The difference between a contrarian and an independent thinker

The difference between a contrarian and an independent thinkerThe difference between a contrarian and an independent thinkerWhats the difference between being a contrarian and an independent thinker?People often celebrate contrarian thinkers. After all, theyre the ones who swam against the current, resisted the pressure of the group, and were revered as visionaries because of it.But its important to consider, anyone who aims to consistently be a contrarian thinker is going to be wrong most of the time.Even Jeff Bezos says, You have to remember that contrarians are usually wrong.Theres often a good reason the vast majority of people take one side when it comes to solving a problem or making a decision. It isnt necessary, or even very helpful, to always take the opposing view.And yet, if you think the same way as everyone else, its very difficult to outperform them.So rather than always being swayed by the consensus view - or consistently being a contrarian- you should strive to be an independent thinker. Although they sometimes look the same, an independent thinker isnt a contrarian thinker. Independent minds dont take an opposing stance out of habit or a desire to be different.They simply look at different perspectives, and sometimes find a unique angle. Thats thinking for themselves. Something very different.Heres what that looks likeThe difference between contrarian and independent thinking is perspectiveSomeone who thinks independently may come off as a contrarian when you first meet them. And a contrarian thinker may initially binnenseem to be quite independent. But if you work with one or the other for long enough, the differences begin to emerge.Thats because theres elend necessarily any value in being a purely contrarian thinker. People tend to choose this style of thinking in order to be different. They want to stand out, not to figure things out. And that can be a problem when they bring that attitude into a workplace or a productive environment. Whil e it might be fun or interesting to take the opposite point of view all the time, doing so may not actually bring any unique conclusions to the table.Its better to develop an independent thought processIf you think independently, then yes, on occasion youre going to look as though youre opposing for the sake of opposing. But thats only because youve come to a different conclusion based on a unique perspective. Its very likely youll often conclude the consensus view is correct.Independent thinking isnt about taking the opposite stance or going with the crowd. Instead, its about looking at a problem in a fundamentally different way and drawing your own conclusion- whether its the same as everyone elses or completely different is irrelevant.You can develop independent thinking skillsThere is reputational risk in independent thinking. When you first look at the successes of some independent thinkers, it may seem great to stand out. Theyre lauded as trailblazers and geniuses.But making t he decision to take an opposing stance can be dangerous to your social standing within a group. Consciously or unconsciously, people will often make judgments about you based on how you interact with a group.In Daniel Coyles book The Culture Code, he devotes part of the introduction to a story about making houses with strands of spaghetti. Interestingly, when children are pitted against adults, the children almost always win. According to Coyle, its not because theyre smarter, or have more aptitude for building the structure. Instead, the adults spend an inordinate amount of time trying to figure out their roles and navigate their social identities.Do I look good here? Should I be in a more managerial role? Am I clashing with Sarah?The kids dont bother with any of that. They jump right in and start building because they find it easy to ignore social pressures. The children always beat the adults in this spaghetti contest.When forming your own views, you have to get over the fear of how other people will think about you. That doesnt mean not caring what others think. It just means not being afraid to be seen in a negative light if youre convinced the consensus view is wrong.Becoming aware of the influences around you is a key part of being an independent thinkerYour goal should be to develop a partial attachment to the situation around you. Some part of you should always be watching, noticing, thinking. This is a part of you thats not completely living in the situation. Rather, youre absorbing it and separating yourself from whats happening- to the degree that is possible.Use that detachment to identify how youre being influenced. Are you really reacting to the facts, or are you letting the emotions of the group affect your decision?A good way to objectively grade your decision-making process is by starting a decision journal. Every time you make a decision, write down what you decided and why. Three months later, open the journal to that page and revisit what you wrote. Not only will you see whether you were right or wrong, but youll also get to see whether you made a sound decision based on facts, or if you just got lucky. This is usually an eye-opener and a great starting point to understand your own thinking.Independent thinking is about more than just taking the opposing view. Its about constantly evaluating the situation and your decision-making process to get the best results possible. Its a difficult skill to cultivate, but the rewards of doing so can be tremendous for forming unique ideas and your own point of view.This article was originally published on Quora.com.