Stop designing for left-brainers and right-brainers: what event professionals need to know about the brain

They're creative. They're analytical. They're a visual learner. These are phrases that shape how we design events, build teams and communicate with audiences every day. But what if the science behind them is simply wrong and a more accurate understanding of the brain leads to far better outcomes?

SOURCE & CONTEXT

This article draws on insights shared by Professor Paul Howard-Jones at a recent Outsourced Events thought-leadership evening. A full write-up of his talk is available to download: Mind the neuromyth: What neuroscience really says about how we learn.

The neuromyths running through event and marketing design

At a recent Outsourced Events thought-leadership evening, Professor Paul Howard-Jones, professor of neuroscience and education at the University of Bristol, and familiar to many from the Channel 4 series Secret Life of 4-Year-Olds, set out to challenge some of the most widely held beliefs about how the brain works. He calls them neuromyths: ideas about learning and cognition that feel intuitively true, have become embedded in professional practice and are, by the weight of scientific evidence, wrong.

For event professionals and marketers, several of these myths have direct implications. They shape how conferences are programmed, how content is designed, how teams are briefed and how audiences are segmented. Getting them wrong doesn't just waste effort, it actively works against the outcomes we're trying to achieve.

Here are the four most consequential neuromyths for event and marketing practice and what the evidence says.

Neuromyth 1: people are either left-brained or right-brained

THE MYTH 

People who are 'left-brained' are more logical and analytical. Those who are 'right-brained' are more creative and intuitive. Knowing which your audience - or your team - is helps you communicate more effectively.

THE TRUTH

Whilst a small number of specific tasks do show a slight preference for one hemisphere, the two sides of the brain are deeply interconnected via the corpus callosum. Almost every meaningful cognitive task, including creativity, analysis, language and problem-solving, involves both hemispheres working in together. The idea that people are categorically one or the other is, as Howard-Jones put it, nonsense. 

The practical implication for event design is significant. Dividing a conference audience into 'the technical people' and 'the creative people' and programming for each separately misrepresents how the brain actually works. Everyone in the room has the capacity for both analytical and creative thinking and events that invite both will produce better outcomes for all delegates.

For team dynamics, the same principle applies. Labelling colleagues as either logical or creative closes collaboration and limits what people believe they're capable of contributing. The neuroscience suggests every individual can bring both analytical rigour and creative thinking to any challenge, given the right conditions.

Neuromyth 2: people learn better in their preferred style

THE MYTH

Delegates, employees and customers have preferred learning style - visual, auditory, reading/writing or kinaesthetic. Designing your event content or marketing materials to match these preferences improves engagement and retention.

THE TRUTH

Scientific research has found no reliable evidence to support the idea that matching content to a preferred learning style improves outcomes. The brain is highly interconnected: seeing a picture of a bell activates not only the visual cortex but also the auditory cortex, through association. Learning is inherently multi-sensory, and the most effective approaches engage multiple pathways simultaneously rather than isolating one.

This is one of the most widely held beliefs in corporate learning and development and one of the most thoroughly debunked. The research doesn't suggest that visual aids, discussion or hands-on activity are ineffective. It suggests that they work best together, not as alternatives tailored to different people.

For event professionals, this is a liberating finding. Rather than attempting to segment your programme by learning preference, a segmentation that lacks scientific validity, you can design boldly for multi-sensory richness. Combine video with discussion with written materials with physical interaction. The result will be better for every delegate, regardless of any supposed individual preference.

Neuromyth 3: we only use 10% of our brain

THE MYTH

Most of us are operating well below our cognitive potential. If we could only unlock the other 90%, the possibilities would be extraordinary.

THE TRUTH

Brain imaging shows that virtually all areas of the brain are active, even during simple tasks. The myth likely persists in part because of misleading 'heat map' visualisations from early brain scanning research, which showed localised activity without making clear that the rest of the brain was also engaged. Unless impacted by serious illness, we use all our brain. 

This myth matters less directly for event design than the others, but it shapes a broader cultural assumption that human potential is largely untapped and that the right technique, tool or intervention can dramatically unlock it. This assumption makes people susceptible to pseudoscientific programmes and products that promise cognitive transformation without evidence.

For organisations investing in learning and development, it's a prompt to evaluate the evidence base for any programme carefully and to be appropriately sceptical of claims that seem too good to be true.

Neuromyth 4: specific exercises can link the brain's hemispheres and enhance learning

THE MYTH

Simple movement-based exercise programmes - particularly those involving cross-body coordination - enhance learning by physically linking the brain's two hemispheres.

THE TRUTH

There is no credible evidence that coordination exercises 'activate' the brain in the specific way claimed. However aerobic exercise is genuinely beneficial for learning and cognitive performance, even when it replaces traditional learning time. The mechanism is general brain health, not hemisphere coordination. 

The practical upshot for event design is straightforward: movement breaks work, but not for the reasons often cited. A short walk, a stretch, or a change of physical environment between sessions genuinely refreshes cognitive performance, not because it links hemispheres, but because physical activity improves blood flow, reduces fatigue and restores attentional capacity.

Building movement into long conference days and training programmes is neurologically sound. Doing so in the name of 'brain gym' or hemisphere coordination is not, but the outcome (more movement, better cognitive performance) remains valuable either way.

"Understanding how the brain really works can improve how we teach, communicate, lead teams and engage customers." Professor Paul Howard-Jones

What this means for how you design events and communications

Taken together, Howard-Jones' debunking of these four myths points towards a cleaner, more evidence-based model for event and communication design, one that replaces the pseudo-precision of learning style categorisation with a richer, more genuinely effective approach.

•       Design for the whole brain, not half of it, rich, multi-sensory experiences that combine visual, auditory, discussion-based and physical elements will outperform any single-modality approach.

•       Stop categorising your audience by learning style or brain dominance, these categories lack scientific validity and lead to design choices that are narrower than they need to be.

•       Build in physical movement as a cognitive tool, not a scheduling concession - the evidence for its positive effect on learning and attention is robust.

•       Invest in psychological safety and positive emotional environments, the conditions in which the brain learns best are social and emotional as much as they are intellectual.

•       Be sceptical of any learning or engagement programme that makes strong claims without a strong evidence base, the gap between popular belief and scientific reality in this field is wider than most people assume.

Related content

This article is part of a series exploring the neuroscience of events and communication, informed by the Outsourced Events thought-leadership evening with Professor Paul Howard-Jones.

Download the full white paper: Mind the neuromyth: What neuroscience really says about how we learn

Read the companion articles:

• Why your conference agenda may be working against your attendees' brains
• The dopamine-driven event: what neuroscience tells us about tradeshow engagement
• From passive audience to active participant: what neuroscience tells us about association conference design
• The neuroscience of the leadership summit: creating the conditions for real behaviour change

About Outsourced Events

Outsourced Events is an award-winning B2B event management agency with over 25 years of experience, specialising in technology brands and professional associations. We regularly host thought-leadership evenings that bring together leading experts and forward-thinking professionals to explore ideas that matter. To find out about upcoming events or to discuss your next event brief, contact us at [email protected].