Context and scope
the practitioner nearly punched a stranger over a plastic chair. And he's one of the kindest people I know.
The Pattern You Can't Unsee
Once the practitioner started looking, he saw it everywhere:
- The DMV clerk who seems deliberately slow? She's navigating a computer system from 1997 with seventeen required fields and no error messages.
- The customer service rep who keeps putting you on hold? They're juggling three different software systems that don't talk to each other, with a script that forbids them from saying "I don't know."
- The doctor who seems rushed and dismissive? They've been allocated exactly seven minutes per patient by administrators who've never treated anyone.
- Your coworker who "always drops the ball"? They're receiving critical information from three different Slack channels, two email threads, and one voicemail that arrived after they left for the day.
The Uncomfortable Truth
When you put good people into bad processes, they become:
- Mean-spirited (because they're exhausted and defensive)
- Foul-mouthed (because no one's listening to polite requests)
- Even violent (because every other option has been removed)
And here's the kicker: Ask anyone involved to identify the problem, and they'll blame everyone else.
The passengers blame the "petty bureaucrat" check-in agent.
The agent blames the "crazy passengers."
Management blames the "tight-fisted" airline.
The airline blames the "unpredictable" passengers.
Nobody steps back to examine the process itself.
What This Means For You
You're surrounded by bad processes every single day. And you're probably:
- Blaming the people instead of the process
- Becoming "the bad person" yourself when you're trapped
- Missing opportunities to fix what's actually broken
Three Questions to Ask Before You Judge Anyone
Before you blame a person, ask:
- What process are they operating within? Map it out. Where are the bottlenecks? Where is information lost? Where are the impossible tradeoffs?
- What would a good person do differently in this process? If the answer is "nothing"—the process is the problem.
- What would happen if you replaced this person with someone 'better'? If they'd fail in the same ways, the person isn't the issue.
How to Spot a Bad Process
- The same problems keep happening with different people
- Good performers suddenly become "difficult" after a role change
- Everyone's working hard but nothing's getting done
- The first response to failure is always more oversight, not process redesign
- "That's just how it is here" becomes an accepted phrase
The Test That Never Fails
Next time you catch yourself thinking "What is wrong with these people?"—pause.
Ask instead: "What process is turning these people into this?"
The Real Opportunity Here
The existence of bad processes everywhere isn't depressing.
It's a massive opportunity.
Every frustrating interaction, every "difficult" person, every system that makes you want to scream—these are all invitations to think differently.
Because here's what happens when you fix the process instead of blaming the person:
- The "difficult" employee becomes your highest performer
- The "rude" service provider becomes a customer loyalty machine
- The "chaotic" team becomes your most reliable unit
- The "impossible" customer becomes your biggest advocate
The people were never the problem. They were just the most visible symptom.
What the practitioner Does Now
the practitioner still travels through Heathrow sometimes. The check-in process hasn't changed much.
But he has.
When he sees the line snake around the corner, he doesn't feel rage anymore. He feels curiosity.
"What process created this? What would need to change? Who has the power to change it? What would I do if I could redesign this from scratch?"
He's brought this thinking to every organization he's worked with since that Monday morning meltdown.
And here's what he's learned: The people at the front lines almost always know what's wrong. They've just been told the problem is them, so they've stopped saying anything.
Ask them. Listen. Redesign.
You'll be amazed at what "bad people" become when you give them a good process.
Your Turn
Think about the last time you were frustrated with someone—a coworker, a service provider, a family member.
Now ask yourself: What process were they trapped in?
Drop a comment below with your answer. I'd love to hear what you discover when you start seeing systems instead of villains.
Have you ever been the "bad person" because you were stuck in a bad process? What did it feel like? What changed?