Riddles and puzzles’ function are to stretch our minds. Riddles and puzzles are a good exercise for the mind. Riddles and puzzles are not designed to give up answers easily. We have to work for them. Sometimes, we give up too soon and get upset with ourselves, only to kick ourselves after looking at the answer in the answer section of the book.
However when we do work for the answer to a puzzle, we’re rewarded with “aha moment” —a feeling of satisfaction, a glimpse of enlightenment and understanding, and with a gold nugget of new perspectives. Milton Erickson enjoys using riddles and puzzles to help the subjects to expand their minds.