In times of media and internet you are under so many external influences that it can be difficult to know when you are thinking for yourself.

You most likely do not even know when your thinking is not your own. Being unable to think for yourself can make you miserable at best, or a puppet of someone else’s programming, at worst.

You wear clothes, listen to music and follow trends that media tells you in order to be cool.

Marketing companies create ads that hypnotize you mentality as you fall into debt, wear fashion that is unbecoming and get caught up in a cycle of over-spending, over-consuming and then stressing out over it.

Before you realize it, you are living a life designed for you.

We are all born into societies or cultures where the norms and customs are already established. For the most part, you have little choice but to conform to what is already in place.

This is not necessarily a bad thing, however, it can be confining and controlling if you accept everything blindly and never question the status quo.

Blind conformity is the root of much anguish and regret in this world. Many wars have been fought because citizens have placed their blind trust in national leaders.

Slavery, nazism, racism, sexism, religious extremism, cultism, organized crime and other forms of violent or oppressive social institutions have thrived on blind conformity.

To think for yourself means that whatever opinions you hold will be well thought out and come from a position of thorough investigation and thoughtful analysis.

It means choosing to not compromise the facts for the sake of consensus or fitting in. It is not unlike critical thinking – it just encompasses a broader scope of choices and decision-making in your life.

Ask questions. Get the facts before you decide to believe and act. Think for yourself!