Daniel Pink's "A Whole New Mind: Why Right Brainers will Rule the Future" is probably one of the best non-fiction books that explains and clarifies the dramatic changes that the U.S. has recently witnessed in the 21st century and how these changes has an effect on our lives. He provides fascinating insights about how different parts of our brains are used for different types of tasks and he provides ideas of how to channel the usage of the various properties of our brain. He also discusses six innate senses which are of utmost importance in today's modern society and which need to be enhanced in order for one to survive the revolutionary transformation of our day and age.
Pink begins his book by describing a past experience when he participated as a volunteer in a research project at the National Institute of Mental Health. His contribution was volunteering to be part of a control group where his brain activity was scanned and observed by professionals through an MRI, Magnetic Resonance Imaging. While inside of the machine, Pink was asked to perform a few activities. In the first activity he was shown a picture of a woman with a face which displayed emotions of fear. Then, he was shown two pictures of a man displaying different emotions in each picture. He was assigned to compare the most similar picture to the previous one. With the second activity he was required to identify whether certain photographs were indoors or outdoors. After completing both tasks, he viewed the results of the scan with the neurologist, who showed him how the left hemisphere of his brain was more active while he was labeling a series of pictures as "indoors" or "outdoors" and how the right hemisphere of his brain was more active when he was asked to compare the faces which were most similar.
The brain's right and left hemispheres are dramatically different, perhaps even opposite, in their functions. The left side of the brain is, in a way, the computer-like section of our brains. It is analytical, rational and logical. When we read and write we are using the left side of our brains. This side involve dealing with the individual aspects or details of a whole in a manner of sequence. Thus, the "indoor/outdoor" task was accomplished through using the resources provided by the left hemisphere because concentrating on the details of the photo is of most importance in solving the problem. Sudoku puzzles and crisscross puzzles would mostly use the left side of the brain because they are solved by sequentially focussing on particular details, may they be numbers or words.
The right side of our brains, however, is what differentiates humans from robots and computers. The right side of our brain recognizes patterns, detects the way details interconnect to make a full and entire whole, it observes the bigger picture. This allows for the right side to interpret emotions and nonverbal expressions in an instant, without the need for sequence or analysis.
Pink summed up the right/left brain distinctions into four key points. The first is that "our brains are "contralateral"-each half of the brain controls the other half of the body" (Pink, 2005). This is true regarding which body part we move, such as turning the right foot uses the left hemisphere. However, it is also surprisingly true regarding the direction we are moving in, such as turning your head from right to left uses the right side. When you turn your head from right to left you are using you The second is that the sequential/simultaneous difference. The third point is the text/context difference and the fourth is the difference between seeing details and seeing the big picture.
Pink makes it profoundly clear throughout the book that the two hemispheres are equally important in everyday activities, both at home and at work. To illustrate this point, Pink describes a scenario in the "text/context" section where a spouse forgot to buy an essential ingredient for that night's dinner. "The other spouse grabs the car keys, curls a lip, glares at you, and hisses "I'm going to the store" (Pink, 2005). The left hemisphere interpreted the words in their literal meaning. This will merely teach you that your spouse has gone to the store. However, the right side of your brain will teach you that your spouse is pissed off at you. Both sides have equally contributed to your understanding of the situation.
The importance of both text and context in languages such as Hebrew and Arabic also illustrate the equality of the right and left hemispheres. These languages do not consist of any vowels. The reader must consider the lettering of words and their surrounding concepts and ideas in order to find out which vowel to use. Reading these languages entails the collaboration of both hemispheres since they require the reader to make sense of text and context. Thus, the language reads appropriately from right to left. As mentioned earlier, movements from the right to the left require the right side of our brain. This is amazingly perfect because these languages also require the brain's right-side understanding of context. English, on the other hand, mostly requires the analysis of text and is, therefore, appropriately read from left to right, using left-brain power.
