Knowledge Base · Seeing Problems
How do I get past "that's how we've always done it"?
Do not argue with the phrase. Treat it as a sign that curiosity has stopped, usually through comfort with routine or fear of speaking up, and rebuild the conditions for honesty. Ask a direct question such as where does it hurt, then stay silent, listen without defending, and thank people. The people closest to the work already know where it is broken.
Chapter 3 opens on this phrase and calls it one of the most expensive and dangerous in business, because it shuts down curiosity and accepts mediocrity as the standard. The book is clear that the blindness behind it is rarely laziness. It grows from comfort in a familiar routine, even an inefficient one, and from fear: of being seen as critical, of a suggestion failing, of being labelled a troublemaker.
That fear is costly because employees hold the keys. The people closest to the work see the friction, the waste, and the daily frustrations, but stay quiet. In one call centre in the book, high handling times resisted new scripts, training, and technology for months, until a quiet agent finally said the real cause aloud: every call of that type waited on the one supervisor on the floor for an approval.
- Ask one powerful question, such as where does it hurt, and wait for the real answer instead of filling the silence.
- Listen, write down what you hear, and thank people for their honesty.
- Do not defend, explain, or promise fixes on the spot.
- Go and see the work yourself rather than debating reports about it.
The shift the book asks of leaders is from a culture that values silence and compliance to one that values curiosity and courage, where problems are treated as opportunities rather than failures to hide.
“It’s probably one of the most expensive and dangerous phrases in business.”
Continuous Improvement in the Workplace, Ch. 3
Related questions
- How do I create a culture where people speak up about problems?
- What is a gemba walk (a "go and see"), and how do I do one?
- How do I overcome resistance to change?
Source: Continuous Improvement in the Workplace, Ch. 3 (Learning to See).