critical thinking techniques applicable in workplace

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A Short Guide to Building Your Team’s Critical Thinking Skills

• Matt Plummer

Critical thinking isn’t an innate skill. It can be learned.

Most employers lack an effective way to objectively assess critical thinking skills and most managers don’t know how to provide specific instruction to team members in need of becoming better thinkers. Instead, most managers employ a sink-or-swim approach, ultimately creating work-arounds to keep those who can’t figure out how to “swim” from making important decisions. But it doesn’t have to be this way. To demystify what critical thinking is and how it is developed, the author’s team turned to three research-backed models: The Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment, Pearson’s RED Critical Thinking Model, and Bloom’s Taxonomy. Using these models, they developed the Critical Thinking Roadmap, a framework that breaks critical thinking down into four measurable phases: the ability to execute, synthesize, recommend, and generate.

With critical thinking ranking among the most in-demand skills for job candidates , you would think that educational institutions would prepare candidates well to be exceptional thinkers, and employers would be adept at developing such skills in existing employees. Unfortunately, both are largely untrue.

• Matt Plummer (@mtplummer) is the founder of Zarvana, which offers online programs and coaching services to help working professionals become more productive by developing time-saving habits. Before starting Zarvana, Matt spent six years at Bain & Company spin-out, The Bridgespan Group, a strategy and management consulting firm for nonprofits, foundations, and philanthropists.  

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How to promote critical thinking in the workplace

What is critical thinking?

• I have a tendency to think before I act
• I use solid information to inform my decisions
• I don’t base decisions on feelings
• I am happy to change methods
• I find it easy to explain the reasoning behind my decisions

How do we use critical thinking in the workplace?

• Ensuring you always have your eye on the end goal
• Talking to other people and collecting relevant information
• Using information and facts to inform your actions
• Making sure your own preconceptions don’t influence a situation
• Building solutions that are individual to each situation
• Anticipating both the long and the short-term consequences of decisions

Why is workplace critical thinking so significant?

• Poor decision making
• Unhappy colleagues
• A lack of necessary action
• Dysfunctional systems
• Financial losses
• Wasted time and effort

How can I develop my critical thinking skills?

• Get into the habit of asking important but basic questions such as, ‘What do we already know about this situation?’ or ‘What is our main goal here?’
• Gain a solid understanding of your own preconceptions. Learn how to override them
• Do plenty of research but don’t forget to think for yourself as well
• Talk to your employer about a whole organisation approach
• Consider a career move into job roles that often require expert critical thinking. There are many of these but IT business analyst , project analyst and supervisor are popular cross-industry examples.
• Investigate training opportunities. For example, Upskilled’s BSB50215 - Diploma of Business can help you develop a competitive edge and includes a unit on applying advanced critical thinking to work processes.

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How to build critical thinking skills for better decision-making

It’s simple in theory, but tougher in practice – here are five tips to get you started.

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Have you heard the riddle about two coins that equal thirty cents, but one of them is not a nickel? What about the one where a surgeon says they can’t operate on their own son?

Those brain teasers tap into your critical thinking skills. But your ability to think critically isn’t just helpful for solving those random puzzles – it plays a big role in your career. 

An impressive 81% of employers say critical thinking carries a lot of weight when they’re evaluating job candidates. It ranks as the top competency companies consider when hiring recent graduates (even ahead of communication ). Plus, once you’re hired, several studies show that critical thinking skills are highly correlated with better job performance.

So what exactly are critical thinking skills? And even more importantly, how do you build and improve them? 

What is critical thinking?

Critical thinking is the ability to evaluate facts and information, remain objective, and make a sound decision about how to move forward.

Does that sound like how you approach every decision or problem? Not so fast. Critical thinking seems simple in theory but is much tougher in practice, which helps explain why 65% of employers say their organization has a need for more critical thinking. 

In reality, critical thinking doesn’t come naturally to a lot of us. In order to do it well, you need to:

• Remain open-minded and inquisitive, rather than relying on assumptions or jumping to conclusions
• Ask questions and dig deep, rather than accepting information at face value
• Keep your own biases and perceptions in check to stay as objective as possible
• Rely on your emotional intelligence to fill in the blanks and gain a more well-rounded understanding of a situation

So, critical thinking isn’t just being intelligent or analytical. In many ways, it requires you to step outside of yourself, let go of your own preconceived notions, and approach a problem or situation with curiosity and fairness.

It’s a challenge, but it’s well worth it. Critical thinking skills will help you connect ideas, make reasonable decisions, and solve complex problems.

7 critical thinking skills to help you dig deeper

Critical thinking is often labeled as a skill itself (you’ll see it bulleted as a desired trait in a variety of job descriptions). But it’s better to think of critical thinking less as a distinct skill and more as a collection or category of skills. 

To think critically, you’ll need to tap into a bunch of your other soft skills. Here are seven of the most important. 

Open-mindedness

It’s important to kick off the critical thinking process with the idea that anything is possible. The more you’re able to set aside your own suspicions, beliefs, and agenda, the better prepared you are to approach the situation with the level of inquisitiveness you need. 

That means not closing yourself off to any possibilities and allowing yourself the space to pull on every thread – yes, even the ones that seem totally implausible.

As Christopher Dwyer, Ph.D. writes in a piece for Psychology Today , “Even if an idea appears foolish, sometimes its consideration can lead to an intelligent, critically considered conclusion.” He goes on to compare the critical thinking process to brainstorming . Sometimes the “bad” ideas are what lay the foundation for the good ones. 

Open-mindedness is challenging because it requires more effort and mental bandwidth than sticking with your own perceptions. Approaching problems or situations with true impartiality often means:

• Practicing self-regulation : Giving yourself a pause between when you feel something and when you actually react or take action.
• Challenging your own biases: Acknowledging your biases and seeking feedback are two powerful ways to get a broader understanding. 

Critical thinking example

In a team meeting, your boss mentioned that your company newsletter signups have been decreasing and she wants to figure out why.

