This is a Toyota AE86.

This car is an icon. It is the embodiment of the competitive underdog spirit.

It also represents a path to help you find more direction for your life.

What do I mean by that?

Well it’s all thanks to Sakichi Toyoda, the founder of the Toyoda empire.

King of Japanese Inventors

Sakichi Toyoda was a leader in the Japanese industrial movement, founding not only his namesake corporation, but earning the nickname of "King of Japanese Inventors."

He also developed a problem solving method called the “5 Why’s”.

And as you can probably guess, it’s a simple and transparent framework for when you encounter a problem, you iterate through it by asking why 5 times.

This backwards tracing is a popular way even today to do what they call root-cause analysis in manufacturing.

Given the simplicity and easy implementation of this method, you now see it applied to goal setting and decision-making to other areas of life.

But unfortunately when applied to something more complex like setting life goals or career decisions, most people use the 5 Why’s wrong.

And there are two things that they tend to mess up:

Mistake #1: There is no magic number

First, there is nothing special about 5.

It’s a nice round number that lets a person probe deep enough into an issue to extract something meaningful. But aside from the convenience of it, 5 holds no special place when you’re driving towards the root of a problem.

In fact, keeping yourself sticking to it just for it’s own sake is probably limiting yourself.

Because realistically, you will know when you hit the right answer.

The step will be clear.

The step will be tangible.

The step will be implementable.

Hitting the right answer will resonate with you if you’re being honest about it.

You will be able to identify it, put boundaries on what to do, and it will be in your power to act on.

And sometimes that could mean only probing down 3 levels. Sometimes it could be 10.

Really only you can answer that. But there should always be a bias-to-action in wherever you land. Because if a problem is not something you can act on, there is no point in wasting your precious time and energy on it.

Mistake #2: Asking the wrong questions, giving the wrong answers

Simple questions can solve simple problems.

You just need to be willing to ask the questions.

That’s why Toyota Motors has famously used the 5 Why’s method in their production system since the 1950’s.

In a manufacturing environment, where things can be easily tracked and traced, and all decisions can be made by managers, you can use surface level questioning to find the source of most problems.

But for something more complex, it’s not that simple.

Using the 5 Why’s for life decisions, for example, requires a deeper line of questioning.

Questions and answers at each step need to be re-framed for:

1. Bias-to-action.
2. Implement-ability
3. Self-accountability.

Similar to mistake #1, if we try to root out problems in our life, we should avoid externalizing to things outside of our immediate control.

No. Just the opposite.

Questions and answers should always favor things that are in our power to act on.e

Here’s a simple example, using a question I hear a lot.

Problem: I hate my job.

Q: Why do you hate your job
A: My boss micromanages me.

Now from here, the natural tendency would be to ask: “Why does your boss micromanage you?”

And this is where the trouble starts for most.

This kind of questioning tends to gives people the opportunity to complain about others and surrender to circumstances. It does not move towards an action you can implement and that you responsible for.

It does the exact opposite in fact.

It may well be true that your boss isn’t the greatest. And you may need to look for a new position. But usually that just leads to finding another boss that you will eventually complain about.

New job, same problem.

Instead, if we reframe the question and answer to focus on actions that are implementable and that we are responsible for, we can unlock agency in our solution.

Problem: I hate my job.

Q: Why do you hate your job?
A: My boss micromanages me.

Q: Why do they micromanage you?
A: She doesn't trust me.

Q: Why doesn't she trust you?
A: We've only worked together for a few months, and she doesn't really know the great work I can do.

This is harder. But it’s also better.

Better for you. Better for your work. Better for your relationships.

This way may not always get you the answers you want, but it will always give you actions you can take. Right here, right now.

And actions that are immediately implementable, and that we are accountable for, will always be the better move because they empower us.

More often than not, empowerment is the missing piece if you’re feeling frustrated or lost in life.

Conclusion

If you want a simple framework to guide you and provide you direction, using the 5 Why’s can be a simple path.

Two common mistakes to avoid

1. There is no magic to the number 5. You’ll know when you hit the right step. It’ll be actionable, it’ll be clear, and it’ll be something you can implement immediately.
2. Reframe the questions and answers. If it doesn’t challenge the problem in way that you can act on, then it is useless to you. Problems are only problems worth focusing on if you can do something about them. Otherwise they are circumstances outside your control. And then why bother if it’s really not something you can do anything about?

Regardless, perspective and bias to action in all things will serve you well. Ultimately all lives need direction. Sitting still will only leave you drifting.

Empowerment often times is the solution to gaining direction in life.

Hope that was helpful.

Take care for now.