Lateral Thinking: Why Most People Miss the Obvious Way Out

We all know how to follow steps.

Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 — done.

That's how school taught us to solve problems.

The problem is: real life doesn't care about your steps.

The Mirror Solution

Here's a story.

A small hotel in Japan kept getting complaints about their slow elevator.

They couldn't afford a new elevator.

They couldn't speed it up.

What did they do?

They installed mirrors inside the elevator.

Complaints dropped to almost zero.

Turns out, people weren't upset about waiting.

They were upset about being bored while waiting.

That's lateral thinking.

You don't fix the elevator.

You fix how people feel about the elevator.

What Exactly Is Lateral Thinking?

It's not magic. It's not creativity. It's not "thinking outside the box."

It's just this:

Stop assuming the problem is what it looks like.

Ask dumb questions. Flip the goal.

See if the rule you're following is even a real rule.

Real-World Lateral Thinking Hacks

🔁 Reverse the Goal

Goal: Get users to sign up faster

Flip: Make them wait before they can sign up

Outcome: They feel more invested when they finally get in

Yes, it's weird. That's the point.

🔍 Find the Fake Constraint

"We can't do that because our system doesn't allow it."

Okay—but who built the system?

You? Then change it.

So many business problems are just self-imposed logic fences.

🧩 Combine Unrelated Things

A delivery app added driver selfie verification not for security—

—but to stop stolen accounts. It worked.

Lateral thinking often feels like mixing two things that don't belong together—until they do.

The Bottom Line

Lateral thinking doesn't mean being clever.

It means being willing to look stupid for a second.

Because asking the wrong question might reveal the right problem.

Key Takeaways

• Lateral thinking means solving the real problem, not the one that looks obvious
• Try reversing goals, questioning rules, combining unexpected ideas
• Don't optimize what doesn't matter. Step back. Flip the frame
• Sometimes mirrors are better than motors

Try This Now

Next time you face a problem:

1. Ask: "What if the opposite was true?"

2. Question: "Is this even the real problem?"

3. Wonder: "What would a child do?"

The best solutions are often hiding in plain sight—just sideways from where everyone else is looking.