The hardest problem, is to figure out things. Once we know how things work, we just have to go through the motions and produce an output.
Much harder is when we face we the uncertain, when we don’t know exactly how things work, and figuring out things is part of the job. Running experiments is the only way to learn, and the rewards are also usually the greatest. Basic research, and even sales and marketing tend to be in this later category, where uncertainty is high.
It is ironic though that organizations never look for someone whose pitch is “I sorta-kinda know which way we should go, I know enough so that we don’t explode or go to jail, and I have the determination to keep trying”. They go instead with “been there, done that”.
But that’s not where the biggest value is.