My results

Associative

Sequential

% of population

You

About the Preference

There are two dominant ways of processing knowledge within our brains. What we refer to as Associative and Sequential thinking.

Associating Thinking is our rapid integration process. It involves the ability to link thoughts together based on similarities, patterns, or shared characteristics, often leading to creative problem-solving or new insights.

Sequential Thinking is our slow systematic process. It’s a cognitive process which allows us to slow ourselves down, screen out and ignore the stuff around us so we can put the full weight of our attention on one thing in order to follow it through to completion.

Most of life requires us to access both of these dominant systems. We need to access our sequential skills to understand the rules and processes of complexity and we need our associative skills to kick in when we’re confronted with an unexpected detour.

About You

This assessment indicates you’re Cognitively Ambidextrous.

While more than 95 percent of us settle into Associative or Sequential Thinking, you appear to stay in flux. Your brain stays in motion evaluating and re-evaluating.

Analogous to handedness, you don’t favor one preference over the other. You engage rapid integrative thinking and hierarchical, step-by-step thinking equally. This ability allows you to move easily to a deep level of nuance.

The more complicated and the more moving parts involved, the better you perform. You should use this to envision engagements in advance.

At the same time, your advantage of quickly integrating different modes of thinking can lead to cognitive fatigue or decision-making challenges.

Advantages

Having an exceptionally high quality standard
Connecting with and understanding diverse perspectives
Holding opposites and resolving paradoxes
Context, experience, rule and process are equally obvious to you.
Recognizing that opposing viewpoints can both hold validity

Challenges

Finding the endpoint of a decision process
Wanting it all: the context and experience of the Associative and the rule and processes of the Sequential
Decision fatigue
Feeling the loss when you make a decision

Opportunity

Honor your high quality standard. If you need to make a decision, respect the process to get there.

When the head of a trauma center was asked what she needed most from her staff, she replied, "I need people to slow down." If people working in what is literally an emergency room need to slow down, the rest of us surely can.

In most cases, a decision doesn’t need to be made quickly. Take time to let decisions incubate. It can be two-hours or two years.

When you take time to ponder, you'll experience more eureka moments, the decision process you've been holding will resolve itself unexpectedly and insightfully.

Selective

Active

% of population

You

About the Preference

Each one of us has a tuning mechanism that regulates the amount of sound processed by our brains.

If you appear on the left side of the bell curve, your brain defaults to selective listening, screening out all but the most urgent sound around you.

If you appear on the right side of the bell curve, your brain defaults to active listening, absorbing most of the sound around you.

Within this dichotomy lies a delicate balance. Each individual grapples with the inherent advantages and challenges of discerning between the cacophony of the world and the clarity of focused listening.

"Everybody's ear is different. There is no universal hearing." Branford Marsalis

About You

This assessment indicates you’re a dominantly selective listener.

Your auditory process defaults to a resting state. This means when you're not actively listening, your auditory process resists activating unless the sound registers as meaningful, actionable, or useful.

During moments of concentration, you may not respond to familiar sounds like a smoke detector or someone calling your name, as they don't trigger your auditory process. This can be confusing and frustrating for those trying to get your attention.

Interestingly, some sounds may enhance your attention and focus, similar to the effects of medications like methylphenidate on attention. Rather than focusing on the specific information conveyed by the sound, your brain seems to respond to it as a supportive stimulus, boosting cognitive functioning.

Advantages

Having low auditory distractibility
Being alert to high-value sound
Ignoring even highly obvious sounds like a car alarm when you need to focus

Challenges

Leaving device sounds on when you are trying to focus on a task
Tuning out important sound because it’s not engaging

Opportunity

It's important to engage in active listening strategies: taking notes, asking questions. Questions are a signal that someone is engaged in what they are saying. And most people enjoy being encouraged to keep talking. The surest way to be interesting, is to be interested.

Selective

Active

% of population

You

About the Preference

The brain's visual processing system is the most intricate and nuanced among its counterparts. This processing unit enables us to discern two types of visual information: Selective and Active processing.

Selective processing is the functional utility of something. How proficiently does it perform its intended task? For example, a car’s essential design is to transport you from point A to point B.

Active processing allows us to grasp the implicit or underlying narrative conveyed by an object or situation. For example, a person's car can suggest their social status.

While it’s clear these processors operate as opposites, it’s important we engage both to fully understand what’s being conveyed.

About You

This assessment indicates you’re a balanced Observer.

You often manifest a kind of cognitive bi-lingualism by being equally fluent in the language of symbolic and essential information. As a result, you communicate naturally with direct speech, text, and, numerical data, and in the language of visual imagery -- depending on the context.

This ability to move contextually between representational and essential communication often makes you a linchpin between the two communications cultures.

Advantages

Activating for both symbolic or essential information
Creating a compelling experience for a wide range of users
Bridging communication gaps

Challenges

Clashing with those fixated on either symbolic or essential perspectives
Good enough rarely feels good enough for you
Focusing on one style when it’s more prevalent or appropriate

Opportunity

Leverage your balanced proficiency in both symbolic and essential communication to enhance collaboration and understanding across diverse teams or communication cultures. At the same time, remain mindful of the context and audience preferences to ensure effective communication and minimize the risk of misinterpretation. Being adaptable and responsive to different communication needs will strengthen your effectiveness as a communicator and intermediary.

