Lately, I’ve realized the importance of “thinking outside the box.” In all aspects of my life, I’ve questioned — What do I really know? I’ve applied this way of thinking in a lot of areas — especially science and religion. I don’t think you can grasp quantum physics without it. There’s the classical physicist who puts his head down and calculates or there’s the quantum physicist who thinks outside the box where no one else goes, because he isn’t constrained by the traditional rules. I have a tendency to be the head down and calculate kind-of-person. I like to color inside the lines because it feels like success. But I won’t digress —
The term “thinking outside the box” originates from a classic puzzle known as the Nine-Dot Puzzle, which became popular in the 1970s and 1980s among management consultants and psychologists as a way to illustrate creative problem-solving and breaking conventional patterns of thought.
Here’s a breakdown of its history and meaning:
The Nine-Dot Puzzle (Origin)
I remember the nine dot puzzle — I remember drawing nine dots on a piece of paper and asking an unsuspecting friend to connect the dots with only four straight lines without lifting your pencil.
- Puzzle setup: The puzzle involves a 3×3 grid of dots, making nine dots in total. The challenge is to connect all nine dots using four straight lines without lifting your pen.
- Solution: The solution requires drawing lines that extend beyond the boundary of the dots, which means thinking beyond the perceived limits of the grid.
Most people fail the puzzle initially because they assume (wrongly) that they must stay within the boundaries of the dots—a mental constraint they impose on themselves. The solution demonstrates how creative thinking often requires stepping beyond self-imposed boundaries. (Or tradition-imposed boundaries.)
When did this puzzle become popular?
- The Nine-Dot Puzzle was featured in John Adair’s 1969 book on creativity.
- The phrase was widely popularized by management consultant Mike Vance, a creative director at Walt Disney Productions, who used it as part of his workshops.
It has since become a metaphor for breaking out of conventional thinking patterns and is widely used in business, education, and motivational contexts.
Metaphorical Meaning
Thinking outside the box means:
- Challenging assumptions
- Breaking free from traditional or limited thinking
- Considering unconventional approaches to problems
Applied to my Life
In a way it sounds so simple, just break free from traditional thinking. But it’s really not that easy. At least at first. One of the positive outcomes of Covid was my ability to withdraw not only from crowded spaces but from traditional thinking — everything from religious teachings, to physics. It seems now, more than ever people are questioning if what they believed was true, really is the truth. With regard to quantum physics, I am beginning to think that we create what we see. I have even thought that people prophesying that we are in the end times are actually pushing that forward — creating it. If that is correct, then unknowingly they become the instigators. Like the climate-change cult — everything you see supports your theory or belief.
