14 Nov Read this Before you Solve One More “Problem”

by Kalika Yap

If you run a business, you probably know this kind of day.

You answer emails, hop on zoom, or calm a worried client.

You’re busy from morning to night.

But when you step back, not much has really changed.

That is where many entrepreneurs get stuck.

They are very good at:

• Solving small problems
• Putting out tiny fires
• Responding to every ping and alert

What they are not always doing is solving the big problems that shape the future of the business.

On top of that, there is something even trickier:

Sometimes we are not only fixing the wrong problems.

We are creating problems that did not need to exist in the first place.

For example:

• Rebuilding a system that was already good enough
• Overcomplicating a process that already works
• Buying tools for “problems” you do not actually have
• Redoing work again and again in the name of perfection

That is the worst kind of problem.

It eats your time and energy, and when you finish, nothing important has improved.

Small fires, big problems, and fake problems

Here is a simple way to think about it.

Small fires (symptoms)

• A client is upset about a delay
• A team member keeps asking the same question
• A launch gets pushed back again
• You are always behind on content
• Cash is tight at the end of every month

You can fix each one as it appears.

But they will keep coming back if you never look underneath.

Big problems (root causes)

• Your offers are not clearly scoped, so projects always grow
• Roles and responsibilities are unclear, so everyone depends on you
• You do not have a planning rhythm, only last minute sprints
• You have no repeatable marketing engine, only random posts
• You do not track margins, so you are undercharging or over-delivering

Solve a big problem and many small fires vanish on their own.

Fake problems (created by you)

These are “problems” that did not need to be solved at all:

• “Our brand colors must be perfect before we sell anything”
• “We need a complex funnel before we talk to one person”
• “We have to switch platforms again, even though the current one works”

A good test is to ask:

“If I ignore this for 30 days, will anything truly important break?”

If the answer is no, it is probably not a real problem.

At least not today.

A real example from my business: recurring revenue

Let me share how this showed up in my own digital marketing agency.

For years, one of my biggest headaches was revenue that went up and down.

The symptom:

I was always chasing new projects.

One month we were busy, the next month felt quiet. I thought the answer was “get more leads” or “close more new clients.”

Those were small fires.

One day I started asking a different set of questions:

• Why does revenue feel lumpy?
• Why do I feel like I am always starting from zero each month?

When I looked more closely, I noticed something simple and powerful:

Many of our clients were quietly asking for help keeping their websites updated and secure.

They did not want just a one-time build. They wanted a trusted partner to keep their site healthy.

The real problem was not “we need more projects.”

The real problem was:

We had no recurring offer, only one-time projects.

Once I saw that, the solution became clear.

We created website maintenance plans. We handled updates, backups, security, and small content changes. Clients were relieved, and we created recurring revenue that continues to support the business years later.

That is what happens when you stop chasing symptoms and look for the root cause.

One decision can change the entire shape of your business.

Keep that example in mind as you go through the guide and worksheet below. You can adapt the same thinking to your own business.

A simple way to get to the root cause

One of my favorite tools is to keep asking “why”.

Example:

• Symptom: “We are always late on projects.”
  • Why? “We underestimate how long things take.”
  • Why? “We guess instead of using real data.”
  • Why? “We never review past projects to see what actually happened.”

Now you see the root:

You do not have a simple way to learn from finished projects and use that when planning new ones.

In the recurring revenue example, the chain might look like this:

• Symptom: “Revenue swings up and down, and we are always chasing new projects.”
  • Why? “Because every project is one-time.”
  • Why? “Because we never designed an ongoing service.”
  • Why? “Because we did not see that clients needed long term website care.”

Root cause:

We did not have a recurring offer, even though clients wanted ongoing support.

Once you see the root, your actions change.

Step-by-step guide: Find one real problem that matters

Use this guide over the next 30 days.

