generally fall into two categories: creative, right-brained marketers or analytical, left-brained marketers.  Today, I’m going to elaborate on that theory by saying that marketers can also be broken down in a similar manner as pragmatic marketers vs. idealistic marketers.

Often throughout my corporate career, I would say, “there are do-ers and there are thinkers.”  While I think most people carry some pragmatic and some idealistic traits in terms of their marketing styles and careers, I think that marketers generally lean in one direction or the other.

I fall into the do-er, pragmatic category, although as I get older, I have become more of a thinker.  I recall one of my boss’s, who was an extreme idealist/visionary/thinker marketer, telling me I was too negative when we would discuss a new initiative.  He (as an idealist marketer) erroneously saw my pragmatism as negativity.

My first reaction is always to look at the practical side of a new marketing or business initiative.  It’s not meant to be negative.  I just instantly connect the dots and think of the various impacts, players and potential obstacles a new initiative brings with it.  I don’t think how wonderful a new initiative sounds the first instant I hear of it.  Instead, I think of how to get it done and make it successful.  It’s the pragmatist in me.

While my boss told me I was negative, I thought that as an idealist/thinker marketer he looked at new initiatives through rose-colored glasses ignoring the execution for the prestige of the final deliverable.

Which is better, a pragmatic, realistic marketer or an idealistic, visionary marketer? 

I don’t think either is better.  I think they’re both essential to building a strong marketing team just as incorporating right-brained and left-brained thinkers into a marketing team is important.  By mixing these different ways of thinking and working, a marketing team will be well-balanced and ultimately capable of creating the best outputs.  However, it’s important for the team’s leadership to understand those differences in thinking and work to make the team members blend cohesively.  No one way is the right way, but together they can make a powerful team.

Which are you — a pragmatic marketer or an idealistic marketer?  Or do you think you’re one of the rare few who can maintain an internal balance between the two ways of thinking and working?

I should mention that while I think I’m a pragmatic marketer, I also think I’m right-brained, which is said to be the more creative side.  Does that mean I have a split personality or does it mean I have a good balance of thinking and working styles?  I wonder.

Image: Flickr

Give the test a try by looking at the female figure dancing in the picture below.  Is she turning clockwise or counter-clockwise?  Once you decide, find out what your choice means after the jump.

Apparently, if you see the dancer turning clockwise, then you are right-brained, and if you see her turning counter-clockwise, you are left-brained.

Right-brained people are said to be more creative with a focus on language, writing, etc.  Left-brained people are said to think in a more linear fashion with a focus on numbers, logic and analysis.

That distinct difference between right-brained and left-brained people can be seen clearly within the fields of marketing and branding.  Which are you?  Do you think this simple test is accurate?  What if you can make it go both ways like I can?  Does that mean you’re insane?

Check out my post later this week, which will talk about another distinct difference between marketers.

Images: Flickr and BrandweekNRX