What's on your mind?

What are you thinking about right now? Nothing? I don’t think so. Or are you thinking about not thinking? Sounds pretty confusing, right? Thinking is something that everybody does. All day, everyday, humans are constantly having thoughts about something. But the interesting thing about the tweet of “How to Think, According to This Winner of the Brain Size,” is that it gives us a specific way to think. Most of the time, when people have thoughts, they are based on everyday experiences and what happens to them. When you enter a dark room, you turn on the light switch. Doing that just seems like a repetitive task that we are accustomed to. But what we are really thinking is, “I’m in a dark room, I’m going to turn on the thing that makes it possible for me to see.”

Often times, thoughts enter the mind out of nowhere, too. Have you ever sat down somewhere, and had a random, crazy idea? When the mind isn’t in the process of doing a laborious task, it is more likely that we’ll have completely random, out of place thoughts. Thinking and processing information is something that we don’t take much time to reflect on. Even when we don’t realize it, our thoughts are the reason for our actions, and our conscience mind helps us to make decisions. Also, revolutionary ideas are generated in the mind, and those thoughts go on to change the world. Presidential candidates use their ideas constantly in debates, and scientists use their previous knowledge to come up with questions about the world. Thinking doesn’t stop throughout the day, unless of course, you’re unconscious, but it’s safe to say that every conscious being is thinking, analyzing, and making decisions all the time.

The first paragraph of the article discusses thinking effectively while reading, and not just skimming through the words. Have you ever started a paragraph, mindlessly read through the first three or four lines, and not understand what you just read? That is not active thinking. This is really important, since every word in a book or passage is there for a reason. The writer has used their own ideas to produce a work of literature or information, and hopes to use it to create thoughts in the reader's’ brain, making them think actively, too. Effective thinking is also crucial in the sense that it helps people make good decisions. Many people are impulsive, and do unhealthy and harmful things without thinking through the possible consequences. For example, have you ever done something, such as spitting gum on the sidewalk, without really thinking it through? I think everyone has. But what if instead, you thought through the consequences of this mindless action? What if you missed the sidewalk, and accidentally threw the gum at someone else? They surely would be pretty angry with you. Even if you just waited to throw the gum away, you’d avoid any further repercussions. This is important to think about, and it can help people who struggle with impulsive decisions. Thinking may seem like something we take for granted, but active thinking can, and will help us achieve success in every facet of our lives.