Thinking Outside the Box
You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night when you pass a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus:
- An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
- An old friend who once saved your life.
- The dreamboat you have been wanting to meet and hopefully marry someday.
Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing that there could only be one passenger in your car?
Think carefully, before you continue reading.
This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of a job application. You could pick up the old lady because she is going to die, and thus you should save her first. Or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life, and this would be the perfect chance to pay him back. However, you may never be able to find the girl of your dreams again.
The winning candidate, who was hired out of 200 applicants, had no trouble coming up with this answer.
She simply answered: “I would give the car keys to my old friend and let him take the lady to the hospital. Then I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the girl of my dreams.”
Sometimes, we gain more by giving up our stubborn thought limitations and “Thinking outside of the Box.”