Pink describes the present 21st century as an age which is transforming from The Informational Age to The Conceptual Age. To illustrate the differences between these ages, consider what aspects of humanity were most important for succeeding in these times. In The Industrial Age, for example, physical strength was probably the most important trait one could have because it was in that point in time where factories and assembly lines were born and in full use. People who were fluently knowledgeable and analytical were most likely to succeed in The Informational Age because education became more widespread and attainable to all. The left side of the brain was the main source of the success in that age. Jobs which require a primary focus on left-brain thinking, or L-Directed thinking, include lawyers, doctors, accountants, and so on. Society was very L-directed in their thinking and almost disregarded R-directed thinking. It is for this reason that the previous generation expected their children to become doctors and lawyers. However, the question remains: why is it quite likely that these parents were disappointed by their children turning them down and heading in a career direction opposing that which was laid out and prepared for them? Why is R-directed thinking becoming equally important in our lives as L-directed thinking? Why is it that "more Americans today work in arts, entertainment, and design than work as lawyers, accountants, and auditors" (Pink, 2005, pg. 55)? What are the causes behind the transformation between The Informational and Conceptual ages?
Pink's theory is based on three factors which detract from L-directed thinking which had always been considered the most and, in turn, attracts R-directed thinking: Abundance, Asia, and Automation. It is important to note that his theory by no means insists that L-directed thinking is being replaced by R-directed and high-touch thinking; rather his theory suggests that L-directed thinking is necessary but not sufficient. High-sense skills are now needed more than any time in history because of the three factors.
Asia refers to the fact that many L-directed jobs are now being transferred to people in other countries because of the salary pay is substantially cheaper. Forrester Research claims that "3.3 million white-collar jobs and $136 billion in wages will shift from the U.S. to low-cost countries like India, China, and Russia" (Pink, 2005, pg. 39). The factor of Automation is similar to Asia in the sense that U.S. jobs are being replaced. Only, Automation refers to the fact that technology and computers are replacing many U.S. jobs. Modern technology has made many tasks faster and cheaper to accomplish, inevitably replacing many L-directed jobs.
Pink describes six high-concept and high-touch senses which have become crucial in today's day and age of conceptualization. The factor of Abundance is directly correlated to the first of these senses: Design. The abundance of goods and services has skyrocketed in the past decade or two immensely and has practically provided us with an unlimited amount of selection and variety. This creates a very fierce struggle between those who compete in a given market or field of expertise because they are playing a game in which the term "survival of the fittest" determines who will be victorious and who will plummet into failure. Companies cannot produce goods which are merely sufficient in meeting customer satisfaction. They need to design products which are beautiful and significant. Pink describes Design as "utility enhanced by significance" (2005, pg.70). Studies show that cell phone consumers spend just as much money on decorative faceplates and ringtones as much as they spend on the phones themselves. Georgetown University found that when "students, teachers, and educational approaches remained the same, improving schools' physical environment could increase test scores as much as 11 percent" (Pink, 2005, pg.82).
The second high-touch sense is Story. Personal narratives have become urgently prevalent as a way of finding a deeper understanding and deeper meaning within ourselves and others. Marketing techniques have increasingly incorporated story narratives behind their products or services in order to convey a sense of meaning and purpose to the costumer. Story delivers an emotional impact which enhances the mere context of the facts. People remember things better if they are sugar-coated with an elegant story because it enriches the product with emotion and causes it to stand out from the rest. This is essential in today's age where there is a vast selection of practically anything on the market and people enjoy associating themselves with something that has meaning and significance, let alone sheer value. For example, wines have fancy narratives on their labels and major car insurance agencies compete with each other by trying to sell a better story in their advertisements (I personally love Gieko's gecko).
