Many times I have observed how a superior, whether in large meetings or in small encounters, corrects one of his subordinates when he expresses that he has faced a problem; in a safe and confident posture he indicates that it is not such a thing, that what he has enchained is an opportunity.
This same pattern is repeated in classrooms, among friends and acquaintances who have undergone some course or training where they have been suggested to change the word "problem" to "opportunity" and express it with such conviction that the person who has used the word That which is expected to be omitted by the common, feels puzzled or lectured.
But it turns out that most positivist tendencies, in their eagerness to program language and introduce ways of looking at situations from an angle that denotes less conflict and more opportunities for success, forget that not only should things be called by name, rather, there is nothing better to generate progress and revolutions than to face a problem.
According to the Royal Spanish Academy, the word "problem" should be understood as: a "question that is being clarified. A proposition or difficulty of doubtful solution. A set of facts or circumstances that make it difficult to achieve an end. An approach to a situation whose unknown response must be obtained through scientific methods ”or“ a displeasure, a concern ”.
Let us stop at the concept "approach to a situation whose unknown response must be obtained through scientific methods." This fits perfectly in the administrative and managerial field, where it is very common to ask people not to talk about problems but about opportunities, and it serves to explain the point at hand.
Before proceeding, it is prudent to point out what should be understood by “opportunity” according to the same source, it is nothing other than: “Season, situation, convenience of time and place”.
Interesting, right?
While it is true that what is intended with the use of the word “opportunity” instead of “problem” is to eradicate the negative connotation that is usually attributed to the latter, it is no less true that an adequate concept is being distorted because of the imaginative and wrong use of the verb in the daily occurrence.
There is nothing better than facing a problem. Problems require data collection, analysis, study of variables, scenarios, probabilities of occurrence and, what is better, ingenuity, speed and wisdom. All this part of what is supposed to be considered science, whether orthodox or heterodox, follow guidelines or propose them. Whether academic or empirical, it will always take all of the above to arrive at the answer and find the solution.
Problems put creativity to the test, but they are not opportunities, since they appear precisely at the least appropriate moments and in the most unexpected places, quite the opposite of the concept that is expressed about them.
Now, there will be no shortage of people who will say that this is precisely what makes problems an opportunity, because when the problem appears, you have the opportunity to demonstrate the talent that has made you worthy of the position you hold in the company or that you want to occupy. And yes, it is one way of looking at it, but not the one that best fits the definition.
Problems are nothing negative, although they can cause discomfort or displeasure, since they affect our moods and especially the ephemeral stability and feeling of control at any stage of our lives, but without them there would be no question to solve or ways to apply the problem. knowledge or create it.
Opportunities on their part are like doors that open with a specific level of demands to pass through, if the right door is opened at the right time and with the right talents they will go through easily, if not a problem will arise, an incognito to solve what went wrong? What qualities have I not developed yet? Why wasn't he ready when the opportunity appeared?
Things must be called by their name, changing their name does not make them better or worse, in any case what must be changed is the perception of them. A problem is a problem and you have to call it and accept it as such. Face it and overcome it by finding suitable solutions that add value. Opportunities instead are shortcuts that appear to shorten the path, if you are prepared when they appear.
What does have to be a sine qua non requirement is that we must stop seeing problems as units, because when they appear they always do so accompanied by several solutions, the only difference is that the problems can be seen immediately but the solutions require greater dedication to visualize them, so when you express that you have a problem you cannot leave the sentence incomplete, you should say: I have a problem yes… but multiple solutions! (even if you don't see them yet).
