The internet loves to pretend it’s full of rebels, but most people think like herd animals stuck in a dopamine slop loop. Someone posts a hot take and suddenly everyone’s performing conviction in unison. It’s not discernment, not even close. It’s basic downloading. And somehow that’s mistaken for intelligence.
“Free thinker” has become one of those empty status signals plastered next to “entrepreneur” or “citizen of the world” in bios of people reposting the same recycled contrarian takes from 2021. But actual free thinking isn’t sexy. It’s not optimized for engagement. It’s inconvenient, disorienting, and often makes you the most unpopular person in the room.
To think freely, you need insulation. Not aesthetic branding. Not AI-generated nuance. Not cheap applause or external validation. You have to want truth more than you want to be accepted. And let’s face it, most people just want to be accepted.
Free thought has overhead, which is exactly why most people opt out.