Critical thinking is the art of analyzing ideas based on logical reasoning. Critical thinking is not thinking harder, but thinking better. A person who hones his critical thinking skills usually has a high level of intellectual curiosity. In other words, they are willing to invest their time and energy to study all the phenomena around them. Such people are often viewed as skeptics, but are actually incredibly intelligent. Interested in honing your critical thinking skills? Wait a minute, the journey you have to take is not that simple. It takes perseverance, discipline, motivation, and a willingness to analyze your strengths and weaknesses; and not everyone can do it.
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Method 1 of 3: Sharpen Your Questioning Skills
Step 1. Question all your assumptions
Whether we realize it or not, humans often make assumptions about almost everything that is caught by their five senses. Assumptions are formed after the human brain processes certain pieces of information and underlies the process of human interaction with the surrounding environment. It can be said that assumptions are the foundation of a person's critical thinking framework. But what if the assumption is wrong or not completely correct? If that happens, of course the foundation must be dismantled and rebuilt.
- What is meant by questioning assumptions? Einstein questioned the assumption that Newton's laws of motion could accurately describe the world. He then overhauled this assumption and developed a completely new frame of mind through his theory of relativity.
- You can also question assumptions in a similar way. Why do you feel the need to eat breakfast even though you're not hungry? Why do you assume you will fail even if you haven't tried?
- Are there other assumptions that you have been swallowing raw but could have collapsed if analyzed further?
Step 2. Don't swallow information raw if you don't know the truth
As with assumptions, humans tend to judge the truth of information based on its source. Information from trusted sources (authority figures) will immediately be considered as truth, and vice versa. Although it saves time and effort, this habit will weaken your analytical skills. Remember, not all information you receive from authority figures (government, mass media, even parents) is true.
Use your instincts to analyze questionable bits of information. If you feel that the explanation given is unsatisfactory, ask the relevant party to provide a more detailed explanation. If you are reluctant or unable to ask directly, read a variety of relevant data sources and analyze the truth yourself. If you keep doing this, you will automatically be able to sort out which information needs and doesn't need to be researched further. You will also be able to determine the correctness of the information based on your assessment
Step 3. Question the things around you
Previously, you have learned to question assumptions and information presented by authority figures. Now, you will learn to question… everything? Asking is perhaps the most essential act in the critical thinking process. If you don't know what to ask or don't ask even if you want to, you will never get the answer. Critical thinking is about finding answers in an elegant and intelligent way.
- How is the process of the occurrence of ball lightning (the phenomenon of glowing balls in the sky)?
- How can fish fall from the Australian sky?
- What steps should be taken to tackle global poverty?
- How to stop the production of nuclear weapons in different parts of the world?
Method 2 of 3: Adjusting Perspective
Step 1. Understand your presuppositions
Human judgments tend to be very subjective and weak because they are influenced by personal emotions. Some parents believe that vaccination can predispose their child to autism. Interestingly, recent research shows that even though they have received information about the safety of vaccination, they are still reluctant to vaccinate their children. Why is that? The original hypothesis suggested that when people are constantly given information they don't want to hear, they will at some point realize that the information is true. But they refuse to believe it because their self-esteem has already fallen (especially knowing that they have been believing the wrong thing). Understanding your presuppositions about things can help you deal with information more wisely.
Step 2. Think a few steps ahead
Thinking one or two steps ahead is not enough. Imagine you are playing chess with a chess expert. At the start of the game, he has already thought up dozens of moves and hundreds of permutations ahead of you. So what can you do to beat it? Do something similar! Try to imagine the various possibilities that will happen before you start.
Jeff Bezos, CEO of the Amazon.com website is known to understand the benefits of thinking a few steps ahead. He once told Wired Magazine: "If you're developing something to launch in three years, you're going to be competing with a lot of people. But if you're willing to invest the time and effort into developing something that's going to be launched in seven years, you're only going to be dealing with a fraction of the time. of these people. Why is that? Because not many companies are willing to do it." The Kindle was first launched in 2007 after more than three years of development. At the beginning of its development, no one imagined that books could be presented in a non-physical form
Step 3. Read quality books
Nothing can go against the power of a quality book. Whether it's Moby Dick or the works of Philip K. Dick, quality writing always has the power to frame debate (literature), enlighten (nonfiction), or convey emotion (poetry). Reading is not just for a bookworm. Elon Musk, a businessman and technology expert from America claimed to be able to master rocket science thanks to his love of reading and asking questions.
