Making resolutions are very commonplace right now.  A resolution is defined as “a firm decision to do or not do something.”  Having resolutions has been a great way to start each year. My favorite part of the word “resolution” is the root word “solution.” As part of the resolution process, it is important to be aware of potential problems as they come up and then try to focus on solutions.

 

One of my favorite examples of solution focusing is from the 1995 film Apollo 13 (based on a true story), directed by Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks.  From this film, I was first introduced to the phrase “Houston, we have a problem…”  In fact, if the astronauts knew what else was coming, it would have been more appropriate for them to say “Houston, we have problems!”  The “problem” was that the oxygen tank exploded 56 hours into the flight and the crew was forced to abandon their attempt at being the third moon-landing.  Instead, they needed to somehow find a way to get back to earth.

 

 

 

One of my favorite parts of the film was when they realized the carbon dioxide levels for the astronauts were rising. As a result, they literally had to make a square peg fit into a round hole, by taking the cubic (square) scrubber from the command module and fit into the cylindric (round) scrubber in the lunar module.  NASA used the phrase “work the problem” to inspire their people to overcome incredible odds and find solutions.  When presented with the carbon dioxide problem, the engineer simply stated: “We’ve got to find a way to make this fit into the hole for this using nothing but that.”