Reflection: The First Step of Critical Thinking

Last week I met with a group of emerging leaders and we walked through several critical thinking reflection activities.  Each participant thought about a time when they were trying to solve a problem or make a decision and it didn’t have a positive result.  We talked about how their individual results on the Watson-Glaser™ II Critical Thinking Appraisal assessment related to the situation and where in the RED Model of Critical Thinking the major errors were made.

At the end of the exercise, one person said “Hindsight is 20/20, and it’s easy to figure out what went wrong after the fact.  It’s not as easy to stop yourself from making the error.”

He was absolutely right.  But reflection is a key step in improving your critical thinking skills.

When I was learning how to golf, my dad used to videotape me at the driving range.  I would hit ball after ball, and I couldn’t understand what I was doing wrong.  However, when we reviewed the tape in slow motion I could identify which parts of my grip, swing, and finish needed to change.  With those images in mind, I was able to return to the driving range, make adjustments, and learn from my mistakes (and make new ones).

Taking time to think through the decision making and problem solving errors of the past is one way to help avoid the same mistakes in the future.  You can only correct what you know how to identify.

To take critical thinking reflection to the next level:

• Ask someone else involved in the situation to share their point of view so you can see the issue from a new angle.
• Ask someone unfamiliar with the situation to weigh in.  Sometimes an outside perspective can help you see critical thinking blind-spots.
• Try to identify critical thinking errors for others.  Use the RED Model of Critical Thinking to dissect a story in the news.

What critical thinking error did you reflect on today?

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Editor’s Note: Breanne Harris is the Solutions Architect for Pearson TalentLens.  She works with customers to design selection and development plans that incorporate critical thinking assessments and training.  She has a Master’s degree in Organizational Psychology and has experience in recruiting, training, and HR consulting.  She is the chief blogger for Critical Thinkers and occasionally posts at ThinkWatson.  Connect with her on LinkedIn and Twitter for more of her thoughts.