215) No Right Answer

I had a marathon interview today, and at one point I was asked one of those infamous brain teaser questions. You know, the ones of Google and Microsoft legend, the impossible ones without actual answers that are meant to test your thought process. I'd built those types of questions up in my head, afraid of what nervous chatter would spout from my mouth when put on the spot.

Surprisingly, I kind of enjoyed answering the question. I talked out loud as I thought, which is refreshing since you'd get some sideways stares if you did that in response to a standard interview question. I actually surprised myself in that my answer was a verbal representation of my problem solving skills, and the different angles at which I look at things. Since that process is usually internal, it's hard to be self-aware of it. Once you stop focusing on actually getting to an answer and focus more on how to get to said answer, it becomes a very telling exercise.

Now you try: How many ping-pong balls can you fit in a 747?