At first, you feel offended and defensive – it feels like she’s blaming you for the dip in subscribers. You recognize and rationalize that emotion before thinking about potential causes. You have a hunch about what’s happening, but you will explore all possibilities and contributions from your team members.

Observation

Observation is, of course, your ability to notice and process the details all around you (even the subtle or seemingly inconsequential ones). Critical thinking demands that you’re flexible and willing to go beyond surface-level information, and solid observation skills help you do that.

Your observations help you pick up on clues from a variety of sources and experiences, all of which help you draw a final conclusion. After all, sometimes it’s the most minuscule realization that leads you to the strongest conclusion.

Over the next week or so, you keep a close eye on your company’s website and newsletter analytics to see if numbers are in fact declining or if your boss’s concerns were just a fluke. 

Critical thinking hinges on objectivity. And, to be objective, you need to base your judgments on the facts – which you collect through research. You’ll lean on your research skills to gather as much information as possible that’s relevant to your problem or situation. 

Keep in mind that this isn’t just about the quantity of information – quality matters too. You want to find data and details from a variety of trusted sources to drill past the surface and build a deeper understanding of what’s happening. 

You dig into your email and website analytics to identify trends in bounce rates, time on page, conversions, and more. You also review recent newsletters and email promotions to understand what customers have received, look through current customer feedback, and connect with your customer support team to learn what they’re hearing in their conversations with customers.

The critical thinking process is sort of like a treasure hunt – you’ll find some nuggets that are fundamental for your final conclusion and some that might be interesting but aren’t pertinent to the problem at hand.

That’s why you need analytical skills. They’re what help you separate the wheat from the chaff, prioritize information, identify trends or themes, and draw conclusions based on the most relevant and influential facts. 

It’s easy to confuse analytical thinking with critical thinking itself, and it’s true there is a lot of overlap between the two. But analytical thinking is just a piece of critical thinking. It focuses strictly on the facts and data, while critical thinking incorporates other factors like emotions, opinions, and experiences. 

As you analyze your research, you notice that one specific webpage has contributed to a significant decline in newsletter signups. While all of the other sources have stayed fairly steady with regard to conversions, that one has sharply decreased.

You decide to move on from your other hypotheses about newsletter quality and dig deeper into the analytics. 

One of the traps of critical thinking is that it’s easy to feel like you’re never done. There’s always more information you could collect and more rabbit holes you could fall down.

But at some point, you need to accept that you’ve done your due diligence and make a decision about how to move forward. That’s where inference comes in. It’s your ability to look at the evidence and facts available to you and draw an informed conclusion based on those. 

When you’re so focused on staying objective and pursuing all possibilities, inference can feel like the antithesis of critical thinking. But ultimately, it’s your inference skills that allow you to move out of the thinking process and onto the action steps. 

You dig deeper into the analytics for the page that hasn’t been converting and notice that the sharp drop-off happened around the same time you switched email providers.

After looking more into the backend, you realize that the signup form on that page isn’t correctly connected to your newsletter platform. It seems like anybody who has signed up on that page hasn’t been fed to your email list. 

Communication

3 ways to improve your communication skills at work

If and when you identify a solution or answer, you can’t keep it close to the vest. You’ll need to use your communication skills to share your findings with the relevant stakeholders – like your boss, team members, or anybody who needs to be involved in the next steps.

Your analysis skills will come in handy here too, as they’ll help you determine what information other people need to know so you can avoid bogging them down with unnecessary details. 

In your next team meeting, you pull up the analytics and show your team the sharp drop-off as well as the missing connection between that page and your email platform. You ask the web team to reinstall and double-check that connection and you also ask a member of the marketing team to draft an apology email to the subscribers who were missed. 

Problem-solving

Critical thinking and problem-solving are two more terms that are frequently confused. After all, when you think critically, you’re often doing so with the objective of solving a problem.

The best way to understand how problem-solving and critical thinking differ is to think of problem-solving as much more narrow. You’re focused on finding a solution.

In contrast, you can use critical thinking for a variety of use cases beyond solving a problem – like answering questions or identifying opportunities for improvement. Even so, within the critical thinking process, you’ll flex your problem-solving skills when it comes time to take action. 

Once the fix is implemented, you monitor the analytics to see if subscribers continue to increase. If not (or if they increase at a slower rate than you anticipated), you’ll roll out some other tests like changing the CTA language or the placement of the subscribe form on the page.

5 ways to improve your critical thinking skills

Beyond the buzzwords: Why interpersonal skills matter at work

Think critically about critical thinking and you’ll quickly realize that it’s not as instinctive as you’d like it to be. Fortunately, your critical thinking skills are learned competencies and not inherent gifts – and that means you can improve them. Here’s how:

• Practice active listening: Active listening helps you process and understand what other people share. That’s crucial as you aim to be open-minded and inquisitive.
• Ask open-ended questions: If your critical thinking process involves collecting feedback and opinions from others, ask open-ended questions (meaning, questions that can’t be answered with “yes” or “no”). Doing so will give you more valuable information and also prevent your own biases from influencing people’s input.
• Scrutinize your sources: Figuring out what to trust and prioritize is crucial for critical thinking. Boosting your media literacy and asking more questions will help you be more discerning about what to factor in. It’s hard to strike a balance between skepticism and open-mindedness, but approaching information with questions (rather than unquestioning trust) will help you draw better conclusions. 
• Play a game: Remember those riddles we mentioned at the beginning? As trivial as they might seem, games and exercises like those can help you boost your critical thinking skills. There are plenty of critical thinking exercises you can do individually or as a team . 
• Give yourself time: Research shows that rushed decisions are often regrettable ones. That’s likely because critical thinking takes time – you can’t do it under the wire. So, for big decisions or hairy problems, give yourself enough time and breathing room to work through the process. It’s hard enough to think critically without a countdown ticking in your brain. 

Critical thinking really is critical

The ability to think critically is important, but it doesn’t come naturally to most of us. It’s just easier to stick with biases, assumptions, and surface-level information. 

