As long as I can remember, I have always been exceptional at finding a quick solution when a problem arises. One thing I have learned along the way in finding these solutions though is the importance of not over-thinking the possible solutions. Sometimes the solution can be right there in front of someone’s face, but their tendencies to over-analyze the situation may cloud their better judgment. This is where I came up with the acronym K.I.S.S., which is when I tell myself to “Keep It Sweet & Simple”.
When I was fresh out of high school and going through Navy boot camp, it was all too often I would see the guys that always overthought situations doing more push-ups than the rest of us. This led me to deduce a direct correlation between overthinking and plan failure. In the Navy there was even a term for this, in where you would tell each other not to “Nuke It”, which was short form for saying it didn’t take a nuclear scientist to figure out the obvious solutions. It was something that became instilled in me and has stuck by my side during my career as a professional driver and has led me to finding the solutions to my problems faster and more efficiently.
In trucking, we are confronted by situations that often require quick thinking. Things like a leaking coolant hose or a punctured air brake line require quick detection and sometimes need clever fixes to get us rolling safely back down the road. There have been numerous times that I have faced a problem like this in the middle of nowhere, or when I might be on a time sensitive delivery, but my K.I.S.S. strategy kept me on-point to find the solution to keep my wheels turning. Remember when trying to find a solution to a problem to “K.I.S.S.” it, or you may end up kissing your best solution goodbye!