[eavc]

So I'm in the middle of working with a psychologist right now who is counseling me about my career.

I'm in the same boat as the OP, and like you, I figured that everyone would rather just think, so I kind of discounted that as an option.

What he told me is that while a lot of people like to spout off opinions, few people are as passionately curious and have the capacity for sustained and analytical thought.

I'm not bragging, but my point is that for some people, thinking type work really is their skill. The jobs available can be harder to find.

I'm in the process of considering a return to school for a PhD in psychology, for example, and it's going to really throw a wrench in my life because I'm already 26 and married.

[nostrademons]

The Ph.D is itself a long process of "doing", where you're apprenticed to an experienced researcher and do his grunt work while you prove yourself capable of original research. Writing a dissertation is work, and it goes along with a lot of unglamorous work (like a research/teaching fellowship).

I never disputed that it's possible to make a living as a "thinker", only that it's realistic to do so without first proving your worth as a "doer". The people who end up in those thinking positions are the ones who manage to slog through the doing.