How to be a great thinker

Reading is literally about thinking all the time.

Reading forces you to create different scenes in your mind.

Nonfiction helps you think about your own life. Fiction helps you think about the lives of others.

Sweat it out. Putting physical stress on your body will help clarify your mind.

I want to hear what both sides have to say before I can I say: I support this or I support that. Being a great thinker means that you can see where both sides are coming from. You need to understand why someone voted the way they did if you are ever going to convince them to vote for something else.

I love that feeling of enlightenment.

When you think you know something and then you learn more and it blows your mind. It is like learning that the planets orbit around the sun instead of earth. Your mind opens and there is an entire universe that you can now explore.

Wow I really need to do more of this one.

Find a place where people gather that you do not know and try to connect with them.

Stop thinking about what you need and think about what other people need and how you can help those people.

Go volunteer at a hospital or homeless shelter. Donate money. Mentor a young person.

Write it down.

Those crazy thoughts of yours.

I think I would be the worst stand up comedian. I have never told a story or a joke and people start laughing uproariously.

I can be witty in conversation. I love asking people questions.

But if I had to stand on stage and use my words to make people laugh that would be really far outside my comfort zone.

Maybe I will start with public speaking and then work up to standup comedy.

Go someplace different and interact with the people/culture.

I went to Japan and went to an owl cafe.

I went to hawaii and snorkeled with sea turtles.

Different places will change your thoughts.

I don't care if you are an introvert or an extrovert, if you sit down and try to listen to yourself you will might have great thoughts come up.

I love the fact that Jim Carrey went from being the wildest comedy actor in the world: Dumb and Dumber, to a full time painter.

His painting are insane, funny and good.

Sit by yourself and think.

I love hiking.

I get some of my best thoughts hiking in the trees.

Hawaii has a bamboo forest! The trees are so tall and think it is dark and no other vegetation grows. Nature is incredible and thought provoking.