Have you ever thought why is it that you are really good at something, for instance maths, but really bad at sports? Or maybe why is it that someone can be a genius at school but when it comes to socialize and make friends this person gets frozen? Perhaps you have heard about the theory of multiple intelligences and how it expands the possible abilities and talents a person can possess.
According to De Boer (2015), “when whole brain thinking is activated multiple intelligence can be nourished”. But, what are we talking about when we refer to “Whole Brain Thinking”? As showed in the forementioned examples, the human being tends to prefer different ways of thinking and consequently, he/she tends to strengthen distinct skills. Here is where whole brain thinking appears to help people take advantage of the full available thinking.
The whole brain thinking model was created by Ned Herrman at the end of the 1970s after years of research on the different structures of the brain and how each of them can correspond to a way of thinking. It was in the year 1979 that Herrmann was able to generate a system that allows people to have a descriptive overview of the way in which they think. This model presents four quadrants that correspond to a part of the brain: Analytical, experimental, practical and relational and permits to find relationships among them.
The first quadrandt, analytical, coincide with people who thinks in a logical way and whose thoughts are generally fact based with quantitative information. The second one, experimental, is associated to holistic people, it means people who perceives things as a whole and not just as a part; people who have an intuitive perception. The third one, practical, has to do with people that organize and plan everything in a sequential and detail way. The last one, relational, is oriented to the interpersonal intelligence so that people’s way of thinking is feeling and emotional based.
Once the theoretical component is clear, it is proper to get into the big question “How to Develop Whole Brain Thinking?” Sometimes, reading the theory and getting some examples is not enough to clear our minds and take a decision on the way we will start. Below, you can find some tips you can apply if you want to work on your Work Brain Thinking.
Go through the HBDI: The Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument can be the perfect departure point to know your preferences and strenghts. This system contains 120 questions that will help you to understand better your way of thinking and to find the relationships between these preferences and your learning styles. Moreover, it will help you understand others’ perspectives and to set clearer and more comfortable communiction channels.
Identifying and taking decisions: Once you have completed the HBDI, you may identify your dominant quadrant and the one in which you need to work more one. This might help you decide where to start working, it is, which quadrant(s) you want to develop and reinforce.
One by one: Taking into account the decision you took in the previous step, you have now cleared which is the area you want to start with. Then, the idea is to catch exercises or activities that are focused on the quadrant you chose. For example, if you want to improve your relational thinking, you can find a way to meet new people and try to establish good interpersonal relationships. It can be hard at the beginning but fortunately, nowadays we have technology and one way to take advantage of it is using it as a tool to meet people with similar interests and get an appoinment/date with them.
Go for it: Once you have gone through the whole process, it is time to incorporate all the things this experience has given to you and to put them into practice. The aim now is to be able to work on activities that require all the quadrants at the same time. This way, you can assess your progress and integrate all the skills you have developed. Your will be working under the whole brain thinking model.
The whole brain thinking model was created by Ned Herrman at the end of the 1970s after years of research on the different structures of the brain and how each of them can correspond to a way of thinking. It was in the year 1979 that Herrmann was able to generate a system that allows people to have a descriptive overview of the way in which they think. This model presents four quadrants that correspond to a part of the brain: Analytical, experimental, practical and relational and permits to find relationships among them.
