When Independent Thinking Matters

Conformity is usually harmless. But in certain situations, independent thinking is critical. Financial bubbles form when everyone follows the crowd into overvalued assets.

History is filled with catastrophes caused by smart people following the group: the Challenger disaster, the 2008 financial crisis, and scandals like Enron, where many insiders sensed something was wrong but stayed silent. In each case, the cost of independent thinking was trivial compared to the cost of conformity.