Instructions for creating an initial list of contradictions:
Define goals. Start by clearly identifying the key goals and objectives of your company or project. This could include increasing the number of clients, expanding audience reach, improving productivity, etc.
Look for contradictions. A contradiction arises when achieving one goal leads to undesirable consequences or creates obstacles. For example, you may want to increase the number of clients, but this could lead to team overload or higher costs. Such situations can be described as: "We want [desire], but this will lead to [obstacle]."
Formulate conflicting pairs. Your task is to list all the "friction points," where one desire blocks or complicates another. For example, the desire to increase revenue may conflict with the need to invest more resources in maintaining product quality. The deeper you analyze these cases, the more pairs of contradictions you’ll be able to identify.
Be consistent. Don’t rush. It’s important to write down all possible contradictions you face in your day-to-day work. Try to thoroughly work through each situation where one solution creates other problems.
Use a simple formula. Each contradiction can be formulated as: "If we want [goal], we’ll have to face [undesirable effect]." For example, "If we want to improve productivity, we’ll need to increase working hours, which will reduce employee satisfaction."
Assess the scale. Once you have compiled a complete list of contradictions, assess which of them are the most critical for your company. This will help you prioritize which contradictions to resolve first in the future.
Note: You can use the list above without any external help. But the most profound and beautiful contradictions are probably only visible to an outsider who can dig deeper. And the sharpest contradictions are sometimes the ones you don't even want to see. They’re hidden and can be painful.