Can you pass the Simplicity Test...?

The simplest solution is usually the best... 

William of Ockham was born in 1287 and died in 1347, and became famous for the development of a principle of decision making called Ockhams Razor, which states that;

"Among competing hypotheses, the hypothesis with the fewest assumptions should be selected."

The principle has since been translated in to the KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid approach much loved in contemporary business books and workshops...

In my experience - we do tend to make things too complicated. We think too much and talk ourselves out of achievement and success because we ignore the obvious...

To check this out - have a look at the Problem below...

It is known as the Circle Problem and has fascinated mathematicians and psychologists for decades - and it is a simple demonstration of complexity failing over simplicity...

The Problem is this;

Look at the diagram on the right. 

It shows a Circle with a Radius of 10cm and a box with a diagonal line struck through it set within the circle.

Given that the Radius is 10cm, the box height is 6.35 cm;

What is the length of the diagonal line X - to two decimal places..?

Remember;

Area of a Circle = Pi x Radius Squared.
Diameter of a Circle = 2 x Radius.
Circumference of a Circle = Pi x Diameter.

Spend a few minutes playing with the Problem - you may find a piece of paper and a pencil handy to make notes and explore the calculations...

The Answer is at the base of this Blog - no cheating... 

How did you get on...?

8% of people work out the correct answer within 2 minutes - 92% of people take considerably longer, with around 35% of people simply giving up because they never did Maths at school or it just looks to hard...

Here is what usually happens...

Our minds asses the Problem and our instinctive or emotional reaction kicks in. For many of us the reaction is;

"I can't do it it looks too complicated..."

Once we get over this, we attempt to use logic to arrive at a solution. We trawl through elegant equations that we crammed for our GCSE's all those years ago, consider getting a ruler out and measuring the line to save time, or we do the sensible thing and ask a 12 year old what the answer actually is...

We over complicate the solution because we are thinking too much - so much that we miss the obvious, get frustrated and eventually give up..

Same in Business and in Life - those who are highly educated and considered the brightest, do not always achieve the most, because they are thinking too much. In fact we miss the best opportunities in life because we talk ourselves out of them...

How to stop thinking so much...

1. Change your environment - get out of the office and walk around...

2. Trust your Instinct - we are all brighter than we think...

3. Tell Yourself - positive strokes only; " I can" rather than " I can't"

4. Create - draw, paint, play and engage the right brain for a change..

5. Trust - yourself to get it right, it reduces the risks...

6. Ask - a 12 year old for advice; they know all the best answers...


And finally...

The Answer...

The answer is 10.00cm...

If you simply change the diagonal line in the box to dissect it the other way, you will see that it is the same as the Radius of the Circle.

Works for any Radius of any Circle or Height of Box...

I bet you try this out on your colleagues and friends - just be carefull with youngsters; they are brighter than you think...

Drop me a note to let me know how you got on...

In the meantime - have a great week, I look forward to hearing from you...