I was chatting to one of my bosses just now. It was an enlightening one. He told me about his experience of interviewing fresh graduates. At first sight, he could tell who were overseas and local graduates. Local graduates tend to conform and work through the safe way whereas overseas ones dare to think out of the box. Of course, he did turn round to say that both were as capable but at work, he does not wish to employ people to think the same way. One of the questions he posted to the interviewees was 'Do you know how many golf balls are there in Singapore?' It was a question without an answer as nobody knows anyway. What he was looking for was the process interviewees went through to obtain a conclusion. Out of the 5 fresh grads he interviewed, there were 4 who thought the same (and rather safe) way. The 5th person gave a different but not so logical reply. Despite that, he would choose the 5th one (at least) because he thinks outside the conventional way and is not influenced by others' opinions. He valued flexibility and those who dares to admit to their shortcomings at work.
What valuable advices!
