Most of us are right-handed and some of us are left-handed. And, what’s special about being left-handed?
There is a day dedicated to left-handers – the International Left-Handers’ Day. This year is the 31st annual Left Handers’ Day! If you are left-handed, then on August 13th you get a chance to tell everyone (your family and friends) how proud you are of being left- handed. And, it is also to raise awareness about the daily issues that lefties face as we live in a world crafted for right-handers.
The purpose for celebrating International Left-Handers’ Day is to spread awareness about ‘sinistrality’, which actually is the medical term for left-handedness. On this day, left-handers are assured that having a dominant left hand is absolutely normal.
We have seen that left-handed people are good at complex reasoning. In fact, there is a line of ‘lefty’ Noble Prize winners, writers, artists, musicians, architects and mathematicians.
Again, this is connected to the brain. There is a major “connection between the left brain and the right brain”. The right brain is “somewhat larger and better connected in left- handers.”
What does this mean? It could mean that left-handers have a slight advantage in sports, gaming and other activities in which players face large volumes of stimuli being thrown at them simultaneously or in quick succession. Theoretically, they could more easily use both hemispheres of the brain to manage that stimuli, resulting in faster overall processing and response time.
Here’s a main difference. Left-handers, who are right-brain dominant, are better at reading people’s expressions and non-verbal cues. Right-handers, on the other hand, tend to focus more on the words being spoken. Most of our communication is non- verbal – expressed through our expressions and body language. Understanding people and knowing how to respond are important skills for setting up and succeeding in business.
What is special about left-handers, that is related to business?
Surveys indicate that there are more successful left-handed entrepreneurs and business people than the percentage of lefthanders in a chosen population. Studies have also found that ‘lefties’ score higher when it comes to creativity, imagination, intuition and complex reasoning.
Find creative ways to solve problems
According to research published in the American Journal of Psychology, lefties appear to be better at divergent thinking – meaning that they tend to generate many possible solutions to solve problems. Divergent thinking can lead to generating many alternatives that can pave the way to new discoveries and innovations, and increase the efficiency of your everyday work processes.
Visualize the possibilities
Left-handers tend to visualize scenarios better than their right-handed counterparts, specially since these skills are found in the right side of the brain.
As an entrepreneur, visualizing scenarios is a valuable way to imagine what to do next. When you envision what’s possible, you can aspire to goals that can indeed, move your business forward in leaps and bounds!!
Thinking differently and approaching life in an unconventional way can present an amazing number of advantages in work and business. As an entrepreneur, being left- handed is indeed a superpower – so, use it wisely and you’ll find new opportunities opening up!!
Avtar Madan
Himanshu
Shree Lahiri
Poonam Sinha
