Characteristics of Critical Thinkers and
How to Be One
Aristotle said it well: “It is the mark of an
educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”
What Exactly Is Critical Thinking?
Critical thinking covers a wide variety of
thought processes.
To help you understand what critical thinking
is, take a look at the list below:
- Analyzing.
- Evaluating.
- Interpreting.
- Problem solving.
- Questioning.
These traits are common forms of critical
thinking.
As an example, imagine that you were seeking
a new job or career, and had just started to look at advertised vacancies. In
order to choose the most suitable vacancies, you would spend time looking at
where the jobs were based, what skills and experience were required, and how much
the roles were paying.
All the above actions would be classed as
critical thinking. You used analysis, evaluation and (most likely) questioning.
As a further example of critical thinking,
consider the way that attorneys work. Firstly, they examine the evidence. Then,
they use critical thinking in order to create a plan to win their case (or to
settle out of court).
What Are the Recognizable Signs of Critical Thinkers?
Now that you understand what critical
thinking is about, I’m sure you’re curious to know how to recognize the signs
of critical thinkers.
Let’s take a look…
One major giveaway of critical thinkers is
the fact that they tend to be highly successful. This success can be academic,
personal or professional. But you can be sure, that whenever you see people
achieving big results – they’ll definitely be critical thinkers.
Here are some further signs of critical
thinkers:
- They are creative, innovative individuals.
- They are fascinated by how things work.
- They get their news and views from a wide variety
of sources.
- They are always asking questions.
- They have levelheaded conversations with
people they disagree with.
Critical thinkers are successful in life
because they are able to analyze issues from different perspectives. This
allows them to come up with (and decide) on the best solutions.
If you’re failing to reach your goals in life
– then you should definitely begin boosting your critical-thinking skills.
Discover 7 Ways to Help You Master Critical Thinking
Learn how to question things.
To become adept at critical thinking, you
must learn to question things. This includes questioning statements from
authority figures, general assumptions, and even your own beliefs. Try asking
yourself these questions: “Do I believe everything I was taught at school?”
“Are my beliefs really my own? “Does my government lie to me?”
Think for yourself.
Stop accepting everything you are told, and
begin thinking for yourself. For example, a guitar teacher may have taught you
how to play guitar in a certain way, but can you now improve on that way? By
thinking for yourself, you’ll unleash your creativity and boost your
self-confidence.
Evaluate evidence.
Evidence can be a great way to find answers
to issues you may be experiencing. However, don’t just take evidence at face
value. Instead, evaluate all evidence by asking: “Who gathered it, how was this
done, and why?” These probing questions will enable you to quickly identify
evidence that is sound – and evidence that you should steer clear of.
Become aware of your personal biases.
If you’re honest with yourself, most times
you probably think you’re right. While this may be the case, when making
decisions, you must put aside any personal biases or beliefs. Critical thinking
needs to look at different perspectives and points of view before reaching a
conclusion. I know it’s hard to think outside of your personal biases, but for
the sake of your success in life – you must try to do so.
Consider motive.
Like a great detective, you must become
skilled at uncovering motive. For example, think of a time that a company
offered you a free product to try. All you needed to do was give some basic
personal details to them. Unfortunately, as well as receiving the free product,
you rapidly became bombarded with promotional emails, letters and phone calls.
In hindsight, you’ll have become aware of the company’s motive. They didn’t
care about sending you a freebie – they just wanted to capture and sell on your
personal information.
Break big issues into small pieces.
Big picture thinking is all the rage
nowadays, but it’s not always the best way to reach decisions. If you need to
deal with a major problem such as losing your job, then you can become quickly
overwhelmed by events. This stress and anxiety could lead to inaction on your
part. Just what you don’t need at this vital time. Instead, break down the
issue into smaller components. These might include: getting the best payout
from your employer, ensuring that all your bills are covered, seeking new work
opportunities. Big problems seem much less scary when you break them down into
small pieces.
Keep it simple.
Are you familiar with a line of reasoning
known as Occam’s razor?2 In case you’re not, I’ll summarize it for you now.
Occam’s razor can be described as the simplest answer is most often
correct. Frequently, we look for complex answers – when the truth may be
staring us right in the face. The following scenario will give you a good
example of Occam’s razor in action…. A loud bang is heard inside an office that
is close to a busy highway. Some staff think it may be a bomb, others suggest
that it’s just a truck backfiring. I’ll let you decide which one of these is
the most likely cause of the noise.
Use critical thinking every time that you
need to make an important decision. People will notice the difference in your
actions. And before long, you’ll be achieving more success than you ever
thought was possible.
References
|
[1]
|
^
|
|
|
[2]
|
^
|
Craig J Todd
http://www.lifehack.org/587412/characteristics-critical-thinkers-and-how-one?ref=mail&mtype=daily_newsletter&mid=20170511_tuning_v1&uid=687414&hash=707e797f7e757e6d794c856d747b7b3a6f7b79&action=click.
No comments:
Post a Comment