Too often when problems arise we treat the symptoms and not the root cause. Dan Heath wrote a tremendous book called “Upstream” and introduces practical ways to identify opportunities, overcome resistance and make a change.

When entering a new organization look for the champion, the individual that needs to repeatedly step in and “save the day”. Many organizations cherish and reward the champion. In Upstream thinking organizations, there are no champions. The true champions have focused on eliminating the problem from occurring in the first place. You can also look for the frustration – tension between teams or individuals.

We are introduced to some reasons that leaders do not take the time to move upstream. 1) Problem Blindness. You know when everyone tells you that in this industry or in this company that’s how we have always done things. That’s the tunnel vision that comes from companies that have existed for years and have become complacent with current performance (anyone heard of Blackberry?).
2) Lack of Ownership. That is someone else’s responsibility. I like to tell teams that the leak may be in the other end of the boat but if the boat goes down, well we are all going down.
3) I’m too busy and I can’t deal with that right now. Let’s work on that another day.

To succeed in moving upstream and making change, leaders must focus on the following: 1) Leaders must detect problems early. 2) Leaders must target leverage points in complex systems. 3) Leaders must find reliable ways to measure success. 4) Leaders must pioneer new ways of working together. 5) Leaders must embed their successes into systems to give them permanence.

This is a great read for any leader struggling to get results and dealing with the same issues over and over again.