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Nonsense
side-tracks
you from your work,
tricks you into wrong decisions and trips you short of your goals.

Nonsense
stops you from

being successful.
 

September 2007

Rock, don't nod

Where are we with this ‘nonsense’ stuff? Let’s see... I’ve told you about the bull (August) and I’ve told you about rocking your head from side to side as a way of seeing through the bull (July). Oh, yes... now I know – I must tell you why it is critical to rock your head from side-to-side and not to nod up-and-down.

Nodding can have disastrous consequences, especially in meetings. (Again too busy to read all this nonsense, but keen to know why you should rock, not nod? If so, then jump straight down to the rock-don’t-nod story.)

In the July 2007 newsletter I explained that rocking side-to-side, and staring blankly into the distance, creates a shift in perception that helps you to see differently. The reason it works so well, at least for me, is that the rocking engages different parts of the brain: left-brain, right-brain, left-brain, right-brain.

You do know that you have two brains, don’t you? Well, if you insist, two halves that make up one brain. The same way that you have one eye made up of two eyes, one ear made up of two ears. You don’t agree? Try seeing with only one eye or hearing with only one ear. So much clearer things become with both. Look at it from a nonsense perspective – you will run into a lot of bull and step into even more if you use only half your ear and half your eye.

Why then do you use half a brain?

Hey, wait. I’m not trying to insult you. I’m talking science here. Let me explain. Your brain has two halves which are responsible for different modes of perceiving and reasoning. Words commonly used to describe left brain thinking are logical, sequential, rational, analytical, objective, parts. Right brain thinking is described in terms of random, intuitive, holistic, subjective, wholes.

Most people have a preference for one or the other of these modes. You are said to be left-brain dominant if you tend to see things in stark either/or, black-or-white terms. You also pride yourself at being objective, rational and logical. In other words, you know nonsense when you see it. (Is this you?)

On the other hand, if you are right-brain dominant you tend to see things in terms of greys and maybes. You also see nothing wrong in making subjective evaluations, often based on your intuition. In other words, you are seldom sure that nonsense is really nonsense, because on the one hand it could mean one thing and on the other.... (This is you, right? On the other hand, maybe it isn’t you.)

My point (finally) is this: if you want to spot the bull before you step in it, then you must keep both eyes peeled. And if you want to make sense of nonsense before you make a fool of yourself, then you must become adept at using both modes – to become a so-called 'whole brain' thinker.

And this is where the head-rocking comes in. It’s a way to remind yourself to use both brains. (Oh alright, to use both halves of your brain.)

Always rock, don’t nod. Here’s why. I once sat through a rather boring sales meeting (the only interesting part was my presentation, but that’s another story). The Head of Sales was giving the after-lunch presentation and his subordinates were listening in rapt silence. One guy was even nodding his head. Regularly. Rhythmically. Clearly, I thought, this guy is not a 'yes-boss' employee – he was critically trying to separate the sense from the nonsense in what his boss was saying. But then his forehead hit the table with a loud bang. He had fallen asleep.

The lesson? To see the sense in nonsense, don’t nod your head up and down. If you do, you might see double and hear echoes. Instead, rock your head from side to side. You will not only spot nonsense in time. You will also stay awake at the proper time.

Until next month, may the nonsense at work work for you.
 

Welcome to our side of the nonsense divide.