--- title: Problem Solving description: Problem solving involves identifying complex challenges, analyzing their root causes, and implementing effective solutions. Learners will acquire structured methodologies to evaluate alternatives, make logical decisions, and systematically address obstacles in professional and personal contexts. category: personal-development subcategory: personal-development difficulty: beginner, intermediate, advanced url: /subject/problem-solving --- # Problem Solving Problem solving involves identifying complex challenges, analyzing their root causes, and implementing effective solutions. Learners will acquire structured methodologies to evaluate alternatives, make logical decisions, and systematically address obstacles in professional and personal contexts. ## Available Resources 2 Books • 3 Courses • 6 Websites ## Websites ### 1. LessWrong Community tag page collecting LessWrong posts on how to attack hard problems, covering techniques like babble-and-prune, problem decomposition, and noticing confusion. Quality varies by post, but the better essays give concrete, testable methods rather than general advice. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.lesswrong.com/tag/problem-solving **Tags:** rationality, problem-solving, decision-making, cognitive-tools, lesswrong ### 2. Farnam Street Shane Parrish's collection of essays on problem-solving methods drawn from mental models, first-principles reasoning, and inversion. The posts summarise ideas from other thinkers, so treat them as a readable entry point rather than a primary source. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://fs.blog/problem-solving/ **Tags:** mental-models, problem-solving, decision-making, first-principles, critical-thinking ### 3. hbr.org Harvard Business Review (hbr.org) offers research-based articles, case studies, and practical guidance on leadership, strategy, and organizational performance for managers and executives. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://hbr.org **Tags:** websites, business-entrepreneurship, business-fundamentals ### 4. lesswrong.com LessWrong is a community blog and forum focused on rationality, decision theory, and cognitive biases. It features long-form essays and discussions, including the popular Sequences on Bayesian reasoning, critical thinking, and AI risk. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://lesswrong.com **Tags:** websites, humanities-social-sciences, cognitive-science ### 5. mindtools.com Mind Tools offers practical business and management resources—articles, templates, checklists, and self-assessments—covering business communication, leadership, teamwork, meetings, and professional writing. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://mindtools.com **Tags:** websites, business-entrepreneurship, business-fundamentals ### 6. artofproblemsolving.com AoPS is a comprehensive mathematics learning community offering challenging problems, step-by-step solutions, and active forums, along with online courses and textbooks for competition math. It provides problem sets, tutorials, and classroom resources covering topics from fundamentals to advanced contest math. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://artofproblemsolving.com **Tags:** websites, mathematics-statistics, mathematics ## Courses ### 1. Solving Problems with Creative and Critical Thinking Sharpen your problem-solving skills! Learn creative and critical thinking techniques with this course from Imperial College London. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/creative-problem-solving **Tags:** problem-solving, critical-thinking, creativity, decision-making ### 2. Learning How to Learn This course gives you easy access to the invaluable learning techniques used by experts in art, music, literature, math, science, sports, and many other disciplines. We’ll learn about how the brain uses two very different learning modes and how it encapsulates (“chunks”) information. We’ll also cover illusions of learning, memory techniques, dealing with procrastination, and best practices shown by research to be most effective in helping you master tough subjects. Using these approaches, no matter what your skill levels in topics you would like to master, you can change your thinking and change your life. If you’re already an expert, this peep under the mental hood will give you ideas for turbocharging successful learning, including counter-intuitive test-taking tips and insights that will help you make the best use of your time on homework and problem sets. If you’re struggling, you’ll see a structured treasure trove of practical techniques that walk you through what you need to do to get on track. If you’ve ever wanted to become better at anything, this course will help serve as your guide. This course can be taken independent of, concurrent with, or prior to, its companion course, Mindshift. (Learning How to Learn is more learning-focused, and Mindshift is more career-focused.) A related course by the same instructors is Uncommon Sense Teaching. To join the fully translated Portuguese version of the course, visit: https://www.coursera.org/learn/aprender To join the fully translated Spanish version of the course, visit: https://www.coursera.org/learn/aprendiendo-a-aprender To join the fully translated Chinese version of the course, visit: https://www.coursera.org/learn/ruhe-xuexi To join the fully translated French version of the course, visit : http://www.coursera.org/learn/apprendre-comment-apprendre **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn **Tags:** learning-techniques, memory, metacognition, procrastination, study-skills ### 3. Creative Problem Solving This course deals directly with your ability for creativity which is a critical skill in any field. It focuses on divergent thinking, the ability to develop multiple ideas and concepts to solve problems. Through a series of creativity building exercises, short lectures, and readings, learners develop both an understanding of creativity and increase their own ability. This course will help you understand the role of creativity and innovation in your own work and in other disciplines. It will challenge you to move outside of your existing comfort zone and to recognize the value of that exploration. This course will help you understand the importance of diverse ideas, and to convey that understanding to others. The principal learning activity in the course is a series of "differents" where you are challenged to identify and change your own cultural, habitual, and normal patterns of behavior. Beginning with a prompt, e.g. "eat something different", you will begin to recognize your own = limits and to overcome them. In addition, you are encouraged to understand that creativity is based on societal norms, and that by it's nature, it will differ from and be discouraged by society. In this course, the persistence of the creative person is developed through practice. At the same time, these exercises are constrained by concerns of safety, legality, and economics, which are addressed in their creative process. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Language:** English | **Duration:** 4-6 hours/week | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.coursera.org/learn/creative-problem-solving **Tags:** courses, personal-development, personal-development ## Podcasts ### 1. The Decision Corner **Author:** The Decision Lab The Decision Corner connects you with cutting-edge insights from the world's best applied behavioral scientists to bring wisdom to your daily and professional life. Rather than talking about nudges and trying to codify science into design principles, TDC goes deep and finds out just how the world's brightest minds solve complex real-world problems using the social sciences. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Language:** en | **Price:** Free **Link:** thedecisionlab.com **Tags:** behavioral-science, behavioral-economics, applied-psychology, decision-making ## Books ### 1. The Art of Problem Solving **Author:** Russell L. Ackoff Ackoff treats problem solving as a design activity rather than a search for the single right answer, working through short management parables. Readers learn to reframe messy situations, question objectives, and dissolve problems instead of merely fixing symptoms. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Paid **Link:** https://www.amazon.com/dp/0471858080?tag=edmonddante07-20 **Tags:** books, personal-development, personal-development ### 2. Problem Solving 101 **Author:** Ken Watanabe Written originally for Japanese schoolchildren, this short guide teaches logic trees, issue decomposition and hypothesis testing through simple illustrated cases. Readers pick up a consulting-style framework for breaking a vague problem into causes and testable actions. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Paid **Link:** https://www.amazon.com/dp/0091929660?tag=edmonddante07-20 **Tags:** books, personal-development, personal-development --- *This content is part of Dantes.io - Your Treasure Map to Knowledge* *Curated by humans at Dantes.io. Personal study use welcome; republishing this curation requires permission (team@dantes.io).* View this page online: https://dantes.io/subject/problem-solving