Leading with Both Sides of the Brain

In an era of increasing complexity, leaders are often expected to make sense of uncertainty, navigate competing demands, and inspire new ways forward. Traditional approaches to leadership development tend to privilege rational analysis, strategy, and logic - functions typically associated with the left hemisphere of the brain. While these are crucial skills, they are not enough on their own to navigate today’s intricate challenges.

Iain McGilchrist’s work, The Master and His Emissary, explores the divided yet complementary nature of brain function. He argues that the left hemisphere excels at focused, analytical, and sequential thinking, while the right hemisphere is attuned to context, patterns, and the interconnected whole. Both are essential, but modern leadership often over-relies on left-brain dominance - leading to fragmented thinking, rigidity, and an inability to engage with complexity holistically.

This is where art-based practice comes in. Engaging in creative methods such as drawing, storytelling, and movement activates right-hemisphere processes, expanding leaders’ capacity to perceive broader patterns, work with ambiguity, and access new insights. Your Brain on Art by Magasamin and Ross reinforces this, demonstrating how the arts enhance neural integration, fostering deeper cognition and emotional intelligence. Similarly, Betty Edwards’ work on drawing shows how shifting into a right-brain mode can unlock fresh perspectives and a more intuitive understanding of challenges.

Through art-based approaches, leaders can cultivate a way of thinking that is both analytical and holistic. For instance, when a leader sketches out a systemic challenge as a landscape - rather than writing a list of issues - they may see previously unnoticed relationships or tensions. When leaders engage in embodied storytelling, they not only grasp abstract ideas intellectually but feel their resonance viscerally, allowing for deeper, more embodied decision-making.

Try This: A Simple Art-Based Exercise

1. Take a blank sheet of paper and some colored pencils or markers.
2. Think about a current leadership challenge you are facing.
3. Instead of writing about it, represent it visually. You might draw it as a landscape, a journey, or a web of connections - there’s no right or wrong way to do this.?It's not an aesthetic test - stick figures and simple sketches can be highly effective. Note, try to avoid using words in your drawing to more fully engage in right-brain thinking.
4. Step back and observe your drawing. What patterns emerge? What new insights does this give you?
5. Reflect on the experience - how did it feel to engage with the challenge in this way? What did you notice that you might have overlooked before?
6. Repeat steps 3-5 until the drawing feels complete—but remember, while the drawing may feel finished, your thinking around the challenge may continue to evolve over time.

Once you have completed your drawing, take time to reflect on what you’ve noticed. How does your representation reveal insights about your leadership challenge? What patterns, tensions, or perspectives are emerging or becoming more apparent? Consider how these insights might inform your leadership practice. For example, self-awareness, communication, decision-making, strategic direction, team dynamics, collaboration, conflict resolution, resilience, and innovation.

Drawing isn’t just useful for personal reflection - it can also be a powerful tool for coaches. I use this approach to make sense of coaching conversations, drawing either during or following sessions. This practice can provide additional insights into unspoken tensions and dynamics contributing to the coachee's leadership challenges.

Applying Your Insights to Leadership

Engaging in this kind of reflective, creative practice can open up new ways of thinking about your leadership. By integrating both hemispheres - leveraging the precision of the left with the holistic awareness of the right - leaders become more adaptable, creative, and effective in complexity. Arts-based practices offer a powerful gateway to this integration, supporting leaders to move beyond linear problem-solving into a space of generative possibility.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Have you experimented with creative approaches in your leadership practice? Have you tried the exercise above? What insights did you gain? Feel free to share your experiences in the comments or reach out to continue the conversation.