Chengyu for problem-solving

Diagnose the Problem (clarify facts, avoid noise)

• 抽丝剥茧 (chōu sī bō jiǎn) — “tease out the silk; peel the cocoon” → systematically unravel complexity. Use: “Let’s 抽丝剥茧 through logs before proposing fixes.”
• 一针见血 (yì zhēn jiàn xiě) — pinpoint the core issue. Use: “Your question 一针见血—the bottleneck is I/O.”
• 去伪存真 (qù wěi cún zhēn) — discard false leads, keep truth. Use: “De-dup rumors; 去伪存真 with verified data.”

Plan & Prepare (set methods, sequence, safeguards)

• 未雨绸缪 (wèi yǔ chóu móu) — prepare before it rains. Use: “Add backups now—未雨绸缪 beats crisis mode.”
• 因地制宜 (yīn dì zhì yí) — adapt to local conditions. Use: “For rural users we’ll 因地制宜: SMS first, app later.”
• 统筹兼顾 (tǒng chóu jiān gù) — balance multiple goals. Use: “统筹兼顾 cost, UX, and reliability in the roadmap.”

Execute Step by Step (avoid overreach, show progress)

• 循序渐进 (xún xù jiàn jìn) — proceed in ordered steps. Use: “Roll out in three waves—循序渐进.”
• 稳扎稳打 (wěn zhā wěn dǎ) — steady, solid advance. Use: “QA first, then deploy—稳扎稳打.”
• 事半功倍 (shì bàn gōng bèi) — half the effort, double the result. Use: “Automate checks for 事半功倍 gains.”

Iterate & Improve (learn fast, trim excess)

• 举一反三 (jǔ yī fǎn sān) — infer more from one case. Use: “Fix this class of bugs via 举一反三 patterns.”
• 精益求精 (jīng yì qiú jīng) — pursue excellence further. Use: “After MVP, 精益求精 the onboarding flow.”
• 去繁就简 (qù fán jiù jiǎn) — remove clutter, keep essentials. Use: “UI refactor: 去繁就简 to raise conversion.”

Teamwork & Coordination (divide work, push together)

• 分工合作 (fēn gōng hé zuò) — division of labor and cooperation. Use: “Docs, data, deploy—分工合作 for speed.”
• 各司其职 (gè sī qí zhí) — each fulfills their role. Use: “With 各司其职, incidents clear faster.”
• 同舟共济 (tóng zhōu gòng jì) — pull together to overcome. Use: “Ops and support 同舟共济 during outages.”

Risk Control & Decision (choose, hedge, act)

• 三思而行 (sān sī ér xíng) — think thrice, then act. Use: “Security change? 三思而行 + peer review.”
• 权衡利弊 (quán héng lì bì) — weigh pros and cons. Use: “We’ll 权衡利弊: latency vs. cost.”
• 当机立断 (dāng jī lì duàn) — decide promptly when timing matters. Use: “Traffic spiking—当机立断 add capacity.”

Conflict & Constraint Handling (unlock blockers)

• 化繁为简 (huà fán wéi jiǎn) — turn complexity into simplicity. Use: “Merge forms—化繁为简 reduces drop-offs.”
• 变通权宜 (biàn tōng quán yí) — flexible, expedient workaround. Use: “Holiday rush? 变通权宜 with a manual queue.”
• 各取所长 (gè qǔ suǒ cháng) — use each party’s strengths. Use: “Agency designs, in-house integrates—各取所长.”

Root-Cause & Prevention (close the loop)

• 追本溯源 (zhuī běn sù yuán) — trace to the origin. Use: “Postmortem must 追本溯源 beyond symptoms.”
• 防微杜渐 (fáng wēi dù jiàn) — stop small issues early. Use: “Lint + alerts = 防微杜渐 for regressions.”
• 长治久安 (cháng zhì jiǔ ān) — long-term stability. Use: “Refactor for 长治久安 rather than hotfixes.”

Placement Patterns (plug and play)

• Chengyu + noun: “a 去繁就简 layout,” “循序渐进 rollout.”
• Predicate use: “This plan is 统筹兼顾.”
• Clause pivot: “权衡利弊后，我们选择方案B.”

Mini Templates (copy, then personalize)

• Diagnosis ticket: “Logs first—抽丝剥茧; remove rumors—去伪存真; summary at 17:00.”
• Rollout plan: “Pilot → region → nationwide (循序渐进, 稳扎稳打). Rollback path ready (未雨绸缪).”
• Decision note: “We 权衡利弊; latency wins. 当机立断 to scale nodes by 30%.”

Quick Practice (choose the best chengyu)

1. Simplify forms to raise completion → 去繁就简 / 化繁为简.
2. Prepare backups before peak season → 未雨绸缪.
3. Balance user needs and cost → 统筹兼顾.
4. Trace the real source of failures → 追本溯源.
5. Deploy in phases, not all at once → 循序渐进 / 稳扎稳打.

Common Pitfalls (and fixes)

• Using a criticism chengyu instead of a solution one: swap 纸上谈兵 (critique) for 循序渐进 (plan) + an action.
• Stacking too many idioms: one per step keeps it clean.
• Vague without actions: follow each chengyu with a metric, owner, or deadline.

Takeaway: Build a problem-solving line with four moves—抽丝剥茧 (diagnose) → 统筹兼顾 (plan) → 循序渐进/稳扎稳打 (execute) → 追本溯源/防微杜渐 (learn & prevent). One precise chengyu + one concrete action = clear, persuasive problem-solving.