Critical Thinking

The 3 Keys of Critical Thinking.

What Critical Thinking IS NOT:

-”Thinking a lot.” You can waste a lot of mental energy on something but make no progress until you think critically about it.

-”Being smarter than the average person.” Anyone can be a critical thinker. All one needs to do is listen (or pay attention) and ask questions.

All questions are NOT created equal

“Why is this so difficult?” is a useless question.

“What part of this do I understand, and where do I start getting lost?” will get results.

How do I think critically?

-Ask for clarity. If you don’t understand what someone is saying (or if they are using a bunch of words that don’t mean anything), ask, “What do you mean by...?”

-Ask for evidence. “How do you know this?” “Where I can I learn about this?”

-Do not be intimidated. If they squirm or try to ignore you, or dismiss you, stick to your guns.