1. The problem is to understand how to solve equations simply and systematically. 2. The general formula or approach to solve an equation is to isolate the variable on one side. 3. Important rules include: you can add, subtract, multiply, or divide both sides of the equation by the same nonzero number without changing the equality. 4. For example, to solve $ax + b = c$, subtract $b$ from both sides: $$ax + b - b = c - b$$ which simplifies to $$ax = c - b$$ 5. Then divide both sides by $a$ (assuming $a \neq 0$): $$\frac{\cancel{a}x}{\cancel{a}} = \frac{c - b}{a}$$ which simplifies to $$x = \frac{c - b}{a}$$ 6. This shows the solution for $x$ in terms of $a$, $b$, and $c$. 7. Always check your solution by substituting back into the original equation. This is the basic method to solve linear equations.