# Give an example of thinking outside the box



## coleen

Can you tell me what would be a good reply to this question.It is a question I feel will come up in an interview I have next week, it is a second round interview and has come up in the second round of these interviews previously .


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## GeneralZod

Christopher Columbus deciding to sail the opposite way around the world to get to India.

A decision that also had far greater than planned for benefits illustrating why OOTB thinking can be good.


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## paddi22

what kind of industry does it relate to?


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## elefantfresh

Instead of sticking a sign up on those dangerous country bends saying "accident, black spot" actually taking the bend out of it and fixing the darn problem.


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## ClubMan

> *Give an example of thinking outside the box*
> 
> Can you tell me what would be a good reply to this question.


 Can I touch base with you ASAP to leverage some synergy on this because I'm busy pushing the envelope with some ballpark figures about a blue sky strawman 24x7 right now?


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## Caveat

ClubMan said:


> Can I touch base with you ASAP to leverage some synergy on this because I'm busy pushing the envelope with some ballpark figures about a blue sky strawman 24x7 right now?


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## Jimmy Mook

Robert Pires and Thierry Henry's botched penalty kick. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io6ojhQQHYE


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## CCOVICH

Using a search engine other than Google to come up with answers...


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## coleen

It relates to a business /admin position with some human resource work


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## snowdrop

ok - here's one but it relates to personal situation rather than business situation.

We have a radio boundary fence for our dogs.  New dog arrived but we'd lost/misplaced the flags that visually mark the boundary for training. Rang around looking for said flags but sometimes could only buy with the full system.

Spouse then had the idea of using bamboo skewers with sections of white plastic cut from shopping bags.  Easy peasy and no cost.

Thinking outside the box is really about looking at a problem, breaking it down, questioning assumptions and seeking alternatives.

on a business level - we also had a need for archival storage of docs and furniture etc.  Looked into these self storage units as solution but pretty expensive on an ongoing basis. then realised there was space for a 20' steel container on-site - purchased second hand container - its ideal, does the job perfectly (airtight, dry) and the contents on site and accessible rather than in an industrial estate.  Plus  within 12 months had paid for itself (in comparison to self storage), no ongoing costs plus has a residual resale value should we wish to dispose of it.

Hope that helps.


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## Pique318

that bit in The Great Escape when the german Gestapo officer said 'Good Luck' in english to the 2 escaped prisoners posing as germans, to which one of them replied "Thank You" thus giving the game away.


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## wanderer

If you find yourself constantly having to think outside the box, then your box is too small... make it bigger or get a bigger box.


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## Welfarite

Thinking outside the box:- "Hmmm, if I move before the lights change, the traffic might just be moving before I block up the whole junction on these yellow thingies..."


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## ubiquitous

Looking on websites for answers to questions instead of going to the bother of thinking about them.


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## Satanta

coleen said:


> Can you tell me what would be a good reply to this question.It is a question I feel will come up in an interview I have next week, it is a second round interview and has come up in the second round of these interviews previously .


If this question does come up in the interview, it will be in a form asking you for examples where you have "thought outside the box".



> ...looking at a problem from a new perspective without preconceptions, sometimes called a process of lateral thought.


 
Having general examples of lateral thinking is fine, but better if you can relate the thought process to your work and how you managed to create a better solution with some lateral thinking.


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## ClubMan

ubiquitous said:


> Looking on websites for answers to questions instead of going to the bother of thinking about them.


How is that thinking outside the box?


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## Buddyboy

I had to bring a (stray) dog to the vet yesterday.  When the vet wanted to weight the dog, the dog was having none of it.  We couldn't get her to stay on the weighing scales.

"Can you zero the scales" I asked the vet.  "Yes" she said.

So I stood on the scales and asked her to zero it. (I won't tell you what it said before she did so  )

I then got off the scales, picked up the dog, and got back on the scales.  The scales then showed the weight of the dog.

I looked at the vet and you could see the penny drop.  She said she never thought of doing that before.


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## GeneralZod

Buddyboy said:


> I looked at the vet and you could see the penny drop.  She said she never thought of doing that before.



And you're trusting your dog's health to this vet?


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## Satanta

Buddyboy said:


> I looked at the vet and you could see the penny drop. She said she never thought of doing that before.


To be honest, I'd consider this the standard way to weigh a dog rather than an original way.


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## Buddyboy

Satanta said:


> To be honest, I'd consider this the standard way to weigh a dog rather than an original way.


 

I'd tend to agree, but the scales has a dog sized plate, about 3' x 2' for the dog to stand on.

My main point was, by zeroing the scale with me on it, it negated the need to weigh me, weigh me and the dog, and subtract my weight to get the dogs weight. 

And as regards trusting the vet, yes I do. Veterinary skills are not the same as logic/mathematical skills.


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## ClubMan

Buddyboy said:


> I had to bring a (stray) dog to the vet yesterday.  When the vet wanted to weight the dog, the dog was having none of it.  We couldn't get her to stay on the weighing scales.
> 
> "Can you zero the scales" I asked the vet.  "Yes" she said.
> 
> So I stood on the scales and asked her to zero it. (I won't tell you what it said before she did so  )
> 
> I then got off the scales, picked up the dog, and got back on the scales.  The scales then showed the weight of the dog.
> 
> I looked at the vet and you could see the penny drop.  She said she never thought of doing that before.


Reminds me of the old _Tommy Cooper _joke:


> A man takes his Rottweiler to the vet. "My dog's cross-eyed, is there
> anything you can do for him? " "Well," says the vet, "let's have a look at
> him" So he picks the dog up and examines his eyes, then checks his teeth.
> Finally, he says "I'm going to have to put him down."
> "What? Because he's cross-eyed? "
> "No, because he's really heavy"


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## Firefly

ClubMan said:


> Reminds me of the old _Tommy Cooper _joke:


 
EVERY time I read that it gets funnier & funnier!


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## Buddyboy

Or the old Peter Sellers Joke.

Man walks into a bar, and goes up to a man sitting on at the bar with a dog beside him.

First man "does your dog bite?"
Man at bar "No."
First man then bends down to pet dog, and gets his hand savaged.

First man "I thought your dog doesn't bite!"
Man at bar (shrugging sholders gallic style)  "That is not my dog"


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