The term â ˜ambidexterityâ ™ is basically being adept in the use of both right and left hand. Michelangelo, Leonardo Vinci, Einstein, Fleming, Harry Truman, etc., were all ambidextrous. In modern times, you will find many, who were originally left-handed but in the course of their childhood, were drilled to acquire right-handed habits (at school or home) and thus became ambidextrous.

Using the same analogy, we could say we are being ambidextrous when we are multi-tasking â “ talking over the phone, writing down information, watching TV and so on. The difference is that instead of our hands, we are using both our right and left hemispheres to successfully juggle our tasks. You may have heard some people referred as â ˜right-brainedâ ™ or â ˜left-brainedâ ™. In essence it means that the person displays more â ˜rightâ ™ or â ˜leftâ ™ oriented skills, although we are all the time integrating both hemispheres in our daily activities.

â ˜Rightâ ™ brain qualities involve imagination, risk taking, artistic abilities, highly philosophical, creative, etc. â ˜Leftâ ™ brain people, on the other hand, are practical, conformist, seek order, have good comprehension skills, etc. Thus â ˜right-brainâ ™ people are said to think subjectively, holistically and have strong intuition, while â ˜left-brainâ ™ people tend to be more logical, analytical and highly rational.

We find some people are more adept at certain kind of thought patterns than others. Notwithstanding the fact that we inherit certain mental traits and capacities, it is how we use our mind that determines our mental prowess. As children we are innately right-brained, revealing great creativity, imagination, spontaneity, open-mindedness and enthusiasm but ironically, as we grow, social, cultural and racial influences constrain these natural traits.