Has anyone ever said to you, “Don’t just sit there, do something!”.
There are certainly times for action when hesitation could cost dearly. But there are also times when you need to stop and think.
“The quality of everything we do depends on the quality of the thinking we do first.” (Nancy Kline)
I recently worked on designing a course in Critical Thinking and it reminded me how important it is.
By critical thinking, I mean the disciplined process of reasoning in a logical and systematic way.
“Put simply, critical thinking is a thought process that leads to a deep and accurate understanding — whether it’s of a topic, a situation, problem, opportunity or anything else.
Critical thinking uses logical reasoning that involves a number of different skills, such as being able to distinguish fact from opinion or evaluate the relevance and accuracy of data presented.”
(Anne Kreitzberg and Charles B Kreitzberg, PhD)
I suspect that thinking is like driving – we all think we’re better than average! But, because of the way our brains work, we are ALL prone to thinking errors or thinking traps.
Here are just a couple:
- Judgement influenced by the ease of retrieving information, for example memories that are more vivid, recent or personal. This is called the science of availability.
- Overconfident predictions treating the data you see as if that is all there is – What You See Is All There Is (WYSIATI). This is called the coherence of limited data, especially an issue if it reinforces the opinion you already hold or tells you what you want to hear.
We all owe it to ourselves and our organisations to think well and make good decisions. So, let’s allow ourselves and our colleagues enough time to think.
The following tips can help:
- Be clear about the question you need to answer
- Gather information
- Recognise assumptions
- Evaluate arguments carefully
- Explore other points of view
Another aid to thinking, and a safeguard against traps, is to talk things through with a trusted colleague, friend, or a professional coach.
So, what decisions will you have to make in the near future? And how will you make them well?
What do you think?