Left vs. Right Brain: A Tug-of-War by Emily

Left vs. Right Brain: A Tug-of-War by Emily - December 2017 Scholarship Essay

I have always considered myself an artsy nerd, as I would call it. Having an equal distribution of left and right brain, naturally, the two sides are often at war over who gets to take the driver’s seat. School projects are no exception to this ongoing battle, as both sides believe their ideas to be the best. It used to take me a long time to settle on any topic for projects as the tug-of-war inside my mind made decision making near impossible. However, over years of projects and with intention, I learned how to take the time to listen to both sides of my brain and incorporate them into one cohesive artsy nerd hybrid masterpiece.

When given an assignment, firstly I calculate the time until the due date and separate it into two parts: creative and intellectual. The first half of my time is spent on brainstorming crazy, outlandish ideas that grab and hold my interest. Finding a subject of intrigue allows for more effort to be put into the assignment as you would want to learn the topic regardless. As we all know, not every project is something we exactly want to do, but finding a subject or creative outlet to incorporate into it sets a good mindset for when the intellectual work comes in. By taking the time to be imaginative, my mind has piqued interest, creating a motivation to continue learning.The second half of my timeline is dedicated to my left brain who thrives off of knowledge. I narrow down my creative ideas to just one that intrigues me, yet still has left brain potential, and we’re off! Compiling all of my facts, sources, and data into an extremely rough draft that I only allow myself 2 hours to work on, the melding of my brain is complete.

I find that trying to write a paper or complete a project all in one go is a sure fire way to earn a lower grade than possible. Instead, I leave my draft for a few days, not even thinking about it, so that when I come back, it is a fresh read. When reading immediately after creating, the mind is too honed in on specifics like grammar or spelling, not the big picture of flow and comprehension. I make sure to do this at least one day in advance because I only like to put on final touches the night before as to not cause unnecessary stress. Then, presto! The artsy nerd has done it yet again: a perfect blend of both sides of her brain utilized for success.