A client accused me of digging for problems where there were none.

As a consultant who prides herself on identifying root causes and prioritizing client outcomes over driving change for change’s sake, that hurt. 

It hurt even worse when I decided that he was right.

In my ‘defense’, I had been told by 4 different people who were closer to the situation that there was a problem there and I truly thought that I was looking for root causes. Yet in working through the concerns I was exploring and widening the lens to accommodate this 5th perspective, it quickly became clear that I was chasing pet peeves rather than true pain. 

To put it metaphorically, I was looking for weak points in the foundation of an apartment building because too many residents were complaining about cracking paint. Yes, it is possible that structural issues can cause walls to shift in ways that crack the paint. When that happens, it is absolutely crucial that the issues be identified and addressed.

But sometimes, the paint is just old. 

At this client organization, there are other challenges that really are better compared to cracks in the foundation that will need the full crew and some major repairs. There is no need to stack on additional ‘problems’ just for fun.

Within this specific area, however, the challenge will be revisiting the other stakeholders and seeing whether I can align them with the ‘can of paint’ approach. The annoyance, much like cracking paint would be, is visible and real. Pretending that there is no action required would only serve to damage the overall relationships. Picking the right paint and doing the patchwork is still a fix. It is just a lighter, and more local, response than I was digging for before that (important, insightful, valuable) accusation landed.

It is also possible that I have landed in the wrong place and this really is another of the foundational issues.

But I don’t think so. 

I think we are dealing with the inherent tensions that arise when ambitious people see the gap between where they are and where they want to be and are also working in concert with other motivated humans who each have slightly different perspectives. It is a healthy, wonderful place to be. There is a reason that paint was kept in place for so long. None of that makes either the paint or the organizational dynamics entirely free of flaws. 

In either scenario, the solution should go beyond simply telling people to live with their ugly walls. The key is recognizing when you need to shore up, or even replace, the entire foundation and when you can simply hand the resident a can of paint. You need to find the root causes. Only by doing so can you avoid the twin traps of painting over foundational weakness and repouring the foundation to fix old paint.

If only it were always as easily done as said!