General George Patton, said, “If everyone is thinking alike, then someone isn’t thinking.”
Why is it that we are raised to think so much alike?
How can we learn to think differently, to think for of ourselves?
Each of us has our own unique gifts and an ability to see the world from our own point of view. These gifts and talents, along with an ability to think for our selves, are needed to support the whole, our family, our community, our nation, and our world. Each of us has the potential to offer our thoughts and gifts to influence the well being of the whole.
“The world we have created is a product of our thinking; it cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” Albert Einstein
We are not asked to give another person’s gifts or insights that we are not easily capable of contributing. We are only asked to give our own gifts and unique perspectives. This we can do. The world needs these from all of us and we need each other. We need to learn how to value our own gifts and each other’s gifts so that we can learn to work together in a complementary and cooperative way for the benefit of our whole living system.
The gifts that each of us has to offer is our ability to see the way things are from our unique perspective. We cannot see the total reality with which we are faced with, but we can definitely see it form our point of view. Our perspective, added to that of others, contributes to a clear picture. It’s like putting together a puzzle. If a piece of the puzzle is missing, there is no way to really see the whole picture.
How can we learn to be open to different people’s perspectives and see a larger picture?
“[Thinking is] what a great many people think they are doing when they are merely rearranging their prejudices.” William James
When we are not thinking for ourselves and sharing our unique gifts we loose our creativity, our ability to innovate, and worse yet, we don’t contribute our piece to the puzzle. When everyone is thinking alike we tend not to question things. We follow like sheep. We succumb to our fears, fabricated or real. A homogenized world is a very boring place in which to live. Maybe this is why depression and other psychiatric disorders are reaching epidemic proportions.
In order to think for ourselves and share our gifts we need to let go our fears of the unknown and what people will think. Those fears, for many of us, come from our thinking that we will not receive the approval of others for what we think and share. We need to believe in something greater than ourselves so that we feel free to express what we are thinking. Thinking for ourselves, thinking differently from others, means that we will make mistakes as we take risks to search for a greater understanding of what is possible. Thinking differently means questioning everything and not being afraid to express those questions. Thinking differently means letting go of judgment and being open to new possibilities, new perspectives, and greater diversity. Thinking for our selves, thinking differently is definitely not easy, but it is worth the effort.
“Begin challenging your own assumptions. Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in awhile, or the light won’t come in.” Alan Alda
What is holding you back from thinking for yourself?
Let me know what you think.
Until next week, remember the only boxes that exist are the ones you create.
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