The Oreo Solution to Creative Problem Solving

The commercial starts off with music by Tchaikovsky and three little ballerinas dressed in pink. It’s time for a break. They get out glasses and milk. They pour what milk they have into three glasses and sit down to enjoy Oreos and milk. But, oh my gosh, there’s a problem. The glasses are thin and tall and the milk is so far from the top. They can’t reach the milk, even with their tiny little fingers, to dunk their cookies. What can they do?

The solution: they pour all of the milk into one glass and take turns dunking their Oreos.

The Oreo Solution: instant gratification can stimulate simple decisions.

How often do we brainstorm, and plan, and theorize, when a simple solution will do? Also, how often do we see the simple solution, but look away because it seems too simple?

We know that we live in a complicated world, so obviously we need a complicated answer. Wrong. I like to look for the easiest answer. One nice thing about the easiest solution is that if it doesn’t work, you can move instantly to another easy answer.

I remember a problem concerning a new office building that rose high into the sky. At quitting time there was a rush to leave and the elevators seemed to take forever. People had to wait . . . and when people have to wait, they complain. A study could have been done, but no matter what, more elevators were out of the question.

The simple solution? Mirrors. Mirrors were added to the walls by the elevators. Perhaps, not as satisfying as an Oreo and milk, but they worked. People adjusted their clothing, combed their hair, and added make-up. The wait no longer seemed so long.

The solution was easy. The solution was quick. The solution made everyone happy.

Sometimes the simple solution is right before our eyes. We just need to take advantage of it, dunk our cookies, and smile into the mirror.



The Oreo Solution to Creative Problem Solving - To learn more about this author, visit Don Doman's Website.

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