I “wear” numerous hats throughout my life, depending on what task I’m doing or what problem I’m trying to solve. Four hats that I wear, or roles that I take on, while problem solving are those of an explorer, artist, judge, and warrior. Each role has different strengths and weaknesses when it comes to problem solving, and a good problem solver can fit into all four roles, plus whatever else the person needs to be.
My strongest role is that of the explorer. I love finding out about new technologies or products, and can spend hours learning as much as I can about whatever is holding my interest at the moment. This is closely related to the role of the artist, as often I take on this role while exploring. If I find something new, the artist part of me will start analyzing it, and give the explorer part of me more items to research. The role of the judge also plays a part in these two roles, as I also constantly think about the feasibility of ideas – if something doesn’t seem like it will work, the explorer part of me has to go back and either find out why it wouldn’t work or find a way to make it work.
My weakest role is that of the warrior. I have hundreds of ideas and projects in my head, but I rarely implement them. For me, the fun is figuring out how to make an idea work; once it’s designed the challenge isn’t nearly as much fun. Additionally, I lack the resources to build most of my projects, so I have a tendency to design something and then never trying to complete it. This is a weakness that I hope to fix while in college, as a plan is just a plan until it’s actually implemented.
The explorer, artist, and judge are my three strongest roles as a problem solver, and the warrior is my weakest. I hope to become a stronger “warrior” over the next four years, as I’ll have the resources to implement whatever the explorer, artist, and judge parts of me create.
