If you hang out with educators or in personal growth circles – or read anything by Dan Pink – you’ve heard people talking about being “right brained” or “left brained”. People don’t always know what this means – or at least not really – and they really don’t know how it works and how/if/when they can control it or use it to their advantage. Usually they are using it as shorthand to describe whether they are being analytical and focused, or free-wheeling and creative. Sometimes they are even using it as a sort of insult – as in, “People who are right-brained are flighty or woo-woo” or “People who are left-brained don’t know how to live.”

I found a fascinating article at The Daily Telegraph that has a test that allows you to experience – in the moment – how what you are thinking about directly affects what you see.

The test is a rotating image of a woman dancing (well, sort of dancing).

When you are actively using the left side of your brain (logical, analytical, list-making, being detail-oriented, etc.) you will SEE the woman turning to her LEFT.
But, when you are actively using the right side of your brain (focused on feelings, being creative, brainstorming possibilities, using your imagination, etc.) you will SEE the woman turning to her RIGHT.

Seriously.

When I first saw this website I was excited and thinking about all the possibilities of how I could use it. And, the woman was turning to her right.
When I began reading the list on the side of the page, then glanced back at her, she was turning to the left.

Freaky.    But real.

Then, since I like the idea of being right brained, I tried and tried to get her to turn back to the right. I tried to think creative thoughts, but I realized I was making a list in my head. I tried to will my mind to see her turning to the right. No luck.
But then, I just happened to look down, see my sweet puppy dog looking up at me with those big eyes asking me to go outside and play. I smiled as I reached down to rub her head, and when I glanced back at the site, the woman was turning to the right.

I had *accessed* my emotions, which reside in the right side of the brain, and voila, she was turning to the right. It was very intriguing that it was only when I really FELT the emotion that the shift happened. When I “tried” to feel the emotion, no luck – I was being analytical about how to get the feeling side to activate.

So how do I know it isn’t a gimmick or all in my head?
Well, the truth is it IS in your head – since that’s where you brain is.
But I also had a friend who looked at the test at the same time as her husband. She operates more from the right side of her brain and he more so from the left. When they were looking at it – at the exact same time – they each saw the dancer turning in a different direction. She obviously couldn’t be turning both ways at once, so it was what the brain PERCEIVED that determined what they each actually saw.

Pretty fascinating. Take the test yourself and comment below to let me know what you think.

Related posts:

1. Music, Expectations, and your Brain
2. It’s a Cowgirl Way of Life…using personal growth techniques that work

Enjoy!

Related posts:

1. Princess Expectations: How to Raise Your Expectations of Yourself
2. Right Brain vs. Left Brain – how does it really work?
3. Music to empower girls…and women…by Lindsay O’Neill