I believe at some point in every individual’s life, there was a time in which we have had a great creative spurt. In which ideas were formulated and were brought to life through play, games, etc. While this was a momentary phase for some of us, there are those who’s brain are chemically engineered to stay in that particular phase of thinking. I take great pride in knowing that I am raising 2 individuals who share this type of thinking. While these girls are governed by the right side of their brain, in which the creative nature takes over in every aspect of their lives, I am governed by the left side of the brain, which values structure, order, facts, and laws.  
This article is meant to explore both sides of thinking, and then construct a bridge to which both may co-exist in harmony. 

Right Brain Dominate Case Studies
Case Study #1: 
History: My oldest daughter is 15 with a high artistic ability. My fondest memory with her is when she was about 3 years old. She and I were finger painting. I remember watching her concentrate hard on where her fingers were being placed, and on the image, she wanted to create. The pride on her face when she completed her painting stayed with me. 

Traits/ Creative Thinking: It became exceeding clear to me that she was to continue in the phase of creativity as she grew. As she formed critical thinking skills, I saw that her mind worked in a form of imagery. To be more specific, she had to picture things in order for it to make sense. She continues, to this day, to draw inspiration from surrounding circumstances, and translate them in forms of drawing, painting, etc. 
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Traits/Personality: As a young lady, her way of thinking became more concrete. While very loving and caring, she became very passive. She was able to shift quickly to accommodate, and is exteriorly very passive. There are very subtle acts of rebellion, however, this may be due to the phase in life in which she is currently at. 🙂 We’ll see how it goes.... 

Case Study #2: 
History: My middle child is 13 with the ability to create. With this child everything and anything is possible.  I realized the child was highly creative at a very early age, while she was processing words. Creative thinking in a child as early as 4-5 years of age was, to me, truly impressive. 

Traits/Creative Thinking: This child is exceptional at word imagery. Her talent lies in the construct of character development in short stories, as well as plot formulation. Inspired by characters from both classic and modern stories, she continues to experiment in writing. 

Traits/Personality: While the first child is very passive, this one has a lot of passionate ambition to draw on. Very outspoken and unbothered by opinions, she has a bit of a rebellious streak. When all things are considered, however, she is one that will continue to strive for her personal best and brings this out of those who are closest to her. 

Similar yet Different-Right Brain dominate
Similarities: Both girls share similar traits while differing at the same time. I’m not sure if that makes sense but we will run with it for the time being.  
One similar trait I myself have observed is the desire to create from scratch. While the first child creates images, the other creates stories. Their power lies in the creative process itself. To turn a canvas into a work of art, or to turn words to create imaginative stories an impressive thing to watch.  

Most often, both girls share the sensitivity to judgement regarding their given talent. This is where the rebellious streak comes into play. Criticism is not taken lightly as there is much emotion attached to their work. After all, they spent hours creating this baby from scratch, so for you to knock it down brings out a defensive response right away.  
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Disorganized thinking is another similarity that both girls share. This is evident in their lives: room is chaotic, they opt to wear simple clothing, they may seem forgetful at times, etc. This is not necessary a bad thing, it just means that their minds are always flooded with ideas and do not take the time to worry about smaller details.
Differences: While we explored similarities, I should take the time to mention differences. In observation, the differences in both these girls are how they go about creating. Their minds are a product of a 2-parent household- one that is highly creative (Dad), and one that is highly govern by logic and reason (Mom).  

Their personality differences are present too. While one remains outspoken, the other is more reserved to her own thoughts. While one is artistic in nature, the other forms word art and caters more to the public. One is passive, the other stubborn. 
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One night I had an idea to combine both talents and have them come up with children’s illustrated books. When the idea was presented, both girls had already thought of it, however, they could not find common ground when it came to pictures that would fit the story told (see what I mean with the criticism?).

The Logical Parent- Left Brain Dominate
Traits/Creative thinking: Creative thinking was a very hard thing for me to grasp and essentially master. While this comes easy to those who are already prone to abstract thought, the idea of going out of a structural element is difficult for me. I do my best work when there are structures, laws, rules, etc. The analysis of facts and details work best for me, whereas the girls would feel too confined in these methods.  
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Traits/Personality: So how does a left brain dominate usually present in their personality? To be honest, most would say rigid, obsessed with organizational constructs, dominated by practical theory. The process of creating is regimented to a plan and then executed with precision. Most would say that being this detail oriented could be seen as a setback. Detail analysis may boarder obsessive. This may in fact bleed into personal relationships, and may be disruptive if remained unchecked.

Parenting
Here are some things that have worked for me and hopefully will work for you. 

1. First things first- seek to understand. Let’s face it, when you have a creative child (or more than one) and you are ruled/govern by logic, it comes as quite a shock. While you hope that this may be merely a phase you should be prepared if this becomes a concrete form of thinking. In order to do so, you need to be able to understand how their minds process things. If you maintain an open mind when doing so, you may pick up some effective habits that may assist you in other areas of your life. Note: I speak from experience on this.  
2. Traditional parenting (I say so, so you do it) will not work. Creative children need to room to experiment in how they want to do things. They enjoy a little bit of freedom to express their ideas and thoughts, and like to show individuality in doing so. For a logical parent this is difficult and anxiety producing. You may be tempted to be like: no do it my way and my way only. This will not only close out any open communication you have built with your child, but will detour any other communication going forward. Being open minded is key. Start building trust if you have already tried this form of parenting, so that your child sees you as approachable.  
3. Allow room for growth and error- Let's face it, although your kid thinks they know everything (this is very true for a creative kid-insert eye roll), they don’t. Errors give you a chance to express the star qualities of logic/rationale thinking. In their downfall, you can teach them to analyze the problem, create a plan, and encourage him/her to get back up and try it again. Make them a part in creating a plan so that they will be willing to follow through on it.  
4. If all else fails reach out- We all know that one adult who enjoys creating things. They may present in a form of a family member, or a small-town entrepreneur. Usually, creative children grow into entrepreneurs so do not get discouraged if they fail to follow the structural order of the household, or are rebellious. Practice patience, and above all unconditional love. Your household will be just fine