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Lateral Thinking OUTSIDE the box
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Morning!
Quick! Tell me! Of what does the picture for this blog post remind you????
If you say
"Sunny-side up egg that went wrong in its childhood!"
You’re wrong!
How ’bout:
"Top view of stylish judge fashion wig that just never caught on!"
El-wrongo again!
It’s actually the unwrapped foil that contained the mass of uncooked brown rice you see in the bowl next to it. And no, the dark splotch on the aluminum foil is NOT "brown rice color"; instead (get this!)
The brown rice has something in it that REACTS with the aluminum…and discolors it.
Think about this now - a METAL is mercilessly devoured by a GRAIN.
This is what arrived in my inbox from Nicky510, along with an explanation (really fascinating) and a segue into the word CRISIS - the Chinese word for that is composed of the two following concepts.
Disaster
and
Opportunity
I was reminded of this myself over the weekend, when Honorable Daughter 1 flung herself down next to me on the bed where I was actually (yes! it happens!) relaxing and said, "MOM! I need to drop an egg and not have it break!"
I mean, hey. Don’t all kids want to do this?
It turns out it’s part of a science experience she’ll be doing in her tech ed class. Now, this particular young’un of mine thinks very scientifically and can solve the majority of problems that require sheer brainpower….but when it comes to thinking OUTSIDE the box, she’s still in major learning mode.
I call it, casting one’s mind to the universe and seeing what rises in the imagination!
Think about it. Every time you encounter a problem (ahem, opportunity in disguise), you can remember what has worked before in the past, or research it online….OR, choose to say, what really weird concept can I apply to this that sane human beings would never consider?
Answers to that last question are what gives birth to greatness, I believe.
This process is called ‘lateral thinking’ and it’s one that I’ve introduced to my family years ago. It’s a really superb way of approaching unique problems….and can often give yourself an opportunity for far greater success then is generally obtained.
Here’s a typical lateral thinking puzzle:
A man lives on the twelfth floor of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. In the evening, he gets into the elevator, and, if there is someone else in the elevator — or if it was raining that day — he goes back to his floor directly. Otherwise, he goes to the tenth floor and walks up two flights of stairs to his apartment.
Why is this? If you know the answer, feel free to add it in the comments below.
As you can see, lateral thinking is ‘way way way WAY different than, well, normal thinking! But practiced regularily, it can really help you think outside the box.
Enjoy,
Barbara Ling
ps - speaking about lateral thinking:
Classic Lateral Thinking Challenges, Paul Sloane, Des M|
Five-minute Crime Lateral Thinking Puzzles (Puzzles Boo|
Mind-Bending Lateral Thinking Puzzles, ,|
Improve Your Lateral Thinking: Puzzles to Challenge You|
Lateral Thinking: Art Of The 1990S by Hugh Davies, Toby|
NEW BOOK Great Lateral Thinking Puzzles Sloane, Paul M|
Classic Lateral Thinking Puzzles by Edward Harshman, 03|
Classic Lateral Thinking Challenges, Paul Sloane, Des M|
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[...] was reminded of this during my morning posting of Lateral Thinking OUTSIDE the box over at my Personal Development [...]
If it’s raining either he is wet and wants to get inside and dry quickly, or his shoes are slippery and would slip on the stairs or are wet and would stain the carpet.
If someone is in the lift, he engages them in conversation
Nope!
He’s a midget and can only reach up to the 10th floor button. If someone is in the elevator, that person can press the correct floor button….but if not, he can only press up to the 10th and then has to get out and walk the rest of the way.
Neat thinking process, eh?
Barbara
Hi Barbara - I wouldn’t have guessed that. I thoght maybe he had arthritis and could only walk the two floors on sunny days as the arthritis is worse when it is raining. And someone in the lift to talk to encourages him to skip his daily exercise.
Cath Lawson’s last blog post..7 Questions To Ask Before You Launch A Business
Hey Cath,
I like your take on the question too! That’s very creative.
Best wishes, Barbara
a midget? nice.
i wanted to comment on this earlier, but was stumped. :O ah… what would my professors say…
kouji’s last blog post..captivating Capiz, a haiku poem
They’d say, think laddie, think!
Barbara