The Five Levels of Problem Awareness

I’ve worked with all kinds of people. Sharp coders, brilliant procrastinators, cheerful deniers. But nothing taught me more about problem awareness than watching my own team at a software company in Hanoi. Let me introduce you to five unforgettable teammates — and maybe, versions of myself along the way.

Lâm, the Sunglass Kid 😎

Blind to the Problem

Lâm wore sunglasses every day. Indoors, outdoors — didn’t matter. His confidence was unshakable.

When we spotted bugs, Lâm grinned: “Come on, it’s not that bad. You all worry too much.” But we weren’t imagining things. The bugs were everywhere — crawling through the system like ants in a nest.

Sometimes I wanted to say: “Lâm, maybe it’s not the code that’s bug-free. Maybe your shades are just too dark.”

Lôi, the Worrier 🤯

Aware but Unsure

Lôi noticed things fast. He spotted issues the moment they popped up. But when it came time to act, he froze.

“I know something’s wrong,” he’d say. “But I don’t know how to fix it.” Ideas swirled in his head, but doubt weighed him down. No one knew where to start. And neither did he.

We often found ourselves staring at each other, feeling stuck — not because we lacked knowledge, but because we lacked clarity.

Nghi, the Thinker 😱

Knows the Solution but Doesn’t Act

Nghi was brilliant. Solutions came to him faster than you could open a Jira ticket.

But then he’d pause. Think. Rethink. “If I try this, will it break something else? Should I wait? Should I check again?”

Hours passed. Sometimes days. He knew the fix. But he didn’t move.

“Tomorrow,” he’d say. But tomorrow kept slipping.

We all knew he had it in him. He just needed to get out of his own head.

Dương, the Firestarter 🔥

Initiator

Dương didn’t wait.

Bug found? She rolled up her sleeves. No second-guessing. No meetings. No passive Slack messages.

“What’s she doing now?” someone would ask.

“Saving the world,” she’d reply — mid-keystroke.

She turned awareness into action. Action into momentum. And momentum into results.

Dương made us believe that change starts with one person refusing to wait.

Trí, the Strategist 🛡️

Problem Preventer

Trí was different. He didn’t fix problems. He prevented them.

While we debugged in real time, Trí worked upstream. He spotted risks before they bloomed. Built fallback plans. Left nothing to chance.

When crises came, he stayed calm. Because he’d already rehearsed them in his mind.

With Trí around, we slept better. “Nothing surprises him,” we often joked. But deep down, we knew — he just prepared better than anyone.

Reflection Time

We all carry parts of Lâm, Lôi, Nghi, Dương, and Trí. The question is: which version of ourselves shows up most often?

If you ignore problems like Lâm, how can you train yourself to see clearly?

If you freeze like Lôi, who can help you speak up without fear?

If you’re stuck like Nghi, what small step could break the cycle?

If you lead like Dương, how do you lift others with you?

If you think ahead like Trí, how can you teach that foresight to your team?

As for me, I’ve been each of them. But these days, I’m working to be a bit more Dương. And every now and then, channel a little Trí.

What about you?