I’ve done something very out of the ordinary just recently. I decided it was time to do a full research project on something we were never taught in school — I wanted to find out what are the actual principles for learning how to think for ourselves. Here’s why…

I grew up like many others, believing almost everything I was taught and rarely questioning those in authority. Slowly, however, I began to realize that many things were not quite right. My own awakening took a hard turn in 2020 when it suddenly became clear that the world was not at all as we had been led to believe.

Rather than tell you my whole life story here, let’s fast forward to the heart of what I want to share with you today. Because of the nature and scope of the research project I gave myself, I decided to experiment with something I never thought I’d try. I brought in a research assistant to help gather and organize as much information as possible and turn it into a clear, step-by-step process that anyone could follow. The results were far more powerful than I expected.

But before we get to that, I want to plant some seeds about just how much our thinking is being shaped without our awareness. Take a look at just one glimpse of what my research uncovered and see if any of this feels familiar…

How Much Of Your Thinking Is Actually Your Own?

Most of us like to believe we are. We read articles, watch videos, scroll through our feeds, form opinions, and defend them with passion. We assume our thoughts are our own — the product of logic, life experience, and careful consideration. We tell ourselves we’re rational, independent thinkers who weigh evidence and reach conclusions on our own. But what if that belief is more comforting than accurate?

What if a surprising amount of what we call “thinking” is actually a series of automatic reactions, emotional reflexes, and mental shortcuts we never consciously chose?
In today’s world, the forces shaping what we believe are more powerful, more constant, and more sophisticated than at any point in human history. They operate 24 hours a day, personalized to our individual psychology, and often invisible to us.

Algorithms decide what appears in your feed, prioritizing content that keeps you scrolling — usually the most emotionally charged, the most confirming of your existing views, or the most likely to provoke outrage. News outlets, regardless of their political leanings, frame stories in ways designed to trigger strong feelings first and critical analysis second. Social platforms reward tribal signaling: the more you agree with your group, the more validation you receive in the form of likes, shares, and status.

Even our everyday conversations are influenced by these dynamics. We feel pressure — sometimes subtle, sometimes overt — to align with the people around us.

Disagreeing too strongly can cost friendships, professional opportunities, or social belonging. In many circles, asking the “wrong” question or expressing nuance is treated as disloyalty rather than intellectual honesty.

The result is a quiet erosion of independent thought. We mistake familiarity for truth. We confuse repetition with evidence. We feel informed simply because we have consumed a lot of information, not because we have examined it rigorously.

Start A New Self-Check Habit

Have you ever caught yourself:

• Sharing a headline or clip without reading the full story or checking the source?
• Feeling immediate certainty about a complex issue after seeing one dramatic video or post?
• Changing (or softening) your view on something because everyone in your social circle believed the opposite?
• Avoiding a legitimate question because it might make you look foolish or “out of step” with your group?
• Defending a position you once questioned, simply because you’ve invested time and identity in it?

If any of these feel uncomfortably familiar, you’re not alone. This isn’t a failure of intelligence — it’s a failure of training. No one ever taught most of us the practical mental habits required to protect our own thinking in an environment specifically engineered to hijack it.

True independent thinking isn’t about becoming a perpetual contrarian or rejecting all mainstream ideas. It’s something quieter and more powerful: the ability to notice when your mind is running on autopilot and choose to engage deliberate reflection instead.

It means developing the self-awareness to ask:

• Am I reacting emotionally, or have I paused to examine the evidence?
• Am I believing this because it feels true, or because the evidence supports it?
• Would I still hold this view if it came from the “other side”?
• What assumptions am I making that I haven’t examined?
• What evidence would actually change my mind?

These questions are simple, but they are not easy. They require intellectual honesty and a willingness to sit with discomfort. Certainty feels good. Belonging feels safe. Challenging your own assumptions can feel threatening — especially when it risks social friction or forces you to revise a long-held belief.

Yet the payoff is profound.

When you begin to think more independently, you start to see the world with clearer eyes. Decisions become less reactive and more considered. Conversations become more interesting and less tribal. You become harder to manipulate — whether by media, advertisers, politicians, or even your own unexamined biases. You gain the freedom to follow evidence wherever it leads, even when it leads somewhere unexpected.

In a world that profits from keeping us emotionally charged and mentally distracted, the ability to think clearly and independently has become one of the most valuable forms of personal freedom available.

It affects every domain of life: how we raise our children, how we vote, how we manage our careers and finances, how we navigate relationships, and how we consume information daily.

So here is a quiet challenge you can start today, without any special training or tools:

The next time you feel a strong emotional reaction to something you read, hear, or see — pause.

Don’t immediately share it. Don’t immediately argue for or against it. Just pause and ask yourself one honest question:

“Is this thought truly mine? Or am I simply running a program that someone else wrote for me?”

That single moment of self-awareness is where real independent thinking begins. It may feel small. It may feel uncomfortable at first. But over time, those small pauses compound into a fundamentally different way of moving through the world — one where your mind belongs more fully to you.

The world will continue trying to shape your thinking. That is unlikely to change.

The only real question is whether you will become better at noticing it — and choosing differently when it matters.

What do you think? Have you had moments where you suddenly realized your thinking wasn’t as independent as you believed? How did that feel, and what (if anything) did you do about it?

I’d genuinely love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Coming Soon

If the idea of truly learning how to think for yourself is something you’ve never seriously explored, I invite you to stay tuned. I’ve been deep in the trenches with this research for some time now — consolidating an enormous amount of material and refining it into something practical and powerful.

When it’s ready, I’ll share it right here. Until then, I hope today’s piece has given you something useful to reflect on: the quiet realization that most of us are thinking far less independently than we believe.

By the way, in case you’re wondering about the Biblical basis for my latest research project, here’s just one verse where we are specifically told to learn to use our own brain and think on a higher level…

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Romans 12:2 (KJV)

Stay curious,
Chris Michals (with Grok, by xAI)

PS: If you notice occasional changes in my writing style and type of content, check out my new artificial intelligence policy below…

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