Here’s an inspiring presentation by Yves Behar on the importance and impact of values in design. I believe that there’s a message here for everyone, regardless of what sector you work in. One thing about the downturn in the economy is that it give us the time to reflect on what we’re doing, how we’re doing it and why we’re doing it.

Are you right brained or left brained? Here’s an interesting one. Click on this link to the Daily Telegraph to see which way you perceive the dancer to be moving. At first I could only see her moving clockwise no matter how hard I tried to see her moving in the opposite direction. Then I found if I concentrated on something else adjacent to the picture I could see the anti-clockwise movement. Is this an indication of left/right brained preference? I doubt that it’s that simple!

And now, try this right / left brain quick test

But before you do, here are some words of advice from Steven Novella, MD.

“No one simple test can ever give you a reliable measure of ability. You need to do a battery of tests and look for patterns of strengths and weaknesses. Someone could get lucky on one test, or get stuck on a single test, and therefore it says very little about their overall ability. Also, any test, in order to be usable, must be validated. That means the test must be applied to known quantities to see if it is actually measuring something, and if it is reliable. Will the same person score similarly at different times, for example? The scoring must also be calibrated…”

I was down in Kilkenny during the week taking part in the County Enterprise Board’s Student Enterprise programme, and it occurred to me that this programme should be extended to primary students as well as secondary and third level. The reason I say this is because I’ve noticed on many occasions as I’ve worked with teenagers that they are far less confident when it comes to brainstorming than children at primary level. They are so concerned with not looking ’stupid’, or being ‘wrong’ that they limit themselves in terms of their creative ability. This echoes the findings of Kobus Neethling (SA Creativity Foundation) when he conducted a study on levels of creative behaviour. He found that creative behaviour diminishes from 98% in children aged 3-5, to 32% by age 10. By the time they reach 15, only 10% are behaving creatively and this reduces to 2% by the age of 25.

I’ve noticed this again and again whilst watching one of my favourite TV programmes, The Apprentice. Rarely do these participants, mainly highly educated young professionals, come up with truly creative, innovative solutions to their challenges. Instead they fall back upon narrow minded and conservative solutions.

I believe that we need to develop entrepreneurial skills in children as young as 5 and 6, at that stage of their life when they have little fear of failure, are curious, imaginative, and a gung-ho! attitude to coming up with wild and wonderful ideas! I’m all in favour of plenty of art, crafts, drama and music, but what about challenging their eager little minds to come up with ideas for mini businesses? Not only would they have fun with it, but it would also instil confidence from a young age in their ability to create employment for themselves.

Dutch Postbank, part of the ING Group, recently started a campaign aimed at budding entrepreneurs.

Children who open an Easy Blue account receive a briefcase containing materials for printing their own t-shirts (aka bizznizz attire), stickers, letterhead, flyers, and business cards. To get started, the young business person logs on to bizznizz.postbank.nl and decides what type of business he or she would like to run. Postbank suggests washing cars, walking dogs, household chores and mowing lawns, as well as an intriguing ‘entertainment’ category.

This seems to me to be a model that could be easily adapted within the primary school system. As the recession bites, we need to look to entrepreneurship as a means of survival in the future. Therefore I think the best time to start developing the entrepreneurs of the future is at the stage when they’re at their most creative.

Teachers can find some useful tips and support at www.studententerprise.ie

I thought I’d mention the programme for Mental Health Week taking place in Ennis in County Clare next week. Last year I was invited to give a couple of workshops on Creative and Whole Brain Thinking and I’m heading down there again next Tuesday.

I think that this is a really important programme - especially as we head into the long dark Winter evenings. It’s great to see ads on TV telling us to take care of our mental health, but more important are the practical initiatives by organizations such as the Clare Mental Health Association. For anyone in the region or who’s willing to travel, there are workshops and seminars on singing, dance, mindfulness, fulfilling your dreams, laughter yoga, and much more. You can check out the details at www.clarefocus.ie