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Consulting Finance
Consulting Finance

Get Ready for Brainteasers of Any Kind

Piggy bank
Brainteaser: Piggy bank
Dad gives you money every day to put in your new piggy bank. He gives money to you in such a way that the money in the piggy bank doubles with each passing day. If you already have 1 cent in the piggy bank and Dad gives you 1 cent the first day, 2 cents the second day, 4 cents the third day and so on, then your piggy bank gets full on the 14th day. 1.On which day will your piggy bank be half-full? 2. In addition to Dad's contributions, if Mom also gave you 1 cent the first day, 2 cents the second day, 4 cents the third day and so on, then on which day would your piggy bank be about half-full?
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Hare and Tortoise
Brainteaser: Hare and Tortoise
Haretown and Tortoiseville are 84 miles apart. A hare travels at 10 miles per hour from Haretown to Tortoiseville, while a tortoise travels at 2 miles per hour from Tortoiseville to Haretown. If both set out at the same time, how many miles will the hare have to travel before meeting the tortoise en route?
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Rope around the Earth
Brainteaser: Rope around the Earth
Imagine a rope that fits snugly all the way around the Earth like a ring on a person's finger. Now imagine the rope is made just one meter longer and lifted uniformly off the surface until it is once again taut. What will its height be above the surface?
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Tennis balls
Brainteaser: Tennis balls
Glenn and Jason each have a collection of tennis balls. Glenn said that if Jason would give him 6 of his balls they would have an equal number; but, if Glenn would give Jason 6 of his balls, Jason would have 4 times as many balls as Glenn. How many balls does Jason have?
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Brainteasers are a helpful exercise to train your logical thinking.
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How many camper?
Brainteaser: How many camper?
Camp Pineveiw's cook, Margaret Johnson, was just about to begin preparing the picnic lunch for all the campers. She already knew she needed to fill 55 bowls of the same size and capacity with the same amount of food. When she was done, she decided to read the guidelines for the picnic, just out of curiosity. The guidelines said: 1. Every camper gets their own bowl of soup. 2. Every two campers will get one bowl of spaghetti to share. 3. Every three campers will get one bowl of salad to share. 4. All campers are required to have their own helping of salad, spaghetti, and soup. After some rapid calculations, Margaret was able to figure out how many campers were going to the picnic. Can you?
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Red and blue gems
Brainteaser: Red and blue gems
There are a hundred red gems and a hundred blue gems. The blue gems are priceless while the red gems equal wastage. You have two sacks, one labelled 'heads' and other one 'tails'. You have to distribute the gems any way you want into the two sacks. Then a coin will be flipped and you will be asked to pick up a single gem randomly from the corresponding sack. How will you distribute the gems between the sacks so that the odds of picking a blue gem are maximized?
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Equal
Brainteaser: Equal
If 12=6 and 6=3 Why doesn't 10=5? And what does 10 equal?
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Rock, paper and Scissors
Brainteaser: Rock, paper and Scissors
A teacher was having trouble getting her students to learn their facts, but she noticed that her students often played the game ""Rock, Paper, Scissors"". She made a game with similar rules in order to encourage the students to learn their facts. The class would be divided into three teams: Rock, Paper and Scissors. The teacher would ask the students a question and the class would raise their hands if they knew the answer. If the first person to answer the question correctly is in the Rock team, he or she would choose one player from the Scissors team to be eliminated. Similarly, if a player from the Scissors team was first to answer the question, then he or she would eliminate a member from the Paper team. Lastly, if a player from the Paper team was first to answer correctly, he or she would eliminate a member from the Rock team. The teacher would then continue asking questions until only one team still has members. That team would be declared the winner and all its members would win a small chocolate. However, as soon as she explained the rules to the class, one particularly smart student immediately found a large flaw that made the game unplayable. Can you do the same?
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Five of a Kind
Brainteaser: Five of a Kind
The first is needed to make quotes you see, And it often sticks up when it's time for noon tea. The second's biggest distinction is found Bearing the symbol of love that is bound. The third should be biggest but that can depend, Never standing alone or it may offend. The fourth is often used when making a selection Or if you should need a gun for protection. The fifth is the fattest and oddest by far, And can sometimes be found in a wrestling war. What are they?
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Ten Balls
Brainteaser: Ten Balls
You have 10 balls with you. A friend of yours asks you to place those ten balls in five lines such that each of the lines have exactly 4 balls on them. How do you have to arrange the balls?
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Rows and Columns
Brainteaser: Rows and Columns
You have to fill the grid in a manner that every row and column contains the digits 1 to 6. Also, make sure that the squares that are connected with each other must contain the same digit. Can you do it?
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Three Numbers
Brainteaser: Three Numbers
Can you think of three numbers that give a prime number as their product and also the difference between the second and first is equal to the difference between third and second?
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Barrel
Brainteaser: Barrel
There is a barrel with no lid and some wine in it. 'This barrel of wine is more than half full,' said Curly. 'No it's not,' says Mo. 'It's less than half full.' Without any measuring implements and without removing any wine from the barrel, how can they easily determine who is correct?
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Date
Brainteaser: Date
The date 13-1-13 (13 January 2013) is a special date. This date is special as: Date * Month = Year. Can you figure out which year of this century has the maximum number of such dates?
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Earthquake
Brainteaser: Earthquake
If an earthquake is 1 point higher on the Richter Scale than another earthquake which is actually 10 times stronger, how much stronger would an earthquake be if it was just half a point higher on the Richter scale?
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Three-dimensional
Brainteaser: Three-dimensional
Can you think of any three-dimensional shape that comprises of exactly two surfaces?
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World War I
Brainteaser: World War I
A man was telling some of his war stories to his grandchildren. "When the World War I was on the verge of end, I was awarded for my bravery for I had saved a group of my men." He coughed and then added, "When we were fighting in northern France, an enemy soldier threw a grenade at us. Before it could explode, I picked it up and threw it away. For my act of bravery, right before the war ended, a General gave me a sword engraved with the words 'Awarded for Display of Bravery and Heroism in World War 1'." Hearing this, one of the grandsons spoke up. "Grandpa, this is not a true story. It can't be true!" The truth is that it was not. How did the grandchild know it?
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Apples
Brainteaser: Apples
In a basket of apples, when counted in twos, there was one extra. When counted in threes, there were two extra. When counted in fours, there were three extra. When counted in fives, there were four extra. When counted in sixes, there were five extra. However, if the apples were counted in sevens, no extra apple was left. Can you calculate the minimum number of apples that were present in the basket?
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Distances
Brainteaser: Distances
Distances from you to certain cities are written below. BERLIN 200 miles PARIS 300 miles ROME 400 miles AMSTERDAM 300 miles CARDIFF X miles How far should it be to Cardiff?
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Kids
Brainteaser: Kids
Two old friends, Jack and Bill, meet after a long time. Jack: Hey, how are you man? Bill: Not bad, got married and I have three kids now. Jack: That’s awesome. How old are they? Bill: The product of their ages is 72 and the sum of their ages is the same as your birth date. Jack: Cool… But I still don’t know. Bill: My eldest kid just started taking piano lessons. Jack: Oh now I get it. How old are Bill’s three kids?
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Fruits
Brainteaser: Fruits
In a contest, four fruits (an apple, a banana, an orange, and a pear) have been placed in four closed boxes (one fruit per box). People may guess which fruit is in which box. 123 people participate in the contest. When the boxes are opened, it turns out that 43 people have guessed none of the fruits correctly, 39 people have guessed one fruit correctly, and 31 people have guessed two fruits correctly. How many people have guessed three fruits correctly, and how many people have guessed four fruits correctly?
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1 2 6 8 9 10 11 12 14 15