Selective

Active

% of population

You

About the Preference

Mover measures the neurological stimulus we derive from engaging our muscles. As we engage our bodies to do something as simple as standing from a sitting position, the powerful cerebral integration required is the equivalent of turning on stadium lights: our whole brain lights up.

While everyone experiences a neurological stimulus from movement, the extent of the boost and its effects on cognitive clarity will vary across the bell curve.

About You

This assessment indicates that you’re a mildly selective mover.

Being a mildly selective mover means that you experience an energetic neuro stimulus from physical activity, typically after a predictable warm-up period. Once warmed up, you can enter a state of flow where you achieve peak performance. This flow state allows you to engage fully in tasks and activities, experiencing heightened focus, productivity, and efficiency. It's during this state that you can harness your physical energy and mental clarity to accomplish tasks with precision and skill.

Additionally, this predictable warm-up period provides a reliable indicator of when you're ready to perform at your best, allowing you to plan and structure your activities accordingly for optimal results.

Advantages

You can enter a state of flow after a predictable warm-up period
You can concentrate without needing constant movement
Learning physical skills by direct instruction followed by guided practice

Challenges

Relying on a predictable warm-up period for optimal performance
Variability in the duration or effectiveness of the warm-up period may lead to inconsistencies in performance
Initiating physical activity can take effort

Opportunity

Leverage your ability to enter a flow state after a predictable warm-up period to optimize performance in tasks and activities. Use this reliable indicator of readiness to plan and structure your activities for optimal results. Additionally, explore strategies to manage transitions out of the flow state effectively, ensuring smooth transitions between tasks and maintaining overall productivity and efficiency.

Selective

Active

% of population

You

About the Preference

Reader measures the neuro stimulus we generate by decoding words. Decoding occurs when our eyes search and find a letter or word, identify that letter or word as a symbol, identify that symbol as a sound. It’s a three-step neurological process that allows us to think more clearly, store in memory more durably, and retrieve more reliably.

Some readers experience minimal neurological stimulation when processing text, while others find reading various types of text to be pleasurable and attention-boosting, whether it's on a cereal box, a road sign, or graffiti.

About You

This assessment indicates you’re a mildly Active Reader.

As you read, take note of how it brings about a subtle sense of calmness while sharpening your focus. While there might be initial resistance, pushing through often leads to a rewarding state of flow. You navigate through written content methodically, distinguishing between main ideas and supporting details as you progress.

Advantages

You can bring about a mild sense of calmness and energy from decoding text
You can push through initial resistance to a rewarding state of flow
You excel at distinguishing between main ideas and supporting details, indicates a strong analytical ability

Challenges

Initial resistance to engaging deeply with the material
Potential for over-analyzing or getting caught up in minor details
Balancing thorough comprehension with efficient reading speed

Opportunity

Incorporate active reading techniques such as summarizing key points, asking questions, or making connections to enhance engagement and combat initial resistance. Additionally, consider practicing speed reading techniques to maintain a balance between thorough comprehension and reading speed.

Selective

Active

% of population

You

About the Preference

Talker measures the neuro stimulus generated by the muscles we use to speak. In order to do something as simple as saying, “Hello,” we throw into complex and well-timed orientation muscles from the base of our diaphragm through our chest, throat, mouth, and lips. When we move this muscle system, the stimulus enables clearer thinking, more durable memory storage, and more reliable retrieval.

While everyone engages these muscles to speak, the degree of stimulation varies across the bell curve.

About You

This assessment indicates that you’re a balanced talker.

When you engage in verbal communication, you experience a moderate level of energetic response. This level of stimulation adequately supports your speaking activities without overwhelming you.

Thinking out loud serves as a beneficial tool for enhancing your learning and memory processes. By vocalizing your thoughts, you solidify your understanding and retention of information.

Your ability to choose when to speak or remain silent effectively allows you to navigate various social situations. This balanced approach enables you to contribute meaningfully to discussions while also recognizing the importance of active listening and reflection.

In group settings, you can serve as an effective mediator, leveraging your balanced communication style to facilitate constructive dialogue and promote consensus among participants.

Advantages

Using speech to support your learning and memory
Remembering something you're reading when you read it out loud

Challenges

Underestimating the benefit to your memory of thinking and reading out loud
Thinking of the perfect thing to say a day later

Opportunity

Anchor your understanding in a conversation. Reverbalize what someone said in your own words. “Did I get this right? What I heard you say is . . .”

Create and manage friend groups called circles that allow you to share and compare results

My results

Thinker

About the Preference

About You

Advantages

Challenges

Opportunity

Listener

About the Preference

About You

Advantages

Challenges

Opportunity

Observer

About the Preference

About You

Advantages

Challenges

Opportunity

Mover

About the Preference

About You

Advantages

Challenges

Opportunity

Reader

About the Preference

About You

Advantages

Challenges

Opportunity

Talker

About the Preference

About You

Advantages

Challenges

Opportunity