Our culture has turned us largely into people who look to others to determine what our own opinions are. For a movie that is coming out, we look to the movie critics or Rotten Tomatoes to determine whether or not it’s good (even after we see the movie sometimes). We watch SportsCenter to tell us who we should start in our fantasy football leagues. We read business blogs to help us determine our opinions on various topics like sponsored tweets, blogs, and videos. You get the point.
So we’re pretty much hardwired in certain parts of our lives to look to others for advice on what we should think. Wait, what? Our culture is teaching us to not think for ourselves? Your first reaction, like mine, is probably, “Man, we’re lazy, we shouldn’t rely on the opinions of others so much.” You’re right, sort of.
THE GOOD
Even though it sounds like we’re taking the easy way out by simply using the original thoughts of others, the truth is that it is efficient. In the most simplified form, we have two options: 1) spend time learning about the topic ourselves or 2) use what others have learned to learn about the topic ourselves. When you look at it this way, option 2 is definitely more attractive when you consider the value of time.
Using this method, we’re able to avoid trying out every product we’re considering buying and weighing them all against each other, and just look at the reviews online to see which are the best.
Then, there are times where experts really know a LOT more than we’ll ever know on our own about a topic. These experts graciously share their knowledge so that we can benefit from it without putting in all of the hard work that they did. This is precisely why I look to Ramit Sethi for advice on personal finance.
THE BAD
There are some times when using the ideas of others as our crutch hurts us. You have to be careful whose thoughts you’re relying on and ensure that they truly do know what they’re talking about. I like using extreme hypothetical situations to prove points, so an example would be asking a polar bear what hotel you should stay at in Egypt. Dumb idea.
THE UGLY
The really scary thing about relying on the ideas of others is the potential that we get so caught up in using the ideas and knowledge of others that we forget to think of new, innovative ideas on our own. Yes, it’s unlikely we get to the point where nobody focuses on creating new ideas and everyone relies on the ideas of others (because that would obviously eventually result in a stagnant era in idea generation), but if this even happens on a smaller scale, it could be harmful.
Marketers could get too caught up studying the “best practices” of others and forget about finding the next new medium to market their product through. Product engineers could get caught up mimicking old designs and forget about true “innovations.”
The way you differentiate your company/product and become an industry leader isn’t by relying on the thought leadership or best practices of others, it’s by thinking of innovative new ideas and implementing them.
THE VERDICT
There’s arguments on both sides of this, and I’m going to take the easy way out and say the best option is for you to use a mixture of relying on others and thinking for yourself. “Shortcuts” like reading blogs of industry professionals to give you a better understanding of a topic are great ways to save time and develop a solid foundation on which you can begin to build your own opinions and ideas.
So, what do you think? Is society moving towards one that can’t think for themselves? Do you rely too much on the opinions of others? Join me in The Curbside comments below to discuss!
From Flickr User Dr Case
{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
Some great points in this post. It's really hard to innovate when you spend all your time focusing on what others are doing. On the other hand, in order to have an informed opinion you need to be well versed on what is going on around you.
It is all about finding a balance between being informed and creating innovation. That is really what marketing is all about– learning from the world around you, while always thinking about what is next, or how to take an approach and make it more interesting.
Do you agree?
I'd definitely agree and I think that's exactly the point I was trying to drive home with the post. You use the thoughts of others to build your foundation and from that you kick it in high gear and go out and create new ideas on your own.
I'm psyched to see you commenting on here regularly, Danny, and thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Your best post yet Jackie. By far.
I agree with your veredict, but it's harder to do it in a balanced way than it seems.
Thanks, Carlos that means a lot to me! I agree that, as usual, it's definitely easier said than done, but that's part of what separates the good from the great. Some people are really good at using what's worked well for others in their own lives or business, but the people who are remembered as extremely successful people are those who go that extra step and add their own unique, innovative twist to it.
Great post, Jack-Attack!
I think it's important to note that this is something that has been happening since the dawn of time…It may seem like we have information overload, but people have always relied on the opinions of others to get information and make choices.
Whether it was the witch doctor, the town scholar, the barber, a friend, neighbor or family member, people have always looked to others for advice – even before the internet. It may seem like we do it more now just because the information is so readily available and maybe there's more voices sharing these opinions, but I don't think anything has really changed.
Regardless of whether or not I had Internet, I would still ask friends for restaurant suggestions, I would still go to movies my co-workers rave about and I would still use the laundry detergent my mom uses to get out tough stains.
I don't think we're “not thinking for ourselves.” I think we all find our own tiny bit of expertise or opinion that we share with our communities. It's not taking the “easy way out,” it's being part of the conversation and building trusting relationships with the sources you get your information from.
@goktgo
Some really great thoughts in there, Katie!
Now that you pointed it out, I would agree that this has always happened, but with the Internet, we simply have easier access to more opinions than we could have had before.
On some level, I still think some people resort to not thinking for themselves in instances where they may be better served using the expert's opinion and expanding on it. I know some people who will say whatever a movie critic says about a movie without really telling what THEY think about the movie. Similarly, some people have a go to expert in whatever field they're in that they will agree with everything they say (which, sometimes is okay because that person may be really smart, but sometimes can be done to a fault). I believe these people who take the easy way out are definitely in the minority, but they are out there. Is that just me, or do you see what I'm saying?
But you nailed it in the last paragraph about what *should* be done in most instances, where we simply use our relationships efficiently to get that initial information and then contribute to it ourselves.
Great insights, Katie! Thanks for adding to the discussion!
Here's another thought for you Jackie: what if the people in the middle choose to listen to what others have to say because they are afraid to go on their own? This is tha part that worries me about this advice abundance that we're going through nowadays.
Really great thoughts Katie and Jackie.
Something that really comes to mind is the break down of different kinds of internet users in “Groundswell” (cliche I know, but important nonetheless). They talk about a ladder of internet users, with Content creators at the top of the ladder and inactive users at the bottom. In between there are Critics, Collectors, Joiners, and Spectators respectively.
I believe that a big part of where our ideas and opinions emanate from is based on how we participate in the social web.
For example, let's say you spill red wine on a white carpet. I might go to Twitter and ask how to get red wine out. A spectator may go to Google and ask the same question. A Critic may go straight to a reputable magazine or website that they know based on past experience of the top of their head.
Essentially, how and where we participate online may influence all aspects of information gathering, from the source of the information to our own personal opinions on its viability and reliability.
That's definitely a valid concern. The people in the middle can be pretty intimidated by the thought leaders and worry that if they dispute a claim or even add something to it, they're original ideas will get squashed. Do you think there's anything the thought leaders could do to encourage readers/followers to go out on their own (or should that even be their concern)?
At risk of getting things thrown at me, I'll admit that I haven't read Groundswell (yet), but I am familiar with the ladder that categorizes the different types of users. That is interesting to think about how most of these tendencies are sort of built in to us depending on which of these categories we fit into.
Groupthink is good…..right??
Should you educate yourself with the opinions of others whose wisdom you trust? Yes.
Should you make your decisions and form your own opinions solely on the influence of others? Never.
I think our society is moving towards taking these “expert” opinions as verbatim not only because people do not want to have to think for themselves any longer, but also because they do not want to take responsibility for themselves/their thoughts/their actions any longer. How often do we hear people saying stuff “happened to them” because “someone told them to.” It's a lot easier to avoid consequences when the actions were never your own.
It's hard to make a balance between the good and the bad. When we trust the opinions of the expert, we held it as our own, but oftentimes they may come in conflict with our choice. I believe that we should have at least a little bit of cynicism to make a balance.
With great thoughts comes great responsibility. That's how it goes right? You're right. People are held accountable for their thoughts and that is definitely a scary thought for some people.
I'm with you on that. We can't go all the way and trust them, we definitely have to question their opinions still.
It's hard to make a balance between the good and the bad. When we trust the opinions of the expert, we held it as our own, but oftentimes they may come in conflict with our choice. I believe that we should have at least a little bit of cynicism to make a balance.
With great thoughts comes great responsibility. That's how it goes right? You're right. People are held accountable for their thoughts and that is definitely a scary thought for some people.
I'm with you on that. We can't go all the way and trust them, we definitely have to question their opinions still.
It's hard to make a balance between the good and the bad. When we trust the opinions of the expert, we held it as our own, but oftentimes they may come in conflict with our choice. I believe that we should have at least a little bit of cynicism to make a balance.
With great thoughts comes great responsibility. That's how it goes right? You're right. People are held accountable for their thoughts and that is definitely a scary thought for some people.
I'm with you on that. We can't go all the way and trust them, we definitely have to question their opinions still.