4 Ways to Improve Critical Thinking Skills
After graduating from college and entering the world of work, you will realize that in life there is a valuable ability that was never officially taught in school: the ability to think critically.
In fact, of all the knowledge that can be taught to humans, critical thinking is one of the most useful. By thinking critically, you can work smart when others work hard. By thinking critically, you can find solutions to problems that other people feel are dead ends.
How can you think critically? Do you have to be born smart to be able to think critically?
Certainly not.
Everyone can practice critical thinking skills. It doesn’t matter whether you are old or young, your GPA is good or bad, your campus is public or private. Critical thinking skills can be trained by anyone, as long as there is a will.
You can improve your critical thinking skills by trying some of these methods.
- Don’t swallow information raw
Because spreading information via social media is so easy, many people spread information without first confirming the truth. These are the characteristics of people who do not think critically.
People who think critically will look first at the source of the information. From an expert? From trusted media? Or copy-paste from the WhatsApp group? Has there been any official research? Has much been discussed? Does the information make sense?
Always question the veracity of the information you get. Don’t trust anyone until you can prove the truth.
- Ask Basic Questions
Asking something that everyone already knows can be embarrassing. But if you want to practice critical thinking skills, you have to be prepared to endure embarrassment. Who knows, from a stupid question a creative solution might emerge.
Asking why an apple falls from a tree can be said to make people look stupid. But without thinking like that, Isaac Newton would not have discovered the theory of gravity. If no one asked why birds could fly, perhaps airplanes would not have been invented until now.
Don’t be afraid to look stupid, all critical people must have looked stupid. Question everything that makes you curious.
- Read more books
Books, especially nonfiction books, are arguments presented in a structured manner. There is an opening, discussion, and closing sections. There are theory sections, examples, implementation.
A book writer must carry out a very long critical thinking process to be able to produce the book. He must collect existing theories and then present them in a structured way. Reading his book means exercising your thinking because you try to understand the arguments he presents.
Find a book that you find difficult to understand and then read it slowly until you understand. If muscles have to be trained with exercise, the brain has to be trained with reading.
- Hold a small discussion with friends
When was the last time you discussed a social or political or religious issue with your friends? If you haven’t, you should try it as soon as possible.
Discussing something complicated forces you to think harder than usual. You have to recall the theories, research journals and statistics that you have read. You have to listen to your friend’s arguments and prepare a reply within a few seconds. There is no exercise more exciting than this.
Invite your close friends to discuss something you have never discussed before. But don’t forget to make an agreement with your friends not to get emotional during the discussion.