How many times have you been physically doing something—such as setting up an event, working on a side project, or rashly preventing a household malfunction—when you thought to yourself, “Damn, I really need an [insert random object] right now.” It seems that when we need that very specific item to solve our current problems, it is nowhere to be found and the store that sells it is closed on the weekends. You may have sworn you owned that spool of fishing line, that tiny allen wrench, or that bag of clothes pins, but when your world needed it most, it vanished. Alas, you might mumble a curse and accept defeat.

But, if you’re extremely determined or have a looming deadline, you might not take “no” for an answer. The next step these individuals would take is attempting to find a resembling replacement for this missing object, and this is called “macgyvering.” A macgyver situation is one in which the solution has to be fashioned out of whatever objects are within your proximity. If the word “macgyver” is too much of a mouthful, I would call this type of creative resourcefulness DIY detecting. This is the skill we will be amplifying.

As someone with a creative background and who engages in physical recreations such as woodworking, model-building, crocheting, etc., it’s not uncommon to come across an instance when DIY detecting is needed. Specifically in woodworking, there were countless moments when I felt truly challenged and exercised every ounce of brain activity to arrive at a solution. How can I clamp two round wood-bends together if the clamps themselves couldn’t grip to a flat surface, resulting in the clamps slipping off? How can I tell how deep a hole is that I drilled without a drillstop? How can I shave down this plank of wood if the planer machine is broken? Although these sentences may sound like a bunch of gibberish, I was as completely stumped and confused in those situations as you were reading about it. But constantly being placed in these tricky circumstances pushed the boundaries of my everyday thinking, allowing me to continuously improve this skill throughout time.

I realize that not everyone finds themselves in mind-exerting activities like woodworking all the time. How do you learn this ability if you aren’t often placed in these scenarios?

An Introduction to DIY Detecting

When broken down, DIY detecting requires a secret ability: optimism. The second ability DIY detecting requires is a foundational skill that everyone possesses to a certain degree: observation. Using extensive observation to problem solve is the key component to a successful solution, as well as being overtly hopeful about coming to the right result. But I can’t just tell you to look harder at your surroundings or to be confident while problem solving. Instead, I’m going to deconstruct these skills even further; as far back as your childhood, even.

Let’s revisit an old Nickelodeon cartoon that guided many of us through jungle adventures and fox-swiping affairs. If you’ve guessed it already, yes, I’m talking about my dear friend Dora the Explorer. Not only did Dora teach us beginner-friendly Spanish and how to stand up to fuzzy bullies, but her spirited journeys often required her to problem solve through an optimistic lens. Dora and her companion monkey, Boots, would frequently encounter various situations on their swashbuckling adventures, ranging from needing to rescue a baby jaguar to crossing a roaring river. To brainstorm the best resolution, Dora would pull out her extremely handy friend, Backpack. Backpack would sing a little tune, then present Dora and Boots the assortment of objects that she had residing inside her. These objects would range from rope to ladders, from towels to trumpets, from buckets to binoculars. From these options, Dora, Boots, and the audience would pick out the best item to resolve their predicament with, resulting in a solved problem and cheerful hoorahs from the television screen.

We may not have access to a mystical, bottomless knapsack that can summon a collection of miscellaneous articles, but we do have the limitless ability of observation and improvisation. Applying these concepts of Dora and her friend Backpack, we can turn this creative resourcing into a real life metaphor. This leads to the term I have coined as the backpack theory.

The Backpack Theory

This theory suggests that whenever getting into a pickle that requires you to be resourceful and handy, the right object or solution is always within reach. It doesn’t matter where you are or what the situation is; if it requires some DIY detecting, the answer is incredibly likely to be right beside you. Humans are amongst the most resourceful beings on the planet, and with our developed minds, we can find an innovative way to solve any problem more times than not. In truth, it’s just a matter of whether we believe we can solve the problem.

“Wherever you look, you see what you are looking for.” - Ram Dass

Granted, I’ve been in a few DIY situations myself that I wasn’t able to puzzle out. Sometimes the universe will challenge you with a difficult problem and you aren’t able to pinpoint the correct solution. Using the backpack theory, however, may be a shortcut towards growing your problem-solving and resourcefulness skills, and bring you one step closer to deciphering that mystery solution. With the backpack theory, I’m asking you to physically imagine you’ve been absorbed through the television and are in the world of Dora. In this universe, the answer to your problems are always accessible and at hand, no matter the jungle-swinging adventure. Now, bring this mindset back into our own reality. Every situation can be solved. Treat the world like it’s Backpack.

The backpack theory has assisted me many times throughout my own DIY emergencies and here is a memorable example of it in action. For a photography class in art school, we had to recreate an old development technique for creating photographs. I developed a small series of photos using the cyanotype method, which requires your pieces of paper to be brushed with a chemical formula, placed in the sunlight, and then submerged in cold water for the image to appear. Once the paper is dipped in water, it has to be hung up to dry properly. I was performing this procedure in my small apartment, which did not have clotheslines and was cursed with sealed windows. So, how could I hang these up? It was time to get creative and to DIY detect.

DIY Detecting in Action

The first step is to be doubtless of your abilities. The true key to the backpack theory is to be confident that the answer is always there. I would genuinely imagine that I had the powers of Backpack and that I had access to exactly everything that I needed at that moment. The answer was with me in the room, so I just needed to find it.

The second step of this detecting process is to really observe your environment. What is near you? To help remember some standout items in your general surroundings, it may be helpful to treat your search like an old iSpy picture book. “I spy a magnet. I spy a spool of yarn. I spy a jar of safety pins. I spy a dog leash.” Take note of the objects that are around you and organize them in a mental list. In my cyanotype scenario, I took note of clutter on my desk, the shelves on the walls, and in the bins underneath my bed.

Next, remember what you originally needed to fix this situation. I needed a clothesline with clothespins to hang my photographs, but since I didn’t have that, I would now have to fashion something similar. The image of a clothesline and pins is what I kept in mind.

Now, observe that mental inventory of objects that you have, and pick the best objects that will assist you. The answers should be whichever possessions resemble the original “correct” items the closest. For example, if you originally needed scotch tape to solve a problem but didn't have any, then maybe that bottle of glue or roll of electrical tape you spotted would work best in replacement. The main question you should be asking yourself when figuring this out is not “which of these things might work?” but “which of these things is the answer?” Approach these items with the mindset that you have the right solution within view, just like Backpack always does. “Optimistic individuals are more resilient in the face of adversity,” says international motivational speaker Devon Harris.(1) “When confronted with setbacks, they often view them as temporary and solvable rather than permanent and insurmountable. This mindset enables quicker recovery and inspires creative solutions.” Presumptively, the more positive you are that you can solve a certain problem, the more likely you are to find that answer.(2) 

Amongst my many observations, I had identified a few binder clips, pink yarn, and my shower rod as the correct result for hanging my photographs. Using these objects, I constructed my very own “clothesline” by looping pieces of yarn through the binder clips and around the shower rods, then fastened each photograph in the clips to keep them suspended and evenly exposed to the air. Voila, the problem was fixed!

The reason I was successful with my makeshift solution was my confidence in being able to identify and solve the problem at hand. If I had felt defeated and unmotivated to produce my own resourceful solution, do you think I would’ve been able to create that DIY clothesline? Probably not. Instead, I approached the issue with an optimistic perspective—just like our friend Dora—and chose to fully believe that the answer resided near and within me. And it did.

Getting into positions that require some sort of creative resourcefulness are inevitable throughout life. We are constantly being probed with random challenges left and right. However, it’s our reaction and ability to fix it that can really define the person that we are. Being able to simply eye your surroundings and imagine the results through your innovative imagination is a skill that many envy, but anyone can truly have. You now know to adapt this skillset, all you have to do is remember the backpack theory: have confidence in your potential and observe your environment. Channel your inner Backpack—objects for solutions are closer than you think!

Exercises

Feeling like practicing the backpack theory to further build your creative resourcefulness skill? Check out these additional challenges to get your brain gears in motion:

• Simple but tricky. Put a sticky note, index card, or small piece of paper on the ground. Figure out a way to pick up this paper using objects in the room with you. (Idea: a broom stick with a piece of gum!)

• Quick! The floor is lava. What items can you use to get from one end of the room to the other? Can you create a “boat” or efficient way to move across the floor?

• Let’s go fishing. If you have access to a staircase/balcony, place a small basket, bucket, or similar object with a handle at the bottom floor. Using objects in your proximity, fashion a fishing line to hook onto and lift the object to the second floor. (Idea: any sort of string/thread/yarn with a few paperclips tied to the end!)

Works Cited

1. Harris D. Practicing Optimism: The Power of a Positive Mindset. Devon Harris [Internet]. 2024 Nov 13 [cited 2026 Mar 10]. Available from: https://devonharris.com/practicing-optimism-the-power-of-a-positive-mindset/

2. Rastogi R. Role and efficacy of Positive Thinking on Stress Management and Creative Problem Solving for Adolescents. Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology. 2017 Nov 22;Vol. 2.

Credit

Editor: Piper Ruth

Research Consultant: Emmerson Borthwick

Illustrator: Adri Chavez

**The Beamish Club does not offer professional medical advice, treatments, nor diagnosis. Anything written and published by The Beamish Club is not a direct replacement for medical treatment. If you have health concerns, please advise your local health and mental health professionals for treatment plans.**