to think RIGHTly

My mother is an elementary school teacher.  With this, I had the advantage to be taught on how to manage my studying habits.  Two weeks before the periodical exams, she would let me review the lessons in each subjects.  I would memorize and understand all the possible items that could be included in the exams.  After those allotted time, I should be ready with a review with her before the exam days.  In that way, my memory will be fresh for the next day's test.  I brought this kind of studying habits even in high school and in college (of course, minus my mother still reviewing me).  

This is how I mastered my left brain thinking.  Left brain thinking, according to our discussion, is more of processing information according to logic, sequence, symbols and reality.  This is practiced when we manage knowledge in a more quantifiable and rigid sense. And, through the years, this part of my brain, I think, is more processed compared to the other part (the right part).   

Upon knowing these facts, I now understand why I am more organized.  I have a hard time working in a messy place.  Some even called me an 'O.C.' person.  I even thought that I have a psychological disorder (although 'O.C.' really is a disorder).  Good thing, our discussion enlightened me that my routines are still normal to a person type.  

It also helped me categorize myself when our discussion about the brain even focused into a smaller part of it.  I realized that most of my activities are accorded by the left lower limbic part of the brain (whew, this may sound very technical).  People who are accorded more by this part of the brain are called the 'Organizers' according to Hermann's Whole Brain Model (1976).  When we were asked to take a part of the exam that determines in which part of the whole model one's belonging, it really turned out that I am a left brain thinker.  And, that may explain it all (not totally, since we only took a very small portion of the test).  

However, I am not that happy to prove that I am really that kind of thinker (even a vertical and convergent thinker one).  Most of the time, in my almost twenty-four year in this earth, I always pray that I should be more of a right brain thinker (if only I was aware of this concept when I was younger).  It is not that I am not satisfied with what is destined or given to me, it is just that I would be happier if I would be more creative than with what I am now.  

For instance, in most of my experiences, I tend to give up easily because I can only think of fewer options in solving my problems (like of how a convergent thinker processes problems).  And, I think, this can be blamed to my being less creative.  And now, I thank I taken this subject.  At first, I thought I can solely rely on logic to solve problems.  Upon knowing that we all have that creative juices with us, and we only need to hone it, I eventually began to think otherwise.

With this, I am thinking of enhancing my ability to process creativity.  I should practice shifting my mind set for me to be able to see easily on more options to solve my problems.

Since I am in the first part of that process, can you suggest on how I can easily undertake this personal challenge?  Thank you in advance. :)

OBJECTIFIED: This is about Creativity

When I was younger, I often think of creativity as decorating too much on things.  It is putting too much design on what is being adorned.  So, when our teacher in elementary or even in high school asked us to be ‘creative’ with our projects, I tend to ‘design’ my projects with glitters, feathers, laces, etc. 

But, then, I realized, being creative is not about that.  I began to be more attracted to simpler things, and that for me is more creative.  With that, I eventually ‘design’ my projects in a less elaborative manner.

Now, as we start our class on COM207.3, and when we viewed the documentary ‘Objectified,’ my idea of creativity become even more profound.  It is now clearer to me that creativity is not about the decorations.  But, it is about how a thing is designed to perform its function.    

Based on the documentary, everything is designed according to use.  So, designers should have the 'beat' of their market.  They have to design based on how they think their audience may be using their products.  With this, they research.  They, sometimes, even immersed with their market to feel how their audience may accept their design.  It is also mentioned in the documentary to instill emotion in the innovated products for the market to be even more inspired by the products.

This commercial notion of designing marketable products made me relate it to development works.  In development works, development practitioner should have a very good idea of how the end-users act, move, decide and even feel.  Why? This is to package the 'development message' into which the end-users may use effectively.  

Because of this, creativity, for me now, becomes an important concept for me.  At first, I just see it as an element that can only spice up or beautify things.  Yes, I misinterpreted creativity.  Now I understand that it is more of creating something to solve a problem.  It is designing, based on problems found in the society to solve a future problem, as mentioned in the documentary.

With this, as a development communication education mentor, I will do my best to enhance my creativity.  I always believe that I am not creative. But, I think, it is time for me to think about this.  I always take creativity for granted, only to realize that this is an important idea in delivering change to the society.  Thanks to the documentary, I even have a clearer view of it.  And, I know, it would be clearer as I continue the COM207.3 course. :)