we are delighted to do this, the most critical first question that has to be asked is “Why?” As in “What is the problem that a new strategy is the solution for?”
There are times when the problem has little to do with the existing strategy. It comes down to something else altogether. It is a classic example of the sequence I described earlier, where the logic appears to be:
- Our organisation isn’t functioning as well as it might. Something must be done.
- A new strategy is something.
- So let’s have a new strategy.
Across the world of policy, one other major question is rarely asked, and it’s another simple one. “Why did the last policy fail?”. And so, instead of asking that question, and understanding the answer, the organisation at hand – which might be the UK Government, or might be a small provider – simply says, “That last policy failed. This new one won’t.”
I’ve lost count of the exciting new policies that have been brought in to transform the NHS. But I don’t recall a single analysis of why a previous policy didn’t have the effect that it was designed to deliver.
If your organisation is struggling, don’t just do something. Stand there. And think. Simple questions like, “what is our organisation trying to achieve?” and “what is the real problem?” might not seem to be profound. But answering them can deliver extraordinary dividends.
David’s book ‘Side Effects: How our healthcare lost its way and how we fix it’ is out now.
Comments