But that route often leads you to rash judgments, shaky conclusions, and disappointing decisions. So here’s a conclusion we can draw without any more noodling: Even if it is more demanding on your mental resources, critical thinking is well worth the effort.

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What Are Critical Thinking Skills and Why Are They Important?

Learn what critical thinking skills are, why they’re important, and how to develop and apply them in your workplace and everyday life.

We often use critical thinking skills without even realizing it. When you make a decision, such as which cereal to eat for breakfast, you're using critical thinking to determine the best option for you that day.

Critical thinking is like a muscle that can be exercised and built over time. It is a skill that can help propel your career to new heights. You'll be able to solve workplace issues, use trial and error to troubleshoot ideas, and more.

We'll take you through what it is and some examples so you can begin your journey in mastering this skill.

What is critical thinking?

Critical thinking is the ability to interpret, evaluate, and analyze facts and information that are available, to form a judgment or decide if something is right or wrong.

More than just being curious about the world around you, critical thinkers make connections between logical ideas to see the bigger picture. Building your critical thinking skills means being able to advocate your ideas and opinions, present them in a logical fashion, and make decisions for improvement.

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Why is critical thinking important?

Critical thinking is useful in many areas of your life, including your career. It makes you a well-rounded individual, one who has looked at all of their options and possible solutions before making a choice.

According to the University of the People in California, having critical thinking skills is important because they are [ 1 ]:

Crucial for the economy

Essential for improving language and presentation skills

Very helpful in promoting creativity

Important for self-reflection

The basis of science and democracy 

Critical thinking skills are used every day in a myriad of ways and can be applied to situations such as a CEO approaching a group project or a nurse deciding in which order to treat their patients.

Examples of common critical thinking skills

Critical thinking skills differ from individual to individual and are utilized in various ways. Examples of common critical thinking skills include:

Identification of biases: Identifying biases means knowing there are certain people or things that may have an unfair prejudice or influence on the situation at hand. Pointing out these biases helps to remove them from contention when it comes to solving the problem and allows you to see things from a different perspective.

Research: Researching details and facts allows you to be prepared when presenting your information to people. You’ll know exactly what you’re talking about due to the time you’ve spent with the subject material, and you’ll be well-spoken and know what questions to ask to gain more knowledge. When researching, always use credible sources and factual information.

Open-mindedness: Being open-minded when having a conversation or participating in a group activity is crucial to success. Dismissing someone else’s ideas before you’ve heard them will inhibit you from progressing to a solution, and will often create animosity. If you truly want to solve a problem, you need to be willing to hear everyone’s opinions and ideas if you want them to hear yours.

Analysis: Analyzing your research will lead to you having a better understanding of the things you’ve heard and read. As a true critical thinker, you’ll want to seek out the truth and get to the source of issues. It’s important to avoid taking things at face value and always dig deeper.

Problem-solving: Problem-solving is perhaps the most important skill that critical thinkers can possess. The ability to solve issues and bounce back from conflict is what helps you succeed, be a leader, and effect change. One way to properly solve problems is to first recognize there’s a problem that needs solving. By determining the issue at hand, you can then analyze it and come up with several potential solutions.

How to develop critical thinking skills

You can develop critical thinking skills every day if you approach problems in a logical manner. Here are a few ways you can start your path to improvement:

1. Ask questions.

Be inquisitive about everything. Maintain a neutral perspective and develop a natural curiosity, so you can ask questions that develop your understanding of the situation or task at hand. The more details, facts, and information you have, the better informed you are to make decisions.

2. Practice active listening.

Utilize active listening techniques, which are founded in empathy, to really listen to what the other person is saying. Critical thinking, in part, is the cognitive process of reading the situation: the words coming out of their mouth, their body language, their reactions to your own words. Then, you might paraphrase to clarify what they're saying, so both of you agree you're on the same page.

3. Develop your logic and reasoning.

This is perhaps a more abstract task that requires practice and long-term development. However, think of a schoolteacher assessing the classroom to determine how to energize the lesson. There's options such as playing a game, watching a video, or challenging the students with a reward system. Using logic, you might decide that the reward system will take up too much time and is not an immediate fix. A video is not exactly relevant at this time. So, the teacher decides to play a simple word association game.

Scenarios like this happen every day, so next time, you can be more aware of what will work and what won't. Over time, developing your logic and reasoning will strengthen your critical thinking skills.

Learn tips and tricks on how to become a better critical thinker and problem solver through online courses from notable educational institutions on Coursera. Start with Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking from Duke University or Mindware: Critical Thinking for the Information Age from the University of Michigan.

Article sources

University of the People, “ Why is Critical Thinking Important?: A Survival Guide , https://www.uopeople.edu/blog/why-is-critical-thinking-important/.” Accessed May 18, 2023.

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How to build your critical thinking skills in 7 steps (with examples)

Critical thinking is, well, critical. By building these skills, you improve your ability to analyze information and come to the best decision possible. In this article, we cover the basics of critical thinking, as well as the seven steps you can use to implement the full critical thinking process. 

Critical thinking comes from asking the right questions to come to the best conclusion possible. Strong critical thinkers analyze information from a variety of viewpoints in order to identify the best course of action.

Don’t worry if you don’t think you have strong critical thinking abilities. In this article, we’ll help you build a foundation for critical thinking so you can absorb, analyze, and make informed decisions. 

What is critical thinking? 

Critical thinking is the ability to collect and analyze information to come to a conclusion. Being able to think critically is important in virtually every industry and applicable across a wide range of positions. That’s because critical thinking isn’t subject-specific—rather, it’s your ability to parse through information, data, statistics, and other details in order to identify a satisfactory solution. 

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Top 8 critical thinking skills

Like most soft skills, critical thinking isn’t something you can take a class to learn. Rather, this skill consists of a variety of interpersonal and analytical skills. Developing critical thinking is more about learning to embrace open-mindedness and bringing analytical thinking to your problem framing process. 

