How to Raise a Genius
There’s a technique that can transform a child today into a genius tomorrow. It sounds bold—maybe even unbelievable—but the principle behind it is the same one that separates super achievers like Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, and Henry Ford from everyone else.
The technique is remarkably simple. But its simplicity hides profound power.
How do you raise a genius?
Ask your child one simple question after they share their day: “What did you THINK about that?” This forces them out of the automatic see-react-tell pattern (the “following mode”) and into their inner mind space where introspection, subjective thinking, and self-leadership develop. This is the foundational difference between children who become geniuses and those who stay stuck in reactive patterns their entire lives.
- ✓Ask “What did you think about that?” to break the following mode
- ✓The following mode is the biggest scourge of human development
- ✓Opening the inner mind space develops curiosity—the seed of genius
- ✓Start young—brain patterns formed early become permanent
The Following Mode: Why Most People Stay Stuck
Think about how we develop from childhood. As a child, you mimic those around you—parents, older siblings, the world around you. When you enter school, you do what your teacher tells you. When you go to church, you follow the clergy. In the military, you follow superiors. At your job, you follow your boss. When you vote, you follow politicians.
This pattern—the following mode—is extremely limiting. And it traces back to prehistoric times when humans were essentially animals of nature, automatically reacting to the environment around them.
The Following Mode
A reactive mental state where you automatically respond to external instructions and stimuli rather than thinking independently. You see, you react, you tell—without ever entering your inner mind space to form your own thoughts and opinions. This pattern, established in childhood, typically persists throughout adulthood unless deliberately broken.
A child will not become a genius as an adult if they remain stuck in this damaging, limiting following mode. Their entire life becomes reactive—absorb and spit back out, absorb and spit back out.
The One Question That Changes Everything
Here’s the simple technique that can break your child out of the following mode:
“What did you THINK about that?”
Ask this every time your child shares something from their day. Don’t stop at “that’s nice” or “did you have fun?” Go one step further.
Your child comes home from school. You ask, “Hey, what did you do in school today?” Your child responds with the usual: “We did this, we learned that, we had this activity.”
Most parents stop here. Maybe they say “Oh, that’s nice. Did you have fun?”
But if you go one step further—if you ask “What did you think about that?” or “How did you feel about it?”—something remarkable happens.
From Two-Dimensional to Three-Dimensional Thinking
For the first time, your child is not just automatically repeating or expressing what they saw. Instead, they’re forced into their inner mind space—to introspect, to think subjectively, to form an opinion. You’re breaking them out of the see-react-tell pattern into conscious, independent thought.
The Ancient Pattern You’re Breaking
Three thousand years ago, humans existed in what’s called a bicameral state—automatically reacting to events happening around them. Everything was two-dimensional: see and react, hear and react.
When you ask your child “What did you think about that?”—you’re recreating this same evolutionary leap on an individual level. You’re opening up a dimension that wasn’t there before.
Inner Mind Space
The conscious dimension where introspection occurs—where you think subjectively, form opinions, make independent decisions, and begin controlling your life as a conscious being rather than reacting automatically to external stimuli.
When you first start asking this question, your child will likely respond with “I don’t know.”
This isn’t resistance. This is exactly what should happen. They’re saying “I don’t know” because you’re asking them to enter a whole new dimension they’ve never explored. Keep asking. The awkward pause, the startled moment—that’s the breakthrough beginning.
Following Mode vs. Self-Leader Mode
Following Mode
- ✗ Absorb and spit back out
- ✗ Automatic, reactive responses
- ✗ Two-dimensional thinking
- ✗ No inner mind space access
- ✗ Mimics external authorities
- ✗ Stays stuck in routine ruts
Self-Leader Mode
- ✓ Thinks before responding
- ✓ Conscious, deliberate thought
- ✓ Three-dimensional thinking
- ✓ Active inner mind space
- ✓ Forms independent opinions
- ✓ Develops natural curiosity
How This Creates Geniuses
When you open up a child’s inner mind space so they start becoming more conscious and thinking more, they develop curiosity—a quality children trapped in the following mode are largely void of.
