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What If Your Biggest Problem Isn’t the Problem?

The Lockheed L-1011 and the $0 Fix That Almost Killed 176 People

In 1972, Eastern Airlines Flight 401 was on final approach to Miami when the crew noticed a landing gear light wasn’t on. They circled; checked manuals. They pulled the light out of its panel and replaced it. Nothing.

They became so focused on fixing the indicator that no one noticed the autopilot had disconnected. The plane descended unnoticed… and crashed into the Florida Everglades.

101 people died.

Later investigations revealed: the landing gear was down the whole time. The $12 lightbulb was faulty. The system worked, but the crew had shifted all their attention to a symptom, not the real situation. They lost sight of the aircraft’s position while chasing the quick fix.

That’s what Shifting the Burden (another systems concept from MIT’s Peter Senge) looks like in real life. It’s when we hyper-focus on the symptom. It feels right and smart. But it pulls us further from the fundamental solution.

Whether it’s a broken indicator light, a new marketing tactic, or a productivity hack…if it distracts you from the root cause, it becomes part of the problem.

Last week, we looked at the Limits to Growth archetype from Peter Senge’s The Fifth Discipline. That system shows what happens when growth pushes against an invisible constraint: delays, friction, or internal drag. You may push harder, but unless you find and remove the resistance, momentum stalls.

This week’s archetype is similar, but different.

Shifting the Burden is about short-term fixes that delay the deeper work. It’s not about constraints. It’s about avoidance. And the longer you avoid the root cause, the weaker the system becomes.

Limits to Growth = Resistance to progress

Shifting the Burden = Substitution for progress

Both are dangerous. But for different reasons. And both can quietly kill momentum unless you catch them early.

DIAGNOSE BEFORE YOU MOVE

Here are examples of Shifting the Burden in both business and personal performance:

BUSINESS + MARKETING EXAMPLES

  1. Chasing tactics instead of clarifying the message
  2. Hiring more people instead of fixing process
  3. Discounting instead of improving the offer
  4. Founder overwork instead of system-building

PERSONAL + INTERNAL EXAMPLES

  1. Drinking coffee instead of fixing your sleep
  2. New apps instead of fewer commitments
  3. Reading instead of acting
  4. Language that limits identity

In business, your tactics will never outperform a broken message. In leadership, your force will never overcome systemic drift. And in your personal discipline, you will always revert to your identity.

That’s why we must stop chasing the next fix and start telling better stories both externally in our marketing and internally in our habits.

YOUR CHALLENGE

Where are you shifting the burden?

Where are you forgetting or overlooking fundamentals?

Where are you reaching for effort instead of clarity?

See you next Saturday.

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