Computer Says No.

Having been asked to provide some last-minute input to a client's project yesterday, I emailed the results of my labours and discussions. When no feedback or acknowledgement ensued, I phoned and discovered that their internal mail servers were playing up and nothing was getting through. With a deadline approaching, all sorts of options were considered and I re-learned a vital lesson.

All our solutions were couched in terms of the client's infrastructure - could we fax it, what about dictating it over the phone, or finding a courier? Etc etc. I was pulled into that mindset for a good twenty minutes until the old "online email account" trick resurfaced from my past. Two minutes later the account was created, the password provided and the email received.

One's environment shapes one's problem-solving and often does so to your detriment. If you reframe your problem in terms of where you want to end up and ignore the receved wisdom on how to get there, I guarantee you'll find ideas come much easier.