IV = III +III

If you were allowed to move just one line to make this equation (IV = III +III) true, what would you do?  The answer from Jonah Lehrer’s new book Imagine: How Creativity Works is moving the first I to the right of the V changing the equation to VI = III +III.  (Those left brains among us are now very glad I provided the solution.)

The next equation is slightly more difficult.  Using the same rule (move just one line) to make this equation correct.  III = III + III.  The answer reveals something about the self imposed rules that undermine our creativity when problem solving.  Applying this insight to your business we gain some understanding as to the importance of enhancing awareness over increasing effort.

The typical top down management approach to solving problems is often a combination of larger carrots or bigger sticks the premise being that the solution lies in greater effort.  So let’s try.   Really concentrate this time.  Imagine that resolving the equation above will win you a trip to Tahiti or if the stick works better you might avoid being tazed.  Any luck?

We all have these scotomas or mental blind spots, which according to dictionary.com, are characterized by “the inability to understand or perceive certain matters”.  They can be as simple as the inability to see the movement of a single line or as complex as illusions about the efficiencies of our own service delivery process.  The critical word in this definition is inability.

The solution to this dis-ability is not found in increased effort but enhanced awareness.  Before we are able to see new solutions to seemingly intractable problems we must let go of all the answers we already know.  Have you solved the above equation yet?  Here is a hint.  Are you considering all of the lines?

If the hint didn’t help, maybe it is time for a nap.  A ten minute nap improves your memory and one NASA study showed that a 26-minute nap improved a pilot’s performance by more than 34 percent.  For those who don’t have time for a nap or patience for silly games here is the answer.

What if you moved the vertical line from the plus sign and laid it parallel to the other line to form another =.  Then the equation would be III = III = III.

For more insights into our propensity for misimpression respond to this note or send an email to randy@redshoesolutions.com  I will send you five simple exercises to inoculate your team against the deadly infection of misperception.