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So, how did you do?
Did you manage to read my mind?

Well, the odds are that you got the same thing that I was thinking about 80% of the time. But this doesn't mean that you are gifted with great ESP. You see, the tests you have just completed have nothing to do with mind reading and a lot to do with probability and mind control.

Conditioning | Thinking outside the box | Throwing a spanner in the works

Conditioning
Because I told you to 'relax and see where your mind takes you', you probably settled on the first images that came into your mind. The answers I gave were those that were the most likely to have been your immediate thoughts – given the framework, wording and conditioning that I built into each of the questions. And, because most people feel pressured by the slightly complicated wording of the questions, it was likely that you would not choose to change your mind from those initial decisions.

Thinking outside the box
So what does this mean?
If you had a less than 80% success rate, you're more of a free spirit, less likely to follow the crowd and less likely to respond in a traditional manner when given challenges or forced to make quick decisions under pressure.

If you were 'successful', don't feel disheartened. It doesn't mean that you are always predictable. You just unconsciously responded to the conditioning techniques that I built into the questions.

However, you should be aware that similar techniques are used all the time in everyday life.

For example, most of us have been stopped in the street by people asking us questions about a certain product or service. It is likely that those 'market researchers' were using similar techniques to get us to give them the answers they wanted, rather than the ones we would give if we took a little longer to consider our answers and didn't feel pressured to make snap decisions.

The more time we take to consider the questions or challenges we are faced with in our lives, the more likely we are to come up with more creative or individual answers and solutions. This is described as 'thinking outside of the box' and is a skill utilised by many of the world's leading creative companies.

Throwing a spanner in the works
The trick is to detach yourself from the problem and see the context in which it operates. Much of the work can be done by separating yourself from the mental images you make when you consider a problem – 'stepping back' in your mind and seeing those mental pictures at arm's length.

When more complex problems in life are being considered, you want to be able to ask:

• What is everybody presuming to be true here?
• What is the box within which everyone is thinking?
• What are the unspoken rules to which everyone is adhering?

Then you can start to think outside the box, or throw a spanner in the works by not obeying the same rules as everyone else. This shouldn't be anti-social – you're not purposely going against the grain, just thinking independently of it.

The strategy used by many people is to remain too involved in the problem, too 'inside the box'. Rather than stepping back, they examine the problem from the inside. This brings the emotions to the fore and restricts the capacity for good decision-making.

By thinking 'outside the box', undermining the basic presumptions of a situation, you can begin to think creatively.

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