Today I wanted to look into the skill of being ambidextrous. I have been fascinated with it for years and many envy the ability to use both hands proficiently. I have always been curious why we can not use both hands. Ever since my mother would take my fork or pencil out of my left hand to place it in my right hand. How was she to know? It's not written on my forehead.
I understand that we primarily train our dominant side and it would take more time to tame both sides. But the will power and focus that we can gain through learning with our weaker side, can exponentially benefit our knowledge. What I mean by that is this; I am left handed and I have been practicing how to scribe with my right hand. Because I am slowing down and rethinking what I consider to be very basic motions, I am able to pick up on details I am used to passing over. As I moved into cursive with my right hand, the rate at which I needed to move my hand baffled me and I still find it difficult to make graceful.
Studies say approximately 1-2% of humans are ambidextrous. If you think about it, very few things you do, take 2 moving hands. Typing and driving are probably the most complex two-handed tasks the average person will encounter daily. Most tasks really only need one focused hand and one bracing hand to complete it. Well of course, this makes sense. For me, my weaker side lacks the finesse and endurance of 8 hour painting and drawing sessions. So my right handed drawings look "child-like" or underdeveloped. What about professional athletes who had to develop a strong sense of ambidexterity through rigorous practice and repetition? Drummers use syncopation to use both legs and arms on different beats. So it seems there are many who overcome the barrier of a non-dominant side. Imagine the day everyone can easy pat their heads and rub their bellies!
I think exercising the non-dominant hand should be a regular practice for everyone. It slowly "rewires" and strengthens the mind's ability to communicate across hemispheres. If you try write with your opposite hand, you will feel your dominant hand cringing and tensing up as you think through the motions. It is so used to receiving those signals, that it can not help but to respond. A few of the world's most moving minds were naturally ambidextrous: Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla and Issac Newton to name a few. That is not to say you can not do great things without being ambidextrous. Remember, the goal is to open up our potentials by practicing our weaknesses.