Step 4. Put yourself in the other person's shoes
Having empathy is also useful for developing your critical thinking skills, for example to learn negotiation techniques. Putting yourself in the other person's shoes helps you to imagine their motivations, aspirations, and difficulties. Use this knowledge to increase profits, convince others, or simply to change yourself to be a better person.
Step 5. Set aside 30 minutes per day to improve your brain function
No matter how busy you are, take 30 minutes to train your brain. There are many ways worth trying, some of which are:
- Solve one problem per day. Take some of your time to solve a problem, both theoretical and practical.
- Take time to exercise regularly. If you are a sports enthusiast, try doing 30 minutes of aerobic exercise per day. Simple activities such as walking around the complex also work equally well to improve your brain function.
- Improve your diet. Choose healthy but delicious foods like avocados, blueberries, salmon, nuts and seeds, and brown rice to keep your brain healthy.
Method 3 of 3: Applying All the Tips Given
Step 1. Understand all the options you have
If you want to apply critical thinking skills to your everyday actions - because it's not the time to be a smart-ass amateur philosopher - know what options you have before deciding on the best course of action. Humans often feel stuck with one choice without realizing that other choices lie before their eyes.
Step 2. Connect with people who are smarter than you
It's human nature to be reluctant to be number 2. But if you really want to learn and develop critical thinking skills, throw your ego away and make friends with people who are smarter than you. Trust me, they must have done the same. Make as many connections as you can, learn how they see things, absorb the useful, and ignore the useless.
Step 3. Don't be afraid to fail
Wise people say, failure is success delayed. No matter how cliché the sentence is, failure does need to happen to be used as a lesson in the future. Many people assume that successful people never experience failure. In fact, behind the visible success there is a long process that involves hard work, sweat, and failure.
Tips
- Avoid absolute words like “never”. You should only use it when you are absolutely sure of your argument. However, you should still present all arguments firmly and confidently. Think about how unconvincing this proposition is: "In certain cases, people who work diligently and don't rush will be more successful than those who move more quickly but rashly."
- Be diplomatic. Your target is not the opposition, but the arguments they are promoting.
- Ask for other people's opinions. Chances are they will offer new insights that could change your approach. Ask for opinions from people of different ages and professions.
- Learn to criticize things. Pay attention to other people criticizing your critique.
- Observe the various criticisms made by others in the mass media. Develop your skills by studying their critique's weaknesses and strengths.
- Differentiate inductive reasoning (drawing general conclusions from specific premises) and deductive reasoning (drawing specific conclusions from general premises).
- Perform deductive reasoning with a hypothetical syllogism. In general, you make a tentative guess/explanation about a phenomenon that is the focus of your analysis. These conjectures/explanations are called hypotheses, and can number more than one if you use more than one approach to a single phenomenon. To develop a hypothesis, you need to gather all the knowledge and theory relevant to the phenomenon.
- Use libraries and the internet to supplement data sources that will strengthen your argument. Unfounded criticism is sometimes worse than badly delivered criticism.
- Instead, critique the areas that you are good at. Who can criticize a painting better than a painter? Or who can analyze writing better than a writer?
Warning
- Use the 'sandwich approach': compliments, suggestions, compliments. Usually, criticism is better received if you use this approach. Don't forget to name the person you're criticizing, give a genuine smile, and look him in the eye when you speak.
- Deliver criticism in a non-offensive way. Remember, humans tend to get defensive if they feel their self-esteem is being attacked. Therefore, do not criticize abortion advocates with offensive arguments. They will strike back at you without first digesting your argument, and will be more vocal in voicing their beliefs. Try to precede criticism with praise to make your criticism more heard.
