Merriam-Webster has a contrarian as a person who takes a contrary position or attitude specifically: an investor who buys shares of stock when most others are selling and sells when others are buying.
Malcom Gladwell essentially labels them as outliers.
W.Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne together wrote a book about those who are outliers or contrarians essentially stating that those who are create a “Blue Ocean Strategy” for their businesses.
Contrarians are those who can follow their own vision and passion. They work outside the conventional box that houses everyone else. Allowing them the opportunity to capitalize on what they see and understand that everyone else is not capable of seeing or doing.
I like t think of myself as a contrarian, but I probably am not. But I have trained myself to look at opportunities form multiple angles. With one client we would debate major decisions on a regular basis. She would take one side and I the other and we would go back and forth. Then ever so slightly I would start switch sides during the debate. To the point that she was then arguing my original points, this drove her nuts when she realized what I had done, but it helped her to see other sides of the opportunity that she did not originally see. Those arguments were fun and I miss them, since she retired.
Who is the contrarian in your business? Hopefully you are not surrounded by sycophants. Hopefully you are looking at problems, opportunities and issues from all available perspectives.
I have one for my business and he has offered his opinion on aspects of my person life as well. I listen evaluate and them make my own decision, but I listen and evaluate the contrarian perspective. Do you?