Celebrating the (W)right brain

Image from Mercedes Benz advertisement

I have a confession to make. I am completely smitten by a business book! Dan Pink's Whole New Mind has somewhat lodged itself in my own. I am a right-brainer and to be told that we're on the cusp of a revolution where we're set to take over the world was most gratifying. OK, slight exaggeration, but I'm just showing my passion! This was completely vindicated today when I took a Strength Finder test (more on this later).

Mr Pink reveals "that the future belongs to a different kind of person with a different kind of mind: designers, inventors, teachers, storytellers - creative and empathetic 'right-brain' thinkers whose abilities mark the fault line between who gets ahead and who doesn't".

He theorises that in an age dominated by abundance and cheaper labour and manufacturing in Asia, we need to be differentiating ourselves to guarantee success. It's not about being a great number cruncher anymore. You need to be number cruncher that discerns patterns, can see the whole picture, empathise underlying causes and be willing to stand out and be different.

Dan Pink doesn't dismiss the left brain at all, his theory is that for too long we have neglected half of our brain power and that getting the two working together - being master of both - will be the traits needed for success in this new age.

His book hinges on six much neglected senses that will guide the lives of us 21st Century citizens obsessed with information, technology, logic and focus. It is time for Design, Story, Symphony, Empathy, Play and Meaning to make their resurgence. It's all there inside us - we just need to let it live again.


 As my career has rattled along through the years I have increasingly found myself hanging out with an edge of eccentricity. Ask me to complete a detailed project plan and you'll watch the light die in my eyes. Encourage me to think outside of the box, to blend humour with financial forecasts, to strategise with story and you'll have me in the palm of your hand. I don't do normal, conventional. I think "What if...?" and explore hidden pathways, open portals and adventure! My right brain needs a free leash!

Right brainers see possibility in discovering that 2012 is apparently 'the year of enchantment', I'm already wondering what spells I might weave to reach my lofty goals.

As we enter Week 3 of the Hello Soul. Hello Business course, we are exploring the 'what's' of our entrepreneurial craft. On Monday evening I stayed up way past my bedtime mind mapping some incredibly exciting opportunities to develop my creative business. I am incredibly excited by the opportunities I've discovered.
 
I am also blown away by the wonderful sharing community of ... you guessed it... right-brainers taking this course. We are all there to help and support each other see our dreams take shape. Our destiny awaits!
 
Today I came across this series of advertisements by Mercedes. It reads...
 
I am the right brain. I am creativity. A free spirit. I am passion. Yearing. Sensuality. I am the sound of roaring laughter. I am taste. The feeling of sand beneath bare feet. I am movement. Vivid colours. I am the urge to paint on an empty canvas. I am boundless imagination. Art. Poetry. I sense. I feel. I am everything I wanted to be.
 
Interesting coming from such a technology driven company. The times they are indeed a-changing...