In no particular order, the eight most important critical thinking skills are:

Analytical thinking: Part of critical thinking is evaluating data from multiple sources in order to come to the best conclusions. Analytical thinking allows people to reject bias and strive to gather and consume information to come to the best conclusion. 

Open-mindedness: This critical thinking skill helps you analyze and process information to come to an unbiased conclusion. Part of the critical thinking process is letting your personal biases go and coming to a conclusion based on all of the information. 

Problem solving : Because critical thinking emphasizes coming to the best conclusion based on all of the available information, it’s a key part of problem solving. When used correctly, critical thinking helps you solve any problem—from a workplace challenge to difficulties in everyday life. 

Self-regulation: Self-regulation refers to the ability to regulate your thoughts and set aside any personal biases to come to the best conclusion. In order to be an effective critical thinker, you need to question the information you have and the decisions you favor—only then can you come to the best conclusion. 

Observation: Observation skills help critical thinkers look for things beyond face value. To be a critical thinker you need to embrace multiple points of view, and you can use observation skills to identify potential problems.

Interpretation: Not all data is made equal—and critical thinkers know this. In addition to gathering information, it’s important to evaluate which information is important and relevant to your situation. That way, you can draw the best conclusions from the data you’ve collected. 

Evaluation: When you attempt to answer a hard question, there is rarely an obvious answer. Even though critical thinking emphasizes putting your biases aside, you need to be able to confidently make a decision based on the data you have available. 

Communication: Once a decision has been made, you also need to share this decision with other stakeholders. Effective workplace communication includes presenting evidence and supporting your conclusion—especially if there are a variety of different possible solutions. 

7 steps to critical thinking

Critical thinking is a skill that you can build by following these seven steps. The seven steps to critical thinking help you ensure you’re approaching a problem from the right angle, considering every alternative, and coming to an unbiased conclusion.

 First things first: When to use the 7 step critical thinking process

There’s a lot that goes into the full critical thinking process, and not every decision needs to be this thought out. Sometimes, it’s enough to put aside bias and approach a process logically. In other, more complex cases, the best way to identify the ideal outcome is to go through the entire critical thinking process. 

The seven-step critical thinking process is useful for complex decisions in areas you are less familiar with. Alternatively, the seven critical thinking steps can help you look at a problem you’re familiar with from a different angle, without any bias. 

If you need to make a less complex decision, consider another problem solving strategy instead. Decision matrices are a great way to identify the best option between different choices. Check out our article on 7 steps to creating a decision matrix .

1. Identify the problem

Before you put those critical thinking skills to work, you first need to identify the problem you’re solving. This step includes taking a look at the problem from a few different perspectives and asking questions like: 

What’s happening? 

Why is this happening? 

What assumptions am I making? 

At first glance, how do I think we can solve this problem? 

A big part of developing your critical thinking skills is learning how to come to unbiased conclusions. In order to do that, you first need to acknowledge the biases that you currently have. Does someone on your team think they know the answer? Are you making assumptions that aren’t necessarily true? Identifying these details helps you later on in the process. 

2. Research

At this point, you likely have a general idea of the problem—but in order to come up with the best solution, you need to dig deeper. 

During the research process, collect information relating to the problem, including data, statistics, historical project information, team input, and more. Make sure you gather information from a variety of sources, especially if those sources go against your personal ideas about what the problem is or how to solve it.

Gathering varied information is essential for your ability to apply the critical thinking process. If you don’t get enough information, your ability to make a final decision will be skewed. Remember that critical thinking is about helping you identify the objective best conclusion. You aren’t going with your gut—you’re doing research to find the best option

3. Determine data relevance

Just as it’s important to gather a variety of information, it is also important to determine how relevant the different information sources are. After all, just because there is data doesn’t mean it’s relevant. 

Once you’ve gathered all of the information, sift through the noise and identify what information is relevant and what information isn’t. Synthesizing all of this information and establishing significance helps you weigh different data sources and come to the best conclusion later on in the critical thinking process. 

To determine data relevance, ask yourself:

How reliable is this information? 

How significant is this information? 

Is this information outdated? Is it specialized in a specific field? 

4. Ask questions

One of the most useful parts of the critical thinking process is coming to a decision without bias. In order to do so, you need to take a step back from the process and challenge the assumptions you’re making. 

We all have bias—and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Unconscious biases (also known as cognitive biases) often serve as mental shortcuts to simplify problem solving and aid decision making. But even when biases aren’t inherently bad, you must be aware of your biases in order to put them aside when necessary. 

Before coming to a solution, ask yourself:

Am I making any assumptions about this information? 

Are there additional variables I haven’t considered? 

Have I evaluated the information from every perspective? 

Are there any viewpoints I missed? 

5. Identify the best solution

Finally, you’re ready to come to a conclusion. To identify the best solution, draw connections between causes and effects. Use the facts you’ve gathered to evaluate the most objective conclusion. 

Keep in mind that there may be more than one solution. Often, the problems you’re facing are complex and intricate. The critical thinking process doesn’t necessarily lead to a cut-and-dry solution—instead, the process helps you understand the different variables at play so you can make an informed decision. 

6. Present your solution

Communication is a key skill for critical thinkers. It isn’t enough to think for yourself—you also need to share your conclusion with other project stakeholders. If there are multiple solutions, present them all. There may be a case where you implement one solution, then test to see if it works before implementing another solution. 

7. Analyze your decision

The seven-step critical thinking process yields a result—and you then need to put that solution into place. After you’ve implemented your decision, evaluate whether or not it was effective. Did it solve the initial problem? What lessons—whether positive or negative—can you learn from this experience to improve your critical thinking for next time? 

Depending on how your team shares information, consider documenting lessons learned in a central source of truth. That way, team members that are making similar or related decisions in the future can understand why you made the decision you made and what the outcome was. 

