What do scissors, can-openers, pens, and rulers all have in common? They were all designed for right-handed people, of course. And that’s not surprising as only 13% of the popular are left-handed. So why does left-handedness only occur in about 1-in-10? Is left-handedness a disability for that 13% of people or are there advantages to being left-handed?
The History of Left-Handedness
There are indications going back to the caveman days that some people preferred their left over their right but when more sophisticated tools emerged, the preference for right- over left-handed tools became apparent.
Perhaps because left-handers are in the minority, they became the victim of superstition and folklore that centered around left-handedness being “bad” or “evil” in some way. The Bible solidified these notions and penned over 100 positive associations with the right hand while they wrote 25 unfavorable references to the left hand (including the devil being left-handed). These notions were even found in the 20th century when some parents refused to let their children write with their left hand and some captains wouldn’t let lefties on boats because of the “bad luck” lefties were said to carry with them.
Luckily, our minds are now more open and we understand that handedness – left or right – is just as acceptable.
The Disadvantages of Being Left-Handed
The disadvantages of being left-handed don’t rise to the level of disability, certainly, but they are noticeable as the vast majority of objects in the world are built with “righties” in mind. For example, if you try to hold a pair of scissors in your left hand and make a cut, you’ll find it nearly impossible. This extra difficulty is seen in everything from how to slant cursive writing to using a ruler. So people who are left-handed have to adapt and learn to use their non-dominant hand in these situations.
While these situations might make a person look clumsy or awkward if they aren’t used to using their right hand in a dominant way, it also forces a certain level of ambidextrousness that one could argue is beneficial overall.
Famous Left Handers
Because the right hemisphere of the brain controls the left hand (and vice versa the right hand) the traits associated with that side of the brain have been shown to be more prominent in “lefties.”
Traits more common in left handers include:
– Creativity
– Spatial awareness
– Music ability
– Big-picture thinking
– Emotional expression
Perhaps this is why so many famous and powerful people are left-handed. Famous lefthanders include:
– Barack Obama
– Bill Clinton
– Ronald Reagan
– Julius Caesar
– Bill Gates
– Steve Jobs
– Mark Zuckerberg
– Oprah Winfrey
– Michelangelo
– Vincent Van Gogh
– Jimi Hendrix
– And many more . . .- Angelina Jolie
International Left-Handers Day
On August 13th 1992 the first Left-Handers Day was held. It’s an annual opportunity to educate others about the advantages and disadvantages of being left-handed and it is celebrated worldwide. Some of the International Left-Handers Day events include:
– Left vs. right sporting events
– A left-handed tea party
– Pubs using only left-handed corkscrews
– “Lefty Zones” where left-handed prowess is celebrated and right-handed folks are challenged to try left-handed objects and see just how awkward they are
The easiest way to celebrate International Left-Handers Day is to tweet and Facebook about it. See here to learn about how to share this information over social media. You can also create your own left-handed zone. For more on Lefty Zones, see here.
For more on International Left-Handers Day, see here.
“This article was written by award-winning mental health writer and speaker, Natasha Tracy.” http://natashatracy.com
Left is definitely the best, we are more adaptable to the righties world .can work out how to use their tools,more spacial
y aware as life goes on we become ambidextrous anyway,much less prone to flap, calm in a crisis.