A customer can't log in. The password reset button is right there on screen. But instead of guiding the customer to use it, the meeting becomes a debate about why the password stopped working in the first place. The founder jumps in to suggest building an entire support pipeline to Atlassian for every single customer who forgets a password.
This happens more than we'd like to admit — in tech teams, in client calls, in boardrooms. We get so invested in understanding the root cause that we forget the thirsty customer sitting right in front of us. The jug is on the table. Pour the water first.
Root cause analysis has its place — but not before the immediate solution is offered. One mindset asks "why is this broken?" The other asks "what can we do right now?" Both are necessary. The order matters enormously.
And when someone points at the jug and asks "have you tried pouring it?" — that is not a dismissal of the deeper question. That is wisdom wearing a waiter's uniform.