I’ve always loved Sherlock Holmes. I bet I’ve read the entire collection at least three times.
Cool story. Isn’t this a Product Development mailing list?
Yes, and I think we could learn a thing or two from our fictional detective friend, especially when we’re investigating a failure. Just imagine we’re looking at a broken widget instead of a note inviting us to investigate a scandal in Bohemia 😉
Watson: “This is indeed a mystery,” I remarked. “What do you imagine that it means?”
Holmes: “I have no data yet. It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.”
I love the lesson he teaches us here.
Be patient, gather data, then slowly form an opinion based on the facts.
Try it out, I bet you’ll begin to see things more clearly.
-Brian Schoolcraft