How to Write an Article That Speaks to Every Brain
By: Nabil Alouani
Tags: Writing, Creativity, Brain, Content Creation, Writing Tips

Four Different Ways to See the Same World

While researching creativity inside General Electric’s facilities, Ned Hermann focused on two mysteries. Thinking and learning. (Reading an article happens to be a combination of the two.)

Hermann locked himself in his New York office to study brain circuits and thinking patterns. When he came out, he had a long beard and a model describing how people process information.

William Edward Hermann — Wikimedia Commons

In a nutshell, the pioneer divided the brain into four different categories he called dominances. He used the word ‘dominance’ because no brain fits solely in one category. We all have a bit of the four types, but one or two dominate our thinking.

Hermann also gave each brain dominance a color.

🟨 Yellow Experimental Brain: tends to explore, imagine, break rules, and synthesize — the Why type.

🟦 Blue Analytical Brain: tends to rely on logic, concrete objects, and numbers, analyzes, and sticks to reality — the What type.

🟩 Green Practical Brain: tends to plan, value time, organize, anticipate, and follow steps and procedures — the How type.

🟥 Red Relational Brain: tends to talk, rely on emotions, teach, and pay attention to people — the Who type.

Our dominating colors determine how we treat information.

For instance, at the station, my red and yellow brain saw people and created stories. You could say my neurons have a thing for the Whys and the Whos. That’s also why if you write a story with no room for imagination and people, I won’t get your point — even if I force myself to read the whole thing.

My date, on the other hand, is a different story.

Alice is more of a blue brain. Her neurons crave the Whats — thus, they see objects as she did with Christmas decorations. Similarly, if she doesn’t see any concrete stuff in your writing, she’ll scratch her head and skip past it.

To help you remember all four types, I made a drawing with the colors and signature questions.

As you may have guessed, writing an article that speaks to every brain type is about answering the four questions.

Which brings a fifth one to the surface: Where do you do it?

🟨 Why in the title

You’ve probably heard this before: your title and subtitle should clarify “Why should someone read this?”

It’s a popular tip because it works. In this context, Hermann’s whole-brain model is the scientific evidence for applying it.

That being said, Why-types are creative and wander a lot — even when reading. Therefore, make sure to remind them of the Why somewhere in the introduction using a detailed thesis.

🟦 What early on

The blue part is where you convince. Your job boils down to delivering logical arguments, evidence, and examples to back up your thesis.

In this article, the main blue chunk was Four Ways to See the Same World. I explained the concept and its relevance to writing.

Remember, the What-types analyze everything. So, make sure you use precise words, numbers, and pictures whenever possible.

🟩 How in the guide-like part and/or takeaway

You’re in the middle of the How-part of this article. Unlike the other types, green brains seek a clear, detailed procedure. That’s why they’re likely to scan for tips and takeaways before diving into an article.

The idea is to make sure the guide-like part stands out. Also, make it easy to understand and navigate your takeaways. You’ll make How-types happy.

🟥 Who is the target audience and more

The last question is, in my opinion, the trickiest one. There are several ways to ask it. Here are the main two.