Usually when something goes wrong, someone will tell you what happened and who was involved. A lot of people tend to focus on who dropped the ball.

I find it’s more productive to focus on the process.

The process is the process. And often when something goes wrong, it’s often because the process has weaknesses. A process is like a recipe: meant to ensure the same outcome every time someone makes it, no matter what their skill level is.  There is a big difference between a list of ingredients and a great recipe.

When we focus on the person, we miss the point, which is anyone could have been doing those steps and had the same problem happen to them.

So the next time a situation comes across your desk, ask what the process is and figure out how to change the process so it doesn’t happen again-no matter who was doing the steps.