In reviewing the poster above, it is clear you must have training and experience to make the correct diagnosis. The average person is not going to be able to look at the poster and know for sure which of the ailments they have. When I go to the doctor, I describe my symptoms and he asks follow up questions. Many times I do not understand the significance of the follow up question which tells the doctor the answer.
In the case of a virus, the symptoms will overlap and the intensity of the symptom may be the only difference. In some cases, the diagnosis is based on the intensity or lack of intensity of a symptom. It is those details which means the most to a doctor and is meaningless to the average person.
Treating symptoms cost money and delays recovery
It reminds me of what I do regarding employee turnover. The symptoms are all over the place and are well discussed by everyone in the organization. Very few people understand what is really going on. Even fewer understand the differences in the symptoms between one organization and another. Like a good doctor I can focus in on the one issue which clearly identifies the real root cause. The intensity of a symptom is important and knowing when a symptom may be masking the actual root cause.
A misdiagnosis costs time, effort, money and will only make the problem worse
With a particular client, turnover was rampant and most of it was voluntary. Many new employees were leaving shortly after being hired. When I was brought in, managers and employees were all talking the usual symptoms. The solutions were also very typical. An across the board pay raise was one of the favorites. I went to work speaking with everyone and building a summary of symptoms. It wasn’t long until a diagnosis came into view.
This organization had no idea how to select an employee. They did not know what their target employee looked like. They could not determine from a resume when someone met the criteria and should have been interviewed. They also had no idea who to not interview. They had no one in the building who truly knew how to interview and determine if the candidate did indeed meet the criteria. The vast majority of the time they were hiring people who were the opposite of what they were looking for.
This was not a difficult fix. You just had to know the symptoms. Then treat the right virus and structurally fix the problem. Need help?