Example of critical thinking in the workplace

Imagine you work in user experience design (UX). Your team is focused on pricing and packaging and ensuring customers have a clear understanding of the different services your company offers. Here’s how to apply the critical thinking process in the workplace in seven steps: 

Start by identifying the problem

Your current pricing page isn’t performing as well as you want. You’ve heard from customers that your services aren’t clear, and that the page doesn’t answer the questions they have. This page is really important for your company, since it’s where your customers sign up for your service. You and your team have a few theories about why your current page isn’t performing well, but you decide to apply the critical thinking process to ensure you come to the best decision for the page. 

Gather information about how the problem started

Part of identifying the problem includes understanding how the problem started. The pricing and packaging page is important—so when your team initially designed the page, they certainly put a lot of thought into it. Before you begin researching how to improve the page, ask yourself: 

Why did you design the pricing page the way you did? 

Which stakeholders need to be involved in the decision making process? 

Where are users getting stuck on the page?

Are any features currently working?

Then, you research

In addition to understanding the history of the pricing and packaging page, it’s important to understand what works well. Part of this research means taking a look at what your competitor’s pricing pages look like. 

Ask yourself: 

How have our competitors set up their pricing pages?

Are there any pricing page best practices? 

How does color, positioning, and animation impact navigation? 

Are there any standard page layouts customers expect to see? 

Organize and analyze information

You’ve gathered all of the information you need—now you need to organize and analyze it. What trends, if any, are you noticing? Is there any particularly relevant or important information that you have to consider? 

Ask open-ended questions to reduce bias

In the case of critical thinking, it’s important to address and set bias aside as much as possible. Ask yourself: 

Is there anything I’m missing? 

Have I connected with the right stakeholders? 

Are there any other viewpoints I should consider? 

Determine the best solution for your team

You now have all of the information you need to design the best pricing page. Depending on the complexity of the design, you may want to design a few options to present to a small group of customers or A/B test on the live website.

Present your solution to stakeholders

Critical thinking can help you in every element of your life, but in the workplace, you must also involve key project stakeholders . Stakeholders help you determine next steps, like whether you’ll A/B test the page first. Depending on the complexity of the issue, consider hosting a meeting or sharing a status report to get everyone on the same page. 

Analyze the results

No process is complete without evaluating the results. Once the new page has been live for some time, evaluate whether it did better than the previous page. What worked? What didn’t? This also helps you make better critical decisions later on.

Critically successful 

Critical thinking takes time to build, but with effort and patience you can apply an unbiased, analytical mind to any situation. Critical thinking makes up one of many soft skills that makes you an effective team member, manager, and worker. If you’re looking to hone your skills further, read our article on the 25 project management skills you need to succeed . 

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Critical Thinking

Developing the right mindset and skills.

By the Mind Tools Content Team

We make hundreds of decisions every day and, whether we realize it or not, we're all critical thinkers.

We use critical thinking each time we weigh up our options, prioritize our responsibilities, or think about the likely effects of our actions. It's a crucial skill that helps us to cut out misinformation and make wise decisions. The trouble is, we're not always very good at it!

In this article, we'll explore the key skills that you need to develop your critical thinking skills, and how to adopt a critical thinking mindset, so that you can make well-informed decisions.

What Is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is the discipline of rigorously and skillfully using information, experience, observation, and reasoning to guide your decisions, actions, and beliefs. You'll need to actively question every step of your thinking process to do it well.

Collecting, analyzing and evaluating information is an important skill in life, and a highly valued asset in the workplace. People who score highly in critical thinking assessments are also rated by their managers as having good problem-solving skills, creativity, strong decision-making skills, and good overall performance. [1]

Key Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinkers possess a set of key characteristics which help them to question information and their own thinking. Focus on the following areas to develop your critical thinking skills:

Being willing and able to explore alternative approaches and experimental ideas is crucial. Can you think through "what if" scenarios, create plausible options, and test out your theories? If not, you'll tend to write off ideas and options too soon, so you may miss the best answer to your situation.

To nurture your curiosity, stay up to date with facts and trends. You'll overlook important information if you allow yourself to become "blinkered," so always be open to new information.

But don't stop there! Look for opposing views or evidence to challenge your information, and seek clarification when things are unclear. This will help you to reassess your beliefs and make a well-informed decision later. Read our article, Opening Closed Minds , for more ways to stay receptive.

Logical Thinking

You must be skilled at reasoning and extending logic to come up with plausible options or outcomes.

It's also important to emphasize logic over emotion. Emotion can be motivating but it can also lead you to take hasty and unwise action, so control your emotions and be cautious in your judgments. Know when a conclusion is "fact" and when it is not. "Could-be-true" conclusions are based on assumptions and must be tested further. Read our article, Logical Fallacies , for help with this.

Use creative problem solving to balance cold logic. By thinking outside of the box you can identify new possible outcomes by using pieces of information that you already have.

Self-Awareness

Many of the decisions we make in life are subtly informed by our values and beliefs. These influences are called cognitive biases and it can be difficult to identify them in ourselves because they're often subconscious.

Practicing self-awareness will allow you to reflect on the beliefs you have and the choices you make. You'll then be better equipped to challenge your own thinking and make improved, unbiased decisions.

One particularly useful tool for critical thinking is the Ladder of Inference . It allows you to test and validate your thinking process, rather than jumping to poorly supported conclusions.

Developing a Critical Thinking Mindset

Combine the above skills with the right mindset so that you can make better decisions and adopt more effective courses of action. You can develop your critical thinking mindset by following this process:

Gather Information

First, collect data, opinions and facts on the issue that you need to solve. Draw on what you already know, and turn to new sources of information to help inform your understanding. Consider what gaps there are in your knowledge and seek to fill them. And look for information that challenges your assumptions and beliefs.

