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Critical Thinking Means Business
Did you know critical thinking was rated the NEW #1 workplace skill? Download our paper: Critical Thinking Means Business
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The Web is Like a Garage Sale: Learn to Wade Through the Junk
Personally, I hate garage sales. Nothing about digging through someone else’s used stuff appeals to me at all. I also hate how the person selling you the “stuff” tries to convince you how great the item is. If it is so great, why don’t you keep it? Garage sale enthusiasts will tell you, though, that [...]
Carolyn Kepcher Inspired Me to Critically Think
I’m currently in Chicago attending one of Pearson’s national meetings. I was fortunate enough to attend a talk Carolyn Kepcher gave yesterday. Carolyn spoke about work-life “balance,” women in business and, of course, what it was like to work for Donald Trump & be on The Apprentice. After the session I asked her what her [...]
Problem Solving: It’s All About Control
At Pearson’s Critical Thinking Boot Camp last month, I learned a valuable lesson for problem solving and decision making. When trying to solve a current problem or anticipating a future issue, the first thing you should assess is what factors you can and cannot control. We often waste time trying to figure out how to [...]
The Value of Asking Questions
One thing I’ve learned from being a remote employee is to never take your colleagues for granted. It’s a great feeling to get together and catch up. Even better is that that the amount of useful information they share! It’s always great to share things we’re hearing about critical thinking but to do it in [...]
Five Critical Thinkers on Television
Some people say television rots your brain, but I believe some shows actually model critical thinking for it’s viewers. Some shows demonstrate the process of elimination while others walk viewers through discussions about fact versus opinion. Here are a few examples of tv show characters that model critical thinking skills. 1) House- Ever the skeptic, [...]
Political Ads, Infomercials and Other Things That Discourage Critical Thinking
Thank goodness for the invention of the DVR. What did we do before we had the ability to tape and easily fast forward through commercials? Each time I watch a political ad, commercial, or infomercial I wonder how many brain cells I lost. I realize that scientifically that watching commercials does not create a loss [...]
3 Signs a Meeting is Getting Emotional & Solutions
Last week I posted about how emotions affect decision making and can get in the way of critically thinking. In a corporate setting, it may be difficult to know when emotions are running high enough that you should intervene. So here are 3 warning signs a meeting is getting emotional. People begin to get animated. [...]
Critical Thinking, Skeptics, Psychics, and Aliens
I have found that many people who would be called “skeptics” by the general public label themselves critical thinkers. What do you think? Is there a difference between a skeptic and a critical thinker? Or is critical thinking the method by which skeptics disprove things like ghosts, psychics, astrology, alien encounters, religious beliefs, etc? Listen [...]
Critically Think, for Your Boss’s Sake!
If you watch Lie To Me, this may jog your memory. If not- the basic premises is that you can read people’s faces & body language to tell the truth and best understand a situation. I was just watching the episode, Teacher and Pupils, when this scene happened: Cal & Gillian (the main characters) walk [...]
Newsflash: I’m a Sucker
This weekend my fiancé revealed my deep dark secret- I’m a sucker. I pride myself on being logical and a good critical thinker. I carefully weigh facts when making a decision and invite unique solutions when solving a problem. But there is one clear area in my life where I tend to ignore my own critical thinking [...]
Are All Assumptions Bad?
I received the following email from a reader: “I was checking out the RED Model for Critical Thinking and was wondering about the first step- Recognizing Assumptions. Are all assumptions bad?” Great question Maria! No, all assumptions are not bad. In times of emergency we often have to rely on our assumptions to act quickly. [...]
Critical Thinking WIN: The Old Spice Man
Have you noticed the increased presence of Old Spice these days? I’m seeing the Old Spice Man everywhere — on TV, in magazines even all over Twitter. The New York Times’ article, “Get Clean. Smell Good. It’s Not Unmanly,” helped explain this phenomenon. The basic gist of things is, as you may have guessed, marketing. [...]
Emotions Affect Critical Thinking
In the last few days I’ve seen: a woman visibly get upset after weighing herself at the gym, a daughter screaming at her mother in the mall, a father sternly tell his children a restaurant is not the place to run around & play, and various drivers honking their horns & flicking other drivers off. [...]
Critical Thinking to Avoid an Emotional Overreaction
We’ve all been there- sent an angry email, passive aggressive note, or condescending text message. Just as you hit send you get that feeling in the pit of your stomach that says “I’m probably going to regret this.” Why do we do it? Why are we so quick to respond instead of taking a moment [...]
Using Critical Thinking to Evaluate Lebron James’ Decision
After much speculation and a media circus, it’s official that Lebron James will join the Miami Heat. While listening to Lebron’s interview with ESPN, it became clear that he was willing to sacrifice many “nice to haves” for the one “must have” which was winning a National championship. Lebron’s decision was obviously very complicated, and with [...]
Thinking Critically About Lebron’s Decision
We’re just a few hours from Lebron James’ announcement on which NBA team he’ll play for next season. Will it be the Heat, Cavs, Knicks, Nets, Bulls – or a surprise team? Let me use Pearson’s RED critical thinking model to help ”think it through” (Recognize Assumptions, Evaluate Arguments, Draw Conclusions). Some Assumptions: Lebron wants to leave [...]
Critical Thinking & Creative Problem Solving
In April, Talent Magazine published the article, “The Four C’s Critical for Today’s Workforce.” These four C’s include: Critical Thinking (& Problem Solving) Communication Collaboration Creativity (& Innovation) “In an effort to assess how top of the mind these skills and competencies are, the AMA- in conjunction with P21- surveyed 2,115 managers & other executives [...]
Why Does Gen Y Lack Critical Thinking Skills?
Study after study after study has shown that new entrants into the workforce and recent graduates (Gen Y) rate below average on critical thinking. The statistic is alarming, but not new news to those of us in education or workforce training. Tim Sackett of Fistful of Talent wrote a great post yesterday called “Would You [...]
Is Your Company Investing in the Number 1 Workplace Skill?
A few weeks ago I attempted to come up with a job –any job— that couldn’t benefit from critical thinking skills. I’ve since talked about this with friends, family, colleagues and clients. I am still unsuccessful. Sure, there have been proposed jobs but after brief reflection comes a slew of ways critical thinking is required [...]
Why Didn’t I Think of That?
Have you ever struggled with a difficult decision only to have someone else offer the most simple advice seconds after hearing about the problem? It’s a little like trying to open a jar for 10 minutes and then someone else opening it after one twist. It can be maddening. While you’re happy that the problem [...]