A differential diagnosis is a method that doctors use to identify what a particular disease is. Doctors will make a list of possibilities then sit in a room and try to figure out, one by one, which disease makes the most sense based upon the patients current symptoms, past symptoms, family history, recent accidents, and a slew of other variables that may be pertinent to the patent’s condition. Tests are administered and questions are answered little by little — the doctors then begin to narrow the list and lock in on the disease. Ultimately, (hopefully) coming up with a solution.
I’m absolutely fascinated with this particular method that doctors use to figure out problems.
- Recognize that there’s a problem
- Make a list of possibilities for that problem
- Look into previous issues that may have caused the problem
- Brainstorm and question those possibilities
- Run a series of tests and begin to narrow down the list
- Lock in on the problem and provide a solution
I think that entrepreneurs and their teams should run a differential diagnosis on their business at least once a week — of course, the context will be different unless you’re in the business of curing diseases.
Once a week gather your team into a room, get some coffee, beer, tea, food, whatever you need to keep you in the room without running out every few minutes for a break. Make sure you have a big whiteboard, a dry eraser, and a bunch of markers. Then prepare to start thinking.
What the purpose here? The purpose of this diagnosis is the measure the health of your business. Here’s a sample template of how the meeting should be run and what you may want to start listing out on the whiteboard:
- What are the current problems and inefficiencies in the business?
- What are some possible solutions to those problems?
- Are there any previous issues that may have caused these problems? If so, who was responsible for those issues and what was their reasoning for them?
- Begin brainstorming about solutions to these problems. Don’t be scared. Really, throw anything you have out in the open.
- List a series of tests and improvements that you can implement immediately to remedy the problems.
- Run those tests and meet again to begin narrowing down that list and share feedback on those tests.
The purpose of such a diagnosis for your company is to keep everyone in check and to stay on top of the health of your business. The key is to really let loose and begin a hardcore brainstorming session where nobody is scared to start shouting out possibilities, solutions, ideas, theories, etc. anything that’s on their mind — no matter how wacky or absurd it may sound.
Give it a shot — stat!
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