Be sure to verify the authority and authenticity of your sources. Not everything you read is true! Use this checklist to ensure that your information is valid:

• Are your information sources trustworthy ? (For example, well-respected authors, trusted colleagues or peers, recognized industry publications, websites, blogs, etc.)
• Is the information you have gathered up to date ?
• Has the information received any direct criticism ?
• Does the information have any errors or inaccuracies ?
• Is there any evidence to support or corroborate the information you have gathered?
• Is the information you have gathered subjective or biased in any way? (For example, is it based on opinion, rather than fact? Is any of the information you have gathered designed to promote a particular service or organization?)

If any information appears to be irrelevant or invalid, don't include it in your decision making. But don't omit information just because you disagree with it, or your final decision will be flawed and bias.

Now observe the information you have gathered, and interpret it. What are the key findings and main takeaways? What does the evidence point to? Start to build one or two possible arguments based on what you have found.

You'll need to look for the details within the mass of information, so use your powers of observation to identify any patterns or similarities. You can then analyze and extend these trends to make sensible predictions about the future.

To help you to sift through the multiple ideas and theories, it can be useful to group and order items according to their characteristics. From here, you can compare and contrast the different items. And once you've determined how similar or different things are from one another, Paired Comparison Analysis can help you to analyze them.

The final step involves challenging the information and rationalizing its arguments.

Apply the laws of reason (induction, deduction, analogy) to judge an argument and determine its merits. To do this, it's essential that you can determine the significance and validity of an argument to put it in the correct perspective. Take a look at our article, Rational Thinking , for more information about how to do this.

Once you have considered all of the arguments and options rationally, you can finally make an informed decision.

Afterward, take time to reflect on what you have learned and what you found challenging. Step back from the detail of your decision or problem, and look at the bigger picture. Record what you've learned from your observations and experience.

Critical thinking involves rigorously and skilfully using information, experience, observation, and reasoning to guide your decisions, actions and beliefs. It's a useful skill in the workplace and in life.

You'll need to be curious and creative to explore alternative possibilities, but rational to apply logic, and self-aware to identify when your beliefs could affect your decisions or actions.

You can demonstrate a high level of critical thinking by validating your information, analyzing its meaning, and finally evaluating the argument.

Critical Thinking Infographic

See Critical Thinking represented in our infographic: An Elementary Guide to Critical Thinking .

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How to develop critical thinking skills

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What are critical thinking skills?

How to develop critical thinking skills: 12 tips, how to practice critical thinking skills at work, become your own best critic.

A client requests a tight deadline on an intense project. Your childcare provider calls in sick on a day full of meetings. Payment from a contract gig is a month behind. 

Your day-to-day will always have challenges, big and small. And no matter the size and urgency, they all ask you to use critical thinking to analyze the situation and arrive at the right solution. 

Critical thinking includes a wide set of soft skills that encourage continuous learning, resilience , and self-reflection. The more you add to your professional toolbelt, the more equipped you’ll be to tackle whatever challenge presents itself. Here’s how to develop critical thinking, with examples explaining how to use it.

Critical thinking skills are the skills you use to analyze information, imagine scenarios holistically, and create rational solutions. It’s a type of emotional intelligence that stimulates effective problem-solving and decision-making . 

When you fine-tune your critical thinking skills, you seek beyond face-value observations and knee-jerk reactions. Instead, you harvest deeper insights and string together ideas and concepts in logical, sometimes out-of-the-box , ways. 

Imagine a team working on a marketing strategy for a new set of services. That team might use critical thinking to balance goals and key performance indicators , like new customer acquisition costs, average monthly sales, and net profit margins. They understand the connections between overlapping factors to build a strategy that stays within budget and attracts new sales. 

Looking for ways to improve critical thinking skills? Start by brushing up on the following soft skills that fall under this umbrella: 

• Analytical thinking: Approaching problems with an analytical eye includes breaking down complex issues into small chunks and examining their significance. An example could be organizing customer feedback to identify trends and improve your product offerings. 
• Open-mindedness: Push past cognitive biases and be receptive to different points of view and constructive feedback . Managers and team members who keep an open mind position themselves to hear new ideas that foster innovation . 
• Creative thinking: With creative thinking , you can develop several ideas to address a single problem, like brainstorming more efficient workflow best practices to boost productivity and employee morale . 
• Self-reflection: Self-reflection lets you examine your thinking and assumptions to stimulate healthier collaboration and thought processes. Maybe a bad first impression created a negative anchoring bias with a new coworker. Reflecting on your own behavior stirs up empathy and improves the relationship. 
• Evaluation: With evaluation skills, you tackle the pros and cons of a situation based on logic rather than emotion. When prioritizing tasks , you might be tempted to do the fun or easy ones first, but evaluating their urgency and importance can help you make better decisions. 

There’s no magic method to change your thinking processes. Improvement happens with small, intentional changes to your everyday habits until a more critical approach to thinking is automatic. 

Here are 12 tips for building stronger self-awareness and learning how to improve critical thinking: 

1. Be cautious

There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of skepticism. One of the core principles of critical thinking is asking questions and dissecting the available information. You might surprise yourself at what you find when you stop to think before taking action. 

Before making a decision, use evidence, logic, and deductive reasoning to support your own opinions or challenge ideas. It helps you and your team avoid falling prey to bad information or resistance to change .

2. Ask open-ended questions

“Yes” or “no” questions invite agreement rather than reflection. Instead, ask open-ended questions that force you to engage in analysis and rumination. Digging deeper can help you identify potential biases, uncover assumptions, and arrive at new hypotheses and possible solutions. 

3. Do your research

No matter your proficiency, you can always learn more. Turning to different points of view and information is a great way to develop a comprehensive understanding of a topic and make informed decisions. You’ll prioritize reliable information rather than fall into emotional or automatic decision-making. 

4. Consider several opinions

You might spend so much time on your work that it’s easy to get stuck in your own perspective, especially if you work independently on a remote team . Make an effort to reach out to colleagues to hear different ideas and thought patterns. Their input might surprise you.

If or when you disagree, remember that you and your team share a common goal. Divergent opinions are constructive, so shift the focus to finding solutions rather than defending disagreements. 

