THINK ‘OUTSIDE OF THE BOX’

There is no problem without a solution.  Many of the problems can be solved thinking logically and doing it step by step. But there are certain problems which cannot be solved logically and they can be solved only by thinking outside of the box.  The story below is used to prove the importance of lateral thinking.   Lateral thinking which is thinking outside the box, requires a lot more creativity.  Lateral thinking is generative, logical thinking is selective.

Many years ago in a small Italian town, a merchant had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to the moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and ugly, fancied the merchant’s beautiful daughter so he proposed a bargain. He said he would forgo the merchant’s debt if he could marry the daughter. Both the merchant and his daughter were horrified by the proposal.

The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the black pebble, she would become the moneylender’s wife and her father’s debt would be forgiven. If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father’s debt would still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the merchant’s garden.  As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick her pebble from the bag.

What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to advise her, what would you have told her? How can you save her from not marrying the ugly money lender and at the same time save her father from jail?

What are the logical answers and what is the answer as per lateral thinking?

You may leave your answers in the comment box or send it to gvkallumpuram@gmail.com