Introduction
Image a big block of ice. Then, imagine swinging a sledgehammer and smashing that block of ice into dozens of tiny pieces. Each piece can be dealt with on its own, but the sum total of all the pieces made up the original block. That’s what this competency does.
Used for
We use it when confronted by a situation, a fact, or an observation that appears fuzzy — when the idea with which you are working seems too general, or too big to yield any workable ideas . It is often the first step in moving from fuzzy to focused.
Once you become comfortable with this two-step process, you’ll find yourself using it as a tactic in all kinds of situations, from helping your teenager make a decision to deciding where to go to dinner.
Input/ Output
The input is an idea that is vague, general and often fuzzy. The output is a list of items that, compiled, make up the original idea.
How to
There are two steps to using this tool. First, we break the thing up into its component pieces so that we can deal with each one more completely and accurately.
We can say, “What are the pieces that make this up?”
Or “What are the components?”
And then list the components.
Then, once we have a list of the elements involved in the situation, describe what we know about each of those elements.
So, for example, if you are a salesperson thinking about strategically penetrating a key account, to move from fuzzy to focused you use the sledgehammer and identify the important elements: The idea of the account is a fuzzy idea. Break It down into its component pieces and you come up with a list like this:
- The people
- The competition
- The customer’s gap.
- The buying philosophy
- The purchasing process
- The accessibility
Once you have listed them, then describe your best understanding of each of them. Ask, “What are the most important things I know about each?” And write it down. So, your work would look like this:
- The people. There are six key people, and I know two of them.
- The competition—XYZ is very active in the account and has about 30% of the business. The rest is split among about 10 vendors, none of which has a great deal of business.
- The customer’s gaps – varies by department and application.
- The buying philosophy– Generally they are value buyers, looking for the best choice for their money, not necessarily the cheapest or the best.
- The purchasing process — Major purchases are approved by the using department and then passed on by a “New products Committee” before they go to purchasing for execution.
- Accessibility – It’s an issue. I need to check with in purchasing before venturing into the plant. I have to make appointments and rarely have phone calls returned.
It may be that you decide your knowledge of one or more of the elements isn’t what it should be. So, your next step, if you have the time, is to research that element and increase what you know. It is not unusual for the solution to the problem to become apparent after this tactic is used. Often, when we break out the components and write down what we know about them, the next step becomes obvious.
Here’s another example. Let’s say you are a CEO and want to make a major decision on hiring a key employee. Rather than make a hiring decision based on how you feel about the person, you use the Sledgehammer and break the situation down into its component pieces. The key elements, identified and written down, are:
- The gap in the business that he will fill – why does the business need someone like this?
- The person’s character.
- Skills
- Motivation
- Values
- The fit in your culture, and the fit for him/her
- The price relative to your budget.
Note that this tool relies on what you know about a situation. So, it is limited by the amount of knowledge you have. However, I have observed that most people don’t know how much they do know. This tool, because it focuses on the specific elements, encourages you to discover what you really do know.
Remember, apply it with discipline to get the best results. It’s tempting to jump to the end by describing a situation without taking the time to write down the elements. When we do that, we almost always leave out some important details.
Variations