5. Learn to be quiet

Active listening is the intentional practice of concentrating on a conversation partner instead of your own thoughts. It’s about paying attention to detail and letting people know you value their opinions, which can open your mind to new perspectives and thought processes.

If you’re brainstorming with your team or having a 1:1 with a coworker , listen, ask clarifying questions, and work to understand other peoples’ viewpoints. Listening to your team will help you find fallacies in arguments to improve possible solutions.

6. Schedule reflection

Whether waking up at 5 am or using a procrastination hack, scheduling time to think puts you in a growth mindset . Your mind has natural cognitive biases to help you simplify decision-making, but squashing them is key to thinking critically and finding new solutions besides the ones you might gravitate toward. Creating time and calm space in your day gives you the chance to step back and visualize the biases that impact your decision-making. 

7. Cultivate curiosity

With so many demands and job responsibilities, it’s easy to seek solace in routine. But getting out of your comfort zone helps spark critical thinking and find more solutions than you usually might.

If curiosity doesn’t come naturally to you, cultivate a thirst for knowledge by reskilling and upskilling . Not only will you add a new skill to your resume , but expanding the limits of your professional knowledge might motivate you to ask more questions. 

You don’t have to develop critical thinking skills exclusively in the office. Whether on your break or finding a hobby to do after work, playing strategic games or filling out crosswords can prime your brain for problem-solving. 

9. Write it down

Recording your thoughts with pen and paper can lead to stronger brain activity than typing them out on a keyboard. If you’re stuck and want to think more critically about a problem, writing your ideas can help you process information more deeply.

The act of recording ideas on paper can also improve your memory . Ideas are more likely to linger in the background of your mind, leading to deeper thinking that informs your decision-making process. 

10. Speak up

Take opportunities to share your opinion, even if it intimidates you. Whether at a networking event with new people or a meeting with close colleagues, try to engage with people who challenge or help you develop your ideas. Having conversations that force you to support your position encourages you to refine your argument and think critically. 

11. Stay humble

Ideas and concepts aren’t the same as real-life actions. There may be such a thing as negative outcomes, but there’s no such thing as a bad idea. At the brainstorming stage , don’t be afraid to make mistakes.

Sometimes the best solutions come from off-the-wall, unorthodox decisions. Sit in your creativity , let ideas flow, and don’t be afraid to share them with your colleagues. Putting yourself in a creative mindset helps you see situations from new perspectives and arrive at innovative conclusions. 

12. Embrace discomfort

Get comfortable feeling uncomfortable . It isn’t easy when others challenge your ideas, but sometimes, it’s the only way to see new perspectives and think critically.

By willingly stepping into unfamiliar territory, you foster the resilience and flexibility you need to become a better thinker. You’ll learn how to pick yourself up from failure and approach problems from fresh angles. 

Thinking critically is easier said than done. To help you understand its impact (and how to use it), here are two scenarios that require critical thinking skills and provide teachable moments. 

Scenario #1: Unexpected delays and budget

Imagine your team is working on producing an event. Unexpectedly, a vendor explains they’ll be a week behind on delivering materials. Then another vendor sends a quote that’s more than you can afford. Unless you develop a creative solution, the team will have to push back deadlines and go over budget, potentially costing the client’s trust. 

Here’s how you could approach the situation with creative thinking:

• Analyze the situation holistically: Determine how the delayed materials and over-budget quote will impact the rest of your timeline and financial resources . That way, you can identify whether you need to build an entirely new plan with new vendors, or if it’s worth it to readjust time and resources. 
• Identify your alternative options: With careful assessment, your team decides that another vendor can’t provide the same materials in a quicker time frame. You’ll need to rearrange assignment schedules to complete everything on time. 
• Collaborate and adapt: Your team has an emergency meeting to rearrange your project schedule. You write down each deliverable and determine which ones you can and can’t complete by the deadline. To compensate for lost time, you rearrange your task schedule to complete everything that doesn’t need the delayed materials first, then advance as far as you can on the tasks that do. 
• Check different resources: In the meantime, you scour through your contact sheet to find alternative vendors that fit your budget. Accounting helps by providing old invoices to determine which vendors have quoted less for previous jobs. After pulling all your sources, you find a vendor that fits your budget. 
• Maintain open communication: You create a special Slack channel to keep everyone up to date on changes, challenges, and additional delays. Keeping an open line encourages transparency on the team’s progress and boosts everyone’s confidence. 

Scenario #2: Differing opinions 

A conflict arises between two team members on the best approach for a new strategy for a gaming app. One believes that small tweaks to the current content are necessary to maintain user engagement and stay within budget. The other believes a bold revamp is needed to encourage new followers and stronger sales revenue. 

Here’s how critical thinking could help this conflict:

• Listen actively: Give both team members the opportunity to present their ideas free of interruption. Encourage the entire team to ask open-ended questions to more fully understand and develop each argument. 
• Flex your analytical skills: After learning more about both ideas, everyone should objectively assess the benefits and drawbacks of each approach. Analyze each idea's risk, merits, and feasibility based on available data and the app’s goals and objectives. 
• Identify common ground: The team discusses similarities between each approach and brainstorms ways to integrate both idea s, like making small but eye-catching modifications to existing content or using the same visual design in new media formats. 
• Test new strategy: To test out the potential of a bolder strategy, the team decides to A/B test both approaches. You create a set of criteria to evenly distribute users by different demographics to analyze engagement, revenue, and customer turnover. 
• Monitor and adapt: After implementing the A/B test, the team closely monitors the results of each strategy. You regroup and optimize the changes that provide stronger results after the testing. That way, all team members understand why you’re making the changes you decide to make.

You can’t think your problems away. But you can equip yourself with skills that help you move through your biggest challenges and find innovative solutions. Learning how to develop critical thinking is the start of honing an adaptable growth mindset. 

Now that you have resources to increase critical thinking skills in your professional development, you can identify whether you embrace change or routine, are open or resistant to feedback, or turn to research or emotion will build self-awareness. From there, tweak and incorporate techniques to be a critical thinker when life presents you with a problem.