The third sense is called Symphony. This is the ability to put together the many pieces of a large picture and to gather seemingly unrelated details into a whole, rather than simply focusing on and analyzing the details which openly present themselves. A conductor of a symphony or a composer of a song collaborates many instruments, performers, notes, and musical ideas for the result of hearing a unified and harmonious sound. Managers and entrepreneurs highly rely on this ability because they are responsible for levels of productivity of systems which consist of and are based on many intricate relationships and interconnections. In fact, creativity is highly linked to this aptitude. As Pink puts it "sometimes the most powerful ideas come from simply combining two existing ideas nobody else ever thought to unite" (Pink, 2005, pg.137). Studies show that self-made millionaires are four times more likely to be dyslexic than the rest of the population. Dyslexic people have difficulty with L-directed thinking which allows people to reason and think with sequence and in a manner which focuses on details. The same way a blind person is forced to develop an increased sensitivity with hearing, the same is true with dyslexic people who lack L-directed thinking. They develop increases in their R-directed thinking in order to compensate for their dyslexia and, consequently, they become amazing pattern detectors and they begin seeing the intricate connections and relationships which many others cannot see. Pink quotes Sid Caesar who said "the guy who invented the wheel is an idiot. The guy who invented the other three, he was a genius" (Pink, 2005, pg. 142).
The fourth sense is called Empathy. Pink illustrates this skill by narrating a tiring and slow morning experience from the time he forced himself out of bed to the time he was at his desk at work drinking his third cup of coffee...and yawning. He describes how he yawns and then asks the reader "In the past minute, have you yawned?" It is said that yawning is contagious, however, this is true if the person has the capacity and aptitude of attuning oneself to another, to place oneself in the shoes of another, and feel what it is their feeling. This skill uses emotional intelligence and it allows us to read facial expressions through R-directed thinking, just as Pink discovered by analyzing which parts of his brain were most active after he had matched facial expressions in the MRI. The emotional and empathetic power of humans cannot be replicated by computers nor could they be handed to foreign employees in other countries. Clinton was criticized when he uttered the words "I feel your pain." These were words of emotion and critics considered him as not being presidential and manly enough to keep emotions out. Pink describes this point in time as the birth of the revolution.
The fifth sense is called Play. Pink describes this high-touch ability by contrasting Henry Ford's work/play philosophy and Southwest Airlines' mission statement. Henry Ford's stated "When we are at work we ought to be at work. When we are at play we ought to be at play. There is no use trying to mix the two." Ford lived in grim and serious times where R-directed was hardly relevant to succeeding. Southwest Airlines, one of the most stable and successful airline, stated that "People rarely succeed at anything unless they are having fun doing it." Video games have recently been increasingly popular, more popular than the movie industry. The typical American devotes 75 hours a year playing video games and Nintendo's Mario video game series has earned $7 billion over the course of their lifetime which is double the revenue of all the Star Wars movies combined. The sense of Play explains why Pop culture and entertainment has become an essential focus of today's society.
The sixth sense is called Meaning. The truth is that Pink uses Meaning as a way to summarize the motivation behind why the other senses have become integral to succeed in our lives. Many agencies and companies are incorporating a sense of spirit, spirituality and meaning into their everyday work. It is what motivates us into believing in a purpose greater than ourselves. This requires us to overlook our personal and monetary interests and, and focusing on our work for the sake of work itself and for the sake of its contribution to society. In the present day and age we are forced to focus on our high-touch senses in order to tap into a higher degree of meaningfulness and purpose.
As my lengthy review testifies, this book was probably the most enjoyable non-fiction book I have ever read. I practically agreed to every concept and theory and I have even theorized similar ideas in the past. I also loved the fact that the book was written in a very "down-to-earth" style and I was able to relate to in a very practical manner. The book was very insightful in regard to my future because I am now more aware of skills that are truly important in a world of competitiveness and abundance. The book showed me a whole new light into the world and into my life.
A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future
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One of the most important books for anyone who works
I have given A Whole New Mind to hundreds of clients. While it is 12-year-old, the book provides the most cogent understanding of the opportunities that exist becoming of accelerating change. Technology is taking away tasks but it is also giving us freedom from mind-numbing work. When someone looks at the world only from the left brain, they will feel trapped by this new world. But, when they explore the real opportunities in front of us, there is every reason to learn how to change oneself. Daniel's book is a crucial read. David Harder - The Workplace Engagement Solution
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