Questions

Frequently Asked Questions
We are happy to answer the most frequently asked questions.

Brain teasers in the form of math problems and logic puzzles can still appear in interviews, but they are quite rare. More common now are market sizing guesstimates, such as “How many tennis balls can fit into a smart car?” These questions may also be referred to as brain teasers. In general, brain teasers test your creativity and ability to think outside the box.

Brain teasers are uncommon in interviews, and there is no specific rule regarding when an interviewer may choose to use one. However, they are more typical in final rounds and can be asked either before or after the main case discussion.

Market sizing guesstimates are often referred to as brain teasers as well. They are more common in interviews and consist of questions that ask you to determine a specific quantity, such as “How many golf balls can you fit into a passenger Boeing 747?” These questions test your ability to define a problem, break it down into assumptions, and use math to solve it.

Always prioritize case studies and the personal fit portion in your interview preparation, as these are the crucial aspects of your interview! Once you feel more comfortable with those, you can integrate some brain teaser practice into your preparation. This may give you the advantage you need to stand out among other candidates! You can use our brain teaser library to challenge your creative thinking. Have fun!

Brain Teaser – Challenge Your Logical and Numerical Thinking

A brain teaser is a riddle or puzzle designed to challenge your logical thinking. In interviews, interviewers may use them to gain insights into your logical and creative thinking skills, which are valuable in various careers. The most important aspect here is not just the answer but how you approach the problem. Practice our brain teasers to prepare yourself for any interview situation!

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