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Elizabeth Perry, ACC

Elizabeth Perry is a Coach Community Manager at BetterUp. She uses strategic engagement strategies to cultivate a learning community across a global network of Coaches through in-person and virtual experiences, technology-enabled platforms, and strategic coaching industry partnerships. With over 3 years of coaching experience and a certification in transformative leadership and life coaching from Sofia University, Elizabeth leverages transpersonal psychology expertise to help coaches and clients gain awareness of their behavioral and thought patterns, discover their purpose and passions, and elevate their potential. She is a lifelong student of psychology, personal growth, and human potential as well as an ICF-certified ACC transpersonal life and leadership Coach.

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How to Develop Critical Thinking Skills in the Workplace? – Explained

In the modern workplace, the ability to think critically is more than just a valuable asset—it’s a necessity for success. 

According to a recent survey by the World Economic Forum, 36% of employers consider complex problem-solving skills, a key component of critical thinking, as the top skill they seek in their workforce. 

This blog post explains this top skill – critical thinking skills in the workplace and its core components and what is importance of having this skill in the modern workplace.

With useful practical tips, this blog post also explains how professionals can develop and boost their critical thinking skills.

Let’s start reading and check this out this interesting concept.

Definition of critical thinking

Critical thinking is a cognitive process characterized by the ability to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information in a purposeful and reflective manner. 

It involves the careful consideration of evidence, arguments, and various perspectives to make reasoned and well-informed decisions. 

Critical thinking goes beyond simply accepting information at face value; instead, it encourages individuals to question assumptions, challenge assumptions, and engage in independent and objective inquiry. 

This skill set encompasses a range of abilities, including problem-solving, logical reasoning, effective communication, and the capacity to make sound judgments.

Five Core components of critical thinking 

The five components form the backbone of critical thinking and these components make it a structured and comprehensive approach.

Understanding the five core components of critical thinking help us to understand this cognitive skill and its broader implications in decision-making and problem-solving.

Here are 5 core components of critical thinking.

1. Analysis:

Analysis is a fundamental component of critical thinking. 

It involves breaking down complex issues into manageable parts to identify patterns, trends, or crucial elements.

Through analysis, individuals can discern the significance of information, recognize potential biases, and uncover hidden assumptions. 

This analytical skill empowers professionals to make well-informed decisions by understanding the intricacies of a situation and grasping the implications of various factors.

2. Interpretation:

Interpretation is about making sense of information, finding meaning in data, and turning it into clear insights. 

Critical thinkers look at the context of information, consider different points of view, and understand the intended message.

This skill is essential for dealing with uncertainty and grasping the significance of information in a particular situation. 

Interpretation helps people look beyond the basic data and uncover deeper insights, which is useful for making decisions and communicating effectively.

3. Inference:

Inference means drawing logical conclusions from the information and evidence at hand. 

Critical thinkers use inference to go beyond what is directly stated, making well-thought-out assumptions and predictions.

This aspect involves thinking about the consequences of information and finding logical connections between different pieces of data.

In the workplace, the ability to make sound inferences is essential for anticipating outcomes, predicting trends, and formulating strategies based on a comprehensive understanding of the available information.

4. Explanation:

Explaining is the ability to express one’s thought process, reasoning, or the logic behind a specific decision or conclusion in a clear and concise manner.

Critical thinkers not only reach well-founded judgments but also possess the skill to effectively communicate these insights to others.

Through clear explanations, individuals can convey complex ideas, facilitate discussions, and contribute to a culture of open communication in the workplace.

5. Problem-solving:

Critical thinking culminates in problem-solving, where individuals apply their analytical, interpretative, inferential, and explanatory skills to address challenges and make decisions. 

Problem-solving is an active and iterative process that involves defining problems, generating and evaluating potential solutions, and implementing the most effective course of action.

Critical thinkers approach problem-solving with creativity, adaptability, and a willingness to explore unconventional solutions. 

This component is particularly crucial in dynamic work environments were navigating complexities and finding innovative solutions are essential for success.

Importance of critical thinking in the workplace

Critical thinking is of paramount importance in the workplace for several reasons, as it serves as a foundational skill that enhances individual and organizational effectiveness. 

Here are key reasons highlighting the significance of critical thinking in the workplace:

Informed Decision-Making:

Critical thinking enables individuals to analyze information, weigh evidence, and make informed decisions. 

In a professional setting, decision-making often involves complex factors, and individuals with strong critical thinking skills are better equipped to navigate uncertainties and choose the most effective course of action.

Problem-Solving: 

In any workplace, challenges and problems are abundant that demand creative and efficient solutions.

Critical thinking allows employees to approach problems systematically, identify root causes, and develop innovative solutions. 

This skill is particularly valuable in dynamic industries where adaptability and creative problem-solving are essential.

Effective Communication: 

Effective communication is essential in any workplace. 

Critical thinkers have the ability to express their thoughts, ideas, and reasoning in a clear and compelling manner. 

They can also engage in constructive discussions, consider different viewpoints, and communicate effectively with diverse stakeholders.

Innovation and Adaptability: 

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, organizations need to innovate and adapt to stay competitive. 

Critical thinkers are more likely to embrace change, explore new ideas, and contribute to an environment that fosters innovation. 

They are open to exploring alternative solutions and challenging the status quo.

Efficient Planning and Execution: 

Critical thinking is instrumental in strategic planning and the effective execution of tasks.

Individuals who can analyze situations, establish priorities, and devise well-thought-out plans are more likely to achieve their goals, contributing to the overall success of the organization.

Quality Analysis and Evaluation: 

Critical thinkers possess the ability to assess the quality and relevance of information. This is particularly crucial in a world inundated with data. 

Employees who can discern between reliable and unreliable information contribute to better decision-making and organizational effectiveness.

Team Collaboration: 

Teams benefit from individuals who can critically evaluate ideas