Why we need Critical Thinking
In a world that’s increasingly complex and inundated with information, the ability to think critically has never been more crucial. As we navigate a world where opinions masquerade as facts and misinformation thrives, critical thinking becomes the compass that leads us to the truth. It allows us to question assumptions, seek reliable evidence, and identify the core of any problem.
In this article, I synthesize some personal experiences and reference knowledge to share some tips to help improve critical thinking in work and life.
How & What to do
1. Question Assumptions and Don’t be Afraid to Ask Questions
Be curious about the world and don’t just simply accept what appears to make sense.
To enhance critical thinking, ask for justification when engaging with intriguing posts. Show appreciation for the viewpoint and seek clarification politely to understand better. Respect is essential to prevent emotional arguments.
The first step is to make assumptions and question assumptions. Turns out, a questioning approach is particularly helpful when the stakes are high.
For example, if you are in a discussion about long-term company strategy upon which years of effort and expense will be based, be sure to ask basic questions about your beliefs: How do you know that business will increase? What does the research say about your expectations about the future of the market? Have you taken time to step into the figurative shoes of your customers as a “secret shopper”?
Another way to question your assumptions is to consider alternatives. You might ask: What if our core products changed? What if our suppliers went out of business? These sorts of questions help you gain new and important perspectives that help hone your thinking.
2. Diversify thought
Seek out diversity of thought and collaboration
It’s crucial to get outside your personal bubble. You can start small. If you work in accounting, make friends with people in marketing. If you always go to lunch with senior staff, go to a ball game with your junior colleagues. Training yourself this way will help you escape your usual thinking and gain richer insights.
In team settings, give people the chance to give their opinions independently without the influence of the group. When I ask for advice, for instance, I typically withhold my own preferences and ask team members to write down their opinions in separate notes. This tactic helps prevent people from engaging in groupthink.
3. Practice active listening
Listen carefully to what others are telling you, and try to build a clear picture of their perspective. Empathy is a really useful skill here since putting yourself in another person’s shoes can help you understand where they’re coming from and what they might want. Try to listen without judgment — remember.
Critical thinking is about keeping an open mind.
4. Do Your Research
You’ve asked questions and listened to different perspectives. What’s next? Research. Take all the ideas you have discovered and find data points to support each one.
Don’t favor one idea over another before properly collecting facts, gather facts before forming biases. Research through historical reports, books, data analytics, learnings, trusted websites, videos, news, documentaries.
Try to avoid anonymous sources or sources with an ax to grind or a product to sell and not to get news from social media because it may contain opinions mixed with facts.
Learn to spot fake news and biased information. It may seek to appeal more to your emotions than logic and/or present a limited view of the topic.
5. Form your own opinions
You’ve done your research and gathered your facts. Now it’s time to form your own opinions. Remember, critical thinking is about thinking independently. So once you’ve assessed all the information, form your own conclusions about it.
6. Continue to work on your critical thinking skills.
I recommend looking at online learning platforms such as Udemy and Coursera courses or reading articles in Medium on general critical thinking skills, as well as on specific subjects like cognitive biases.
Final thoughts
Critical thinking isn’t about being constantly negative or critical of everything. It’s about objectivity and having an open, inquisitive mind. To think critically is to analyze issues based on hard evidence (as opposed to personal opinions, biases, etc.) in order to build a thorough understanding of what’s really going on. And from this place of thorough understanding, you can make better decisions and solve problems more effectively.