Step 1: Pick one area of your business

Choose the area that feels heaviest right now:

• Revenue and sales
• Marketing and leads
• Operations and delivery
• Team and hiring
• Cash and profit

For my recurring revenue example, the area was clearly:

Revenue and sales

Write yours:

“The area I will focus on is: ____________”

Stay with a single area for now.

Step 2: List the recurring symptoms

In that area, write the top 5 things that keep bothering you.

Examples:

• “Revenue is lumpy. Some months are strong, some are weak.”
• “We post on social but get very little engagement.”
• “Our email list is not growing.”
• “I am working too many hours.”
• “Cash feels tight every month.”

In my case, the big recurring symptom was:

“We are always chasing new projects and starting from zero each month.”

Write your own list. Do not edit. Just get it onto paper.

Step 3: Ask the “fake problem” question

Look at each symptom and ask:

“If I ignore this for 30 days, will anything truly important break?”

• If nothing serious will break, mark it with an F for “fake or low priority”
• If something serious will break or stall, mark it with an R for “real and important”

For me, ignoring lumpy revenue for 30 days would have been a serious issue, so that symptom was clearly R.

You may notice that some things that feel urgent are not actually important. Those belong in the F category.

Step 4: Choose the most important real symptom

From the R list, ask yourself:

“If I solved only one of these, which one would create the biggest positive change?”

Circle that one.

In my business, it was:

“Lumpy, unpredictable revenue and always chasing new projects.”

That one decision to focus on revenue stability led me to recurring maintenance plans and long term peace of mind.

Step 5: Ask “why” at least five times

Write your chosen symptom at the top of a page.

Then ask:

1. Why is this happening?
2. Why is that happening?
3. Why is that happening?
4. Why is that happening?
5. Why is that happening?

For the recurring revenue problem, it looked like this:

1. Why is revenue lumpy?
   • Because we only get paid when we land new projects.
2. Why do we only get paid when we land new projects?
   • Because all of our work is one-time website builds.
3. Why are all of our offers one-time builds?
   • Because we never created an ongoing service.
4. Why did we not create an ongoing service?
   • Because we did not slow down to ask what clients need after launch.
5. Why did we not ask what they need after launch?
   • Because we were too focused on closing the next project.

You can see how the root cause starts to appear.

Do the same with your own symptom.

Step 6: Turn the root cause into a clear sentence

Write:

“Our real problem is that __________________.”

Examples:

• “Our real problem is that we do not have a clear offer for our ideal client.”
• “Our real problem is that we rely only on referrals and have no steady way to bring in leads.”
• “Our real problem is that every project is custom, so we cannot create repeatable processes.”

In my case, the root cause was:

“Our real problem is that we do not have a recurring offer, only one-time projects, even though clients need ongoing website care.”

This is the kind of problem worth your best energy.

Step 7: Decide what “better” looks like

Ask:

“If we improve this, what will be true that is not true now?”

Make it concrete.

For my agency, “better” looked like:

• We have simple website maintenance plans.
• Clients know exactly what they get each month.
• We have a base of recurring revenue that supports the team.

For you, it might be:

• “We have one core offer with a clear price and scope.”
• “We send one helpful email per week to a growing list.”
• “We have a basic written process for our main service.”

This becomes your target for the next 30 days.

Step 8: Block time for real work on real problems

Big, important problems are solved in protected time, not in tiny scraps at the end of the day.

Look at your calendar and choose:

• 2 to 4 blocks each week (60 to 90 minutes)
• Only for work on this one problem

During those blocks:

• Close email
• Silence notifications
• Let your team know you are in focus time

This is exactly how I created our website maintenance plans. I blocked time, laid out the offer, priced it, wrote simple terms, and started inviting existing clients to join.

Even a few strong sessions each week can move you forward when they are pointed at the right problem and not at fake ones.

Want help seeing the real problem in your business?

Most entrepreneurs are too close to their own business.

They see the smoke, but not the true source.

If you would like support spotting your main constraint and building a clear plan around it, I would be happy to talk with you.

You can set up a discovery call for entrepreneur coaching here:
https://calendly.com/Kalika