This would be trite except for the fact that it is not currently the case. Most people have been trained to solve canned exercises. They have not been educated to solve real problems. There is a vast difference between the two. Exercises are preformulated such that they have one and only one solution.
Problems are in the eye of the stakeholder.
They thus vary from stakeholder to stakeholder. Before real problems can be solved, they must first be formulated. This requires that one be skilled in critical thinking. Critical thinking is the most fundamental and basic skill that is required of leaders. Critical thinking is the ability to see problems from multiple perspectives, expose critical underlying assumptions, challenge and reverse one's assumptions, and reformulate basic arguments.