The technology company Apple encourages its employees to follow the three-step method used by one of its co-founders, Steve Jobs, to discover breakthroughs and find answers to difficult questions. The company’s intention is to facilitate more efficient and not more demanding work; In order to avoid burnout and increase productivity, he has promised to make workers’ schedules more flexible, according to CNET, a technology media outlet.

While some believe this promise is part of a strategy to prevent their workers from unionizing, the reality is that Steve Jobs’ method allowed him to find inspiration and discover progress, and that anyone can use it.

Here are the Apple co-founder’s three steps to solving tough problems:

Step 1. Reduction

Solving complex problems is difficult. Discovering breakthroughs requires ideas that challenge and change reality, and according to the Harvard Business Review, Steve Jobs had a great ability to do just that. Unlike most people who try to approach solving their problems, Jobs believed that in these cases it is ideal to step back and see the bigger picture. This allows you to define what you are looking for and therefore know what you want to achieve. It is necessary to go beyond the realm of what is currently possible and think about what might be possible.

For example, Jobs knew his technology would be big before the product existed. So much so that when the first Apple Store opened in 2001, Jobs said his role was not to “sell computers” but to “enrich lives,” according to Forbes.

Step 2. Focus

After defining a goal, it is good to set a period of reflection and information gathering. To achieve what you want, you have to work hard, and Steve Jobs knew that. His intense ability to focus (or hyperfocus) made him famous and effective in motivating employees.

Intense, obsessive focus can be the answer to discovering a breakthrough or solution, regardless of the path you took to get there. For example, Albert Einstein famously said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem, I would spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.” For his part, Tony Robbins argues the opposite on Twitter, saying, “Leaders spend 5 percent of their time on the problem and 95 percent on the solution.” Either way, each path is based on intense focus and the ultimate destination remains the same.

Step 3. Disconnect

If the search for a solution to a problem leads to a dead end or something is missing in the discovery process, a break is most appropriate. Walking to disconnect from the problem is always positive. According to Jobs, you can’t connect the dots going forward, only looking back.

Getting away from the problem can help you gain clarity and increase creativity, so breaks are helpful in this regard. According to Scientific American, Thomas Edison took short naps when he couldn’t solve a difficult question or equation. In doing so, he found the answer he was looking for. So they often get their best ideas in regular activities like driving a car, walking on the beach, or taking a shower.

Sometimes you have to step away from your desk to get closer to the answer, one of Jobs’ strategies for boosting creativity. The reason Jobs loved walking meetings was not only because it helped him find answers, but because it helped his entire team get away from their desks to help them get closer to finding answers and solving problems. They were working.

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