Writing As The Key To Competence – Part 2: Critical Thinking

In my previous article, I unpacked what creativity is and how you can develop yours through writing. If you missed it, check it out here. This week, I will explain how writing develops your critical thinking and complex problem-solving skills. But first you need to understand what these skills are and why they are so important for succeeding in the 4IR.

Critical Thinking…The New Superpower

For real. These days, so few people can think critically that this kind of competence has become as powerful as Superman’s laser vision. So, what is critical thinking?

It’s the ability to analyze information and resources objectively to come to a reasoned, evidence-based judgment about something.

As an example, let’s say you have to choose between two universities. Your dad went to one of them, so he would love for you to choose his alma mater. But, to make the best decision for yourself and your future, you need to carefully assess lots of different features of each university: which is one is more highly rated; which one is more expensive; which one offers a better learning environment; which one has all the facilities you need…

By carefully considering the evidence for, and against, each one, you can come to your own decision about which one will be best for you. Or, you could just cave to the feeling of wanting to please your dad – but this wouldn’t objectively be the best decision because your choice is entirely emotional.

Critical thinking isn’t about criticizing someone – it’s about adopting a perspective that enables you to get to the truth of the matter. And this involves being able to distance yourself from the emotions, biases, and assumptions that interfere with your ability to reason and respond to evidence.

Let’s Unpack Critical Thinking

It’s obvious why critical thinking is crucial in the workplace, right? How many of you have had managers who can’t come to reasonable conclusions based on the evidence in front of them? How many managers are entirely steered by their feelings and faulty assumptions about the world, rather than doing the work of looking at evidence to the contrary and revising their views?

This results in poor decisions and bad leadership which affects everyone. It turns the workplace into a volatile space where everyone feels vulnerable. After all, if evidence and reason don’t prevail, every employee could be undermined and compromised with impunity.

So, how do you build your critical thinking muscles so that you become better at solving problems or making decisions? First, we need to unpack what this complex cognitive skill involves. Someone who is good at critical thinking can:

• Take a step back from their own beliefs, assumptions, and biases to entertain the possibility that these may be flawed.
• Discriminate between the information that matters and the info that’s irrelevant for solving the problem at hand.
• Understand the logical connections between ideas to see and construct rational arguments.
• Evaluate arguments by detecting inconsistencies, fallacies in reasoning, or weak evidence.
• Work through a problem systematically to solve it.
• Reflect on, and isolate, the justification for their own beliefs and values.

I know, it sounds like a lot, right? The good news is that these skills all develop in tandem the more you work on them.

I hope you can also see how vital critical thinking is for creativity. You need these skills to evaluate ideas and make them better. The simple act of assessing your own ideas often leads to more ideas, so critical thinking can perform both a convergent and divergent function. More than that, critical thinking is a skill that will have you excelling at any job you do. Here’s why:

• Critical thinking is a general skill that cuts across all domains: Learning how to think clearly and rationally will enable you to problem solve in any career.
• Critical thinking is crucial in the knowledge economy. The global knowledge economy involves the rapid flow of information and the integration of technology. This means you need to be able to think on your feet and adapt to sudden changes. This cognitive flexibility is a function of being able to think critically about any new problem that comes up.
• Critical thinking enables communication in all its forms: When you can think clearly and systematically, you can also write and speak well. Communication is about expressing your ideas, and the starting point of being able to do this well is learning how to think effectively.  
• Critical thinking boosts creativity. Like I’ve mentioned, critical thinking enables you to sort through ideas and select the ones that will work. This process of evaluation often also gives rise to new ideas.

Writing…The Closest Thing To A Silver Bullet

Being good at critical thinking makes you better at communicating clearly and effectively, but what’s cool is that it also works the other way around. Writing and debating make you better at thinking critically – these skills feed off each other and this means that writing is a way of building your critical thinking muscles.

Just think about it. When you write stuff down, you automatically create distance between yourself and your ideas so that you can see whether it makes sense, where you went wrong, and what still needs to be explored or clarified. This is why you are asked to write essays in university. You are being forced to put your thinking on the page so that you can evaluate it and improve upon it. Writing becomes the tool that helps you sort out your thoughts and think more clearly.

So, if you want to become better at critical thinking, you need to do more writing! Again, there are many options for the kind of writing you can engage in.

If you work in an office, practice expressing your ideas and the reasoning behind them in your emails to colleagues. This gives you the opportunity to hone your reasoning skills and gives you the distance you need to double check that your decision or proposal is in fact a good one. Remember to also view it from the perspective of others and consider how they will object to your ideas so that you can make sure you have a persuasive response. If you can’t meet their objections, then maybe you need to change your view.

Or, if you’re having a disagreement with a family member, write it down in your journal and unpack your position as well as theirs. Really try to get inside their heads and see if you can resolve the conflict on paper. This is likely to give you insight into where you are also going wrong in the argument or where you are being unreasonable.

Think of developing your critical thinking skills in the same way you would develop physical fitness. You might start out small, with short exercise routines and lighter weights, but the more you do it, the fitter you’ll get, until you can tackle longer exercise routines and heavier weights. Soon you’ll be able to problem solve like a champion which will make you indispensable in your workplace.

So, go forth and start chipping away at that superpower! If you’d like more critical thinking exercises, you can reach out for more information about my writing workshops.

May the force be with you!