Learning what it feels like to THINK DIFFERENTLY

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I’m telling you - It’s lonely out there in the world of alternative thinking! And that’s why so many people are afraid to do it, become increasingly frustrated, negative and pessimistic, and often end up living a life of resentment, bitterness and regret. Don’t let this be you!

For the first time in the history of the universe, due to the internet, you will definitely find people who do think like you, who do have opinions that are quirky and different like you, and for the first time you can feel completely connected to a community of like-minded thinkers.

However these natural alternative thinkers is not what this post is about, this post is about the fact that when we are born we are all born unique. Our DNA in itself is a unique life force, we all are unique, but somehow somewhere along the way we get streamlined through our schooling, our culture, family life or simply the media out there. There isn’t necessarily anything wrong with this because in fact we are all hardwired to find some kind of pattern to follow to bring us security and guidance. At the same time we are now living in a world where the patterns are not mainstream anymore, the world is encouraging you to be unique, but so many people really don’t know who they are anymore.

So what do we do with this?

We have to learn not just how to think differently but become comfortable in the world of thinking differently. This is the hardest part because of all the other ‘norms’ mentioned above (culture, family, education etc). All the people around you are doing what’s expected of them and if you are doing something different it feels strange and critical in the eyes of your friends and family and could end up isolating you. So the key here is to get used to the isolation, because the world of thinking differently can be both cold and lonely but at the same time exciting and life affirming.

According to the Scientific American magazine article, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/think-different-jan-11/, thinking differently is all to do with redefining our perception of reality. We all have the same needs to be loved, fed and included socially, but the reality in which these worlds live in each person are vastly different, and can be made to feel either comfortable or uncomfortable based on our perception of them.

Our perception is actually our reality, and our realities are all different. So that statement in itself tells us that we are all alone. But not everyone is lonely. What is the difference then? Loneliness is simply a person’s feeling of uncomfortable-ness in their uniqueness, which is why most people redefine their ‘aloneness’ by removing their unique thinking patterns, so they can be far more comfortable with the mainstream.

But this is the wrong way to do it, you are compromising your reality to fit in for fear of loneliness, when in fact you should be looking at it the opposite way, you need to be engaging with the humanness of what and who you are and liking it all, then a very strange thing happens, you find yourself becoming far more approachable, far more interesting to others and generally happier in yourself – and you haven’t every compromised your own unique way of thinking.

Some of the most successful business people in the world are people who started from nothing, with no formal education and a crazy idea. These are the people who are the truly unique thinkers, but their road was not easy, but because they thought differently but because they were around at a time when social or cultural norms were far more important than their ideas.

But today that is not the excuse anyone can use, the only excuses that non-original thinkers can use now is that they simply aren’t interested in moving out of their comfort zone or somehow believe there is too much to lose.

I would say that we are living right in in a generation where all forms of learning are being put into the spotlight and questioned as to whether they are creative enough for the world today. Thank goodness – good old fashioned common sense is now being the critical pivotal point on which all education and social systems are being graded, and if it doesn’t hit the mark, it’s thankfully being abolished.

Learning what it feels like to think differently is actually about learning to love yourself more, and this is something everyone could do a bit more of.