CRITICAL

THINKING
Louis Urquhart

WHAT IS CRITICAL
THINKING?
. Disciplined thinking that is clear,
rational, open-minded and informed
by evidence.
. Thinking in this fashion is essential
to solving problems, resolving
conflicts and explaining phenomena.
. Critical thinking is not thinking as
fast as you can but thinking as
skillfully and analytically as you can
to reach a conclusion.

THERE ARE TWO PHASES OF THE MIND

IN CRITICAL THINKING.
as e
h
P
n
o
i
t
c
Produ

Judgmen
t

Phase

*Production Phase*

*Judgment Phase*

. The mind has already been exposed to the issue or

problem and the brain is calculating and measuring.
. The brain is also producing various outcomes. This is
not that long of a process; it happens very quickly;
sometimes in nanoseconds.
. Some people produce many results; some produce less
and some people produce a few but they are
exceptional outcomes; quality vs. quantity.
. This phase is also where thinking outside of the box
comes into play.

. The mind has calculated, measured and produced;

now it must decide.
. Ideas are refined and augmented to make the best
decision.
. The what ifs also come into play here; the what ifs are
examined and a decision is made.

THE ROLE OF CRITICISM IN CRITICAL THINKING

. Self-criticism is one method that will provide you

with a more fool proof process of creating and
evaluating solutions and ideas to problems or issues
that require critical thinking.
. Self-criticism will enable you to refine and perfect
your ideas and solutions.
. Self-criticism can give birth to other ideas and
solutions from the current ones you are working on.
. Self-criticism reinforces your ideas and solutions
so that they will be able to withstand the scrutiny of
others.
. Self-criticism is necessary because nobody is
flawless nor are the ideas that people generate are
perfect or beyond improvement.

CRITICISM CAN DEFINE HOW PEOPLE PERCEIVE YOU

INTELLECTUALLY IN A POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE LIGHT.
Do you want people to equate your
thinking to this guy?

Do you want people to equate your

thinking to her?

WAYS TO SAFEGUARD AGAINST BEING BLIND

TO ONES IMPERFECTIONS: SELF-CRITICISM
IS YOUR FRIEND.
. Force yourself to examine your ideas and solutions critically and
scrutinize them as if they were someone elses creations.
. Flip your ego or id on itself and use it to your advantage.
. Ask yourself how you would feel if you presented your idea and for
example your worst enemy was there and this enemy completely
picked it apart and shot down your idea or solution in front of an
audience in a packed auditorium that seats hundreds of people.
. Disregard the natural tendency to be satisfied with your idea or
solution.

AVOIDING
ASSUMPTIONS
. Do not assume that everybody who is
aware of the matter will share your passion
for your particular idea or solution.
. Do not assume that slight imperfections in
your idea or solution will not matter and
people will agree with you no matter what.
. Do not assume that if your idea or solution
is crystal clear to you that it will be also for
your audience.
. Do not assume that people who clearly
stand to benefit from your idea or solution
will automatically embrace it and fall in
love with it.

CRITICAL THINKING WILL

UNLOCK YOUR MINDS POTENTIAL

REFERENCES
Ruggiero, V. R. (2012). The art of thinking: A guide to critical and creative thought (10 th ed.).
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.
Critical Thinking. (2014). In dictionary.com. Retrieved November 29 , 2014, from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interdisciplinary