Friday, September 10, 2010

You are here: Home / Critical Thinking / If You Loved Digit Demo…

If You Loved Digit Demo…

December 12, 2007 by Dr. Steve Bedwell  
Filed under Critical Thinking

4 Comments

Here’s a message I received from Tracy Fortune, an Office Manager/EMR Coordinator at a cardiology practice. I met her after a recent keynote I gave in Michigan:

Steve,

I really enjoy your email messages. I thought of you when I received this funny email. Enjoy!

Are you dumber than a pre-schooler? Which way is the bus below traveling? To the left or to the right?

 bus.jpg

Can’t make up your mind? Look carefully at the picture again.

Still don’t know? Pre-schoolers all over the United States were shown this picture asked the same question. 90% of the pre-schooler’s gave this answer. “The bus is traveling to the left.”

When asked, “Why do you think the bus is traveling to the left?” They answered: “Because you can’t see the door to get on the bus.”

So, are you dumber than a pre-schooler?

Tracey

Tags:

Comments

4 Responses to “If You Loved Digit Demo…”
  1. Dr. Steve Bedwell says:
    December 13, 2007 at 7:51 am

    Hey Tracy,

    Seems I’m dumber than a pre-schooler!

    What a great example of how our perspective is limited by our experience. Thanks for sending it.

    Notice how asking a different question about the bus: "How would I get on it?" would have enabled us to solve the problem immediately.

    In real-life, asking a different question about a problem can trigger a fresh perspective and an unexpected solution.

    Out of interest, do you have any young children? If so, did they solve it? My wife and I don’t have any kids to experiment on :-)

    Have a great week,

    Steve

  2. Trudy Rawlings says:
    March 13, 2008 at 9:45 am

    Steve,
    Seems I am dumber than a preschooler. WOW! Perspective is everything. If we just step back and look at things differently we would learn so much, especially how not to react until you look at things with a different perspective. Thanks for your notes, I truly enjoy them.
    Trudy

  3. Robin Cervantes says:
    November 6, 2009 at 8:27 am

    Hi Tracy & Steve,

    I apparently AM dumber than a preschooler! LOL! But I love the challenge to change perspective. Thanks! Now I’m off to torture all my friends & family!

    Take Care,
    Robin

  4. Dr. Steve Bedwell says:
    November 6, 2009 at 4:01 pm

    Hi Robin,

    Thanks for your comment.

    “Now I’m off to torture all my friends & family!”

    …I’m shocked to hear you’re using your Perspective Power for evil :-)

    Seems we’re all dumber than a preschooler. If you want to feel even dumber, try this puzzle for size :-)

    http://www.stevebedwell.com/bl.....le-puzzle/

    It illustrates an interesting quirk in the way we approach problem-solving. And – yes – what you need to solve the “Three People Puzzle” is multiple perspectives.

    Good luck. Let me know how you get on,

    Steve

Speak Your Mind

Tell us what you're thinking...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!