Stress and fatigue caused by continued disruptive change forces people to function more in their natural default modes of thinking, learning, and processing information. People also have a natural predisposition to start with a preferred mode of thinking, learning, or processing information. This has led to people generally following a dualistic approach where it is assumed that people are either analytical or creative, expressive or receptive, rational or emotional. When people function in such stereotypical ways, it suggests that we are not, and cannot be that flexible in our thinking and learning.
A dualistic approach contradicts the construct of Neuro Agility and what cognitive neuroscience research proves. Although people’s natural preferences may cause them to function more in their natural default modes, especially during stress and fatigue, the brain can learn any competence related to any mode of thinking and learning, as learning is one of the primary purposes of the brain. The brain can learn to be analytical and creative, expressive and receptive, rational and emotional, depending on what our circumstances require of us at that moment. Neuro Agility reflects the brain’s developed capacity to function as one integrated whole brain system, being able to learn, think, and process information quickly, and easily and be flexible to access and utilize any desired mode of thinking and learning required to execute a required task.
Developing mentally flexible employees who can access any desired mode of thinking and learning necessary to deal effectively with disruption or new changing situations, should be a major focus area for any progressive person who wants to be employable, successful, effective, and prosperous in the workplace. Agile people have the mental flexibility to adapt to disruptive change quickly and easily. They can move across various ideas or new understandings swiftly, and alternate between opposite modes of thinking and learning, depending on what mode of thinking is required to deal effectively with new changing situations.
Various brain-mind elements and mechanisms influence the flexibility with which we think, learn, and process information. Developing mental flexibility starts with optimizing the flexibility of people’s neurological design – the brain-mind elements that impact how uniquely people learn, think, and process information. Neuro-flexibility implies a person has the lateral hemispheric integration to be analytical and creative, encoding and decoding information simultaneously, having an equally verbal and non-verbal approach during communication.
Mental flexibility also requires a balance between the expressive brain regions in the frontal lobes and the receptive brain regions in the sensory cortex. Balance will enable people to express their thoughts, words, and emotions, and be receptive and quiet, depending on the required mode for a specific situation. Balance in all lobes and hemispheres of the neo-cortex provides the agility to easily move between the various regions that impact people’s learning, thinking, and communication preferences.
A balance between the rational areas, mostly in the neo-cortex and the emotional processing centers in the limbic system of the brain, is equally as important. It will enable people with the flexibility to follow the desired approaches necessary to solve complex problems, make smart decisions, and be practical and experiential simultaneously.
Furthermore, an integrated balance between the various brain regions and all the senses will increase the ease and speed with which electrical impulses are processed through the senses to brain regions, minimizing the impact of possible neurological hindrances that may occur when people experience stress or fatigue, reducing their risk for errors and mistakes. The balance between people’s visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic preferences will further their sensory neuro-flexibility.
Flexibility between multiple intelligences will enable people to be smart in all the ways life requires.
Neuro-agile people have good overall brain fitness. It will optimize the agility of the cognitive processes of their neurological design and promote flexible learning, thinking, and optimum information processing.
Neuro Agility, however, is a developed competence. One can’t improve what one can’t measure. Neuro Agility starts with accurately assessing the drivers that optimize brain performance and the interplay of these drivers with the neuro-design elements of thinking, learning, and information processing, as measured in the Neuro Agility Profile® (NAP™). It will indicate which Neuro Agility elements should be optimized and offer suggestions of activities, and actions in the online Brain Agility Booster Program to improve it.
Dr André Vermeulen