I rarely start by asking, “What is the solution?”
I am usually more interested in what happens if we look at the problem from a different angle.
Sometimes that means stepping away from the obvious answer. Sometimes it means separating things that have been bundled together for years. Sometimes it means connecting two ideas that normally live in different places.
That is usually where something starts to shift.
Over time, I noticed that my best work tends to follow a loose rhythm.
I first try to understand what is really happening, without rushing to fix it. Then I simplify the picture enough to see the pattern. From there, I build or test something small and useful.
And then I watch what happens.
Because reality is usually much more interesting than the plan.
A first version may reveal that the real problem sits somewhere else. A simple experiment can open a new direction. Something that looked complex may turn out to need one small change.
That is why I use the Systems Design Cycle less as a method and more as a way to keep ideas moving.
Observe → Structure → Design → Improve → Explore
The words are simple on purpose.
The point is not to follow them perfectly.
The point is to keep enough structure to move forward, while leaving enough space for a better idea to appear.
For me, that is where the most useful work usually begins:
when the obvious route stops being the only route.