Greater and greater curiosity leads them into a path, a vector—like Elon Musk’s childhood fascination with space, Henry Ford’s obsession with taking apart machines, or Steve Jobs’ early interest in design and electronics.
Elon Musk
Childhood fascination with space exploration led to SpaceX
Henry Ford
Taking apart and rebuilding machines led to the automobile revolution
Steve Jobs
Early curiosity about design and electronics led to Apple
Most super achievers can trace their success back to turning points in childhood. As a parent, you can give that to your child. You can be that trigger. This is the greatest gift you can give them.
Change the Way Their Mind Works
You’re not just teaching information. You’re changing the fundamental operating pattern of their consciousness—from follower to self-leader. This change, made early, compounds throughout their entire life.
Why Starting Young Matters
Brain patterns formed early become permanent. Consider this: an adult who moves from a Latin American country to America will find it nearly impossible to lose their accent. But bring a child from Latin America to America, and they naturally lose the accent because of how brain patterns form.
The same principle applies to the follower pattern. Break that pattern young, and self-leader thinking becomes natural. Wait until adulthood, and the rewiring is much harder—though not impossible.
What About Adults?
If you’re an adult reading this, wondering “Is it too late for me?”—the answer is no. But the process is different.
Breaking into the self-leader mentality as an adult requires systematic training. This is exactly what Neothink provides. Mark Hamilton has spent 45 years developing techniques that pull adults out of the following mode—the stagnant routine rut where people wonder “Isn’t there more to life?” but never find their way out.
How to Apply This Technique
A simple daily practice that develops genius-level thinking
Listen to Their Day
When your child shares what happened at school or in their activities, give them your full attention. Let them describe the facts and events.
Ask the Question
After they share what happened, ask: “What did you think about that?” or “How did you feel about it?” Don’t accept a simple factual response—probe for their inner reaction.
Accept “I Don’t Know”
When they say “I don’t know,” don’t push too hard. Simply let them sit with the question. The discomfort is part of the breakthrough.
Make It Daily
Consistency compounds. Ask this question every day. Over time, your child will start naturally thinking about what they think—developing the self-leader mindset automatically.
Watch for Curiosity
As their inner mind space opens, curiosity emerges. Nurture whatever vectors of interest develop—these are the seeds of future genius.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the one question to ask children to raise a genius?
The question is: “What did you THINK about that?” When your child shares something from their day, don’t stop at “that’s nice.” Ask them what they thought or how they felt about it. This forces them into their inner mind space—developing introspection and subjective thinking.
What is the “following mode” in child development?
The following mode is a limiting mental pattern where children (and later adults) only respond to external instructions. It develops naturally through mimicking parents, following teachers, obeying authorities. This reactive pattern prevents independent thinking and keeps people stuck in routine ruts throughout life.
Why do children say “I don’t know” when asked what they think?
Children respond with “I don’t know” because you’re asking them to enter a new dimension they’ve never explored. Being asked to introspect is unfamiliar. This is actually a sign the technique is working: you’re breaking them out of the automatic see-react-tell pattern.
At what age should parents start using this technique?
Start as early as children can communicate about their experiences. The younger you break the following mode pattern, the more natural self-leader thinking becomes. Brain patterns formed early become permanent.
Can adults break out of the following mode too?
Yes, but it’s harder than for children because brain patterns are more established. Adults can break the following mode through Neothink techniques—the same principles applied systematically to adult consciousness.
How does breaking the following mode create geniuses?
When you open a child’s inner mind space through introspection, they develop curiosity. This curiosity leads them into vectors of fascination—like Musk’s space obsession, Ford taking apart machines, or Jobs’ interest in design. Super achievers trace success back to these childhood turning points.
Ready to Break Free from the Following Mode?
Use this technique with your children—and explore how the same principles can transform your own life through Neothink.
Join over 2 million people who have discovered the self-leader mentality.