On many occasions it is difficult for us to question a certain way of doing things. Imagine that you go to work in a certain company and they explain to you what their way of working is so that you can adapt to their system. You may not understand the usefulness of some of the things they explain to you. However, since you are new, you prefer to shut up in case there is something that escapes you and you will have time to understand it later..
Time passes and you still don't understand why certain things are done in a certain way. You think there may be better and perhaps more productive alternatives for the company. One day you meet one of your superiors and express your doubts to him. To your surprise, you do not receive clear answers to your questions.
You are left with the impression that your boss also does not know why the company acts in a certain way. You later find out that the previous boss already allowed that way of working. And possibly the previous bosses too. The new boss has only followed in the footsteps of his predecessors without questioning anything.
The monkey and banana paradox explains this situation. Personally, every time I think about this paradox, I relate it to the workplace. However, it can be applied to any area, friends or family..
"In an experiment, five monkeys were put into a room. In the center of it they placed a ladder, and at the top, some bananas. When one of the monkeys climbed the ladder to access the bananas, the experimenters sprayed the rest of the monkeys with a stream of cold water.
After a while, the monkeys assimilated the connection between the use of the ladder and the jet of cold water, so that when one of them ventured to ascend a search for a banana, the rest of the monkeys prevented it with violence. In the end, and even before the temptation of food, no monkey dared to climb the ladder.
At that time, the experimenters removed one of the five initial monkeys and they brought a new one into the room.
The new monkey naturally climbed the ladder in search of the bananas. As soon as the others saw his intentions, they pounced on him and slammed him down before the jet of cold water made its appearance. After repeating the experience several times, in the end the new monkey understood that it was better for his integrity to give up climbing the ladder.
The experimenters again substituted for one of the monkeys from the initial group. The first substituted monkey participated with special interest in the beatings of the new climbing monkey.
Subsequently, the process was repeated with the third, fourth and fifth monkeys, until a time came when all the monkeys from the initial experiment had been replaced..
At that moment, the experimenters came across something surprising. None of the monkeys in the room had ever received the cold water stream. However, none dared to climb to get the bananas. If they could have asked the primates why they did not climb to reach the food, the answer would probably have been this "I do not know. It has always been this way".
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