I love hanging out with thinkers (doers as well but that’s another entry). There are knowers in the world and they play a vital role because they know the answers – is it "allright" or "all right?" A knower will tell you. But thinkers – critical thinkers, philosophical thinkers, long-term thinkers, etc. they are the ones that push us forward, cause us to think and rethink our thoughts – what we held to be valuable knowledge may lose or increase its value due to a thinker.
I find thinkers everywhere. Some are just that way. We can call them "active thinkers." Others are not so active and usually think as a result of an outside force. We can call them "reluctant thinkers." Both have value and one’s thoughts aren’t necessarily any better or worse than another’s.
Here is the difference though. Active thinkers enjoy the conversations brought on by their and your thoughts. It isn’t any fun to think alone, not for a long time anyway. Active thinkers need others to bounce ideas off, question their thoughts, which requires additional thinking on behalf of both parties, etc. The best part is a thinker can have this conversation with another thinker or even a knower. The knower may tell them the answer or that they are wrong but that doesn’t matter to the active thinker. They are just thinking. There is no win or lose with thinkers, just progression.
I have been working with a group of thinkers all semester. Their most recent thoughts about the future of public relations can be found here. Whether you are a thinker, a knower or a doer, I hope you will engage them in a conversation. They need it. It’s no fun thinking alone.
By the way, I am looking for a name for this blog. Its purpose is to create an environment for OSU JB/PR students to blog about, among other things, public relations, journalism, broadcasting, current events, etc. I hope it will evolve into larger efforts but this is a start. Wadda ya think?