I just finished reading yet another amazing book.

This one is entitled “Thinking for a Living” by Joey Reiman.

For those of you that may not know, Joey is a thought leader and a thinker who – through the years – has learned how to harness the power of thinking in every area of his life. It has not only allowed him to pursue his passion in launching the world’s first ideation company – BrightHouse – but it has also enhanced his personal life as a husband, father, and spiritual believer.

This book delves right into an area of conversation that I think so many of us overlook…

“Thinking is a lifestyle that can be applied to every area of life.”

This is my takeaway: We don’t value our ideas. We don’t value a lifestyle of thinking in our society. Even our educational system has settled for telling our kids WHAT to think instead of teaching them HOW to think. We’ve built a society of executioners – people who are good at punching the clock Monday through Friday, and we have failed to develop thinkers – people who find ways to better their lives while creating a better world. It has been hypothesized that we use roughly only 10% of our brain to think.

Where’s the conversation about how do we develop and leverage the other 90%?

Let us not forget that it was thinkers who changed our world; who developed ideologies, processes, and inventions that we continue to live by today; who inspired us to do things and try things that were unheard of beforehand. Take into account Socrates, Plato, Jesus Christ, Martin Luther King Jr., Ghandi, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci and so many others. Their thoughts, ideas, and insights have modeled how we think, how we communicate… even how we live.

I’ve made it my mission to THINK for a living. Period. In all aspects of life.

Here are a few snippets from the book that I liked…

“Today the most valuable piece of real estate measures less than one foot and is worth trillions, yet most of it remains uninhabited. This place is called your brain.”

“People who think outside the [box] run circles around people who don’t. These big thinkers inspire us, enlighten us, and change the way we think forever.”

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” -Margaret Mead

“Racism is the absence of thinking. When you don’t think, you become ignorant.” -Martin Luther King Jr.

“Faith – true, abiding, empowering faith – is one of the biggest thoughts of all.”

“Greatest ideas are often met with violent opposition from mediocre minds.” -Albert Einstein

“Today, many of us are paid not to think. In schools, the answer has always been more important than the thought process.”

“The bottom line is that the biggest idea in the world is and always will be God.”

“No problem can stand the assault of sustained thinking.” -Voltaire

“Air keeps us alive, but thinking creates our lives. How we think affects our health, impacts our wealth, and most importantly gives meaning to why we are here.”

In what areas can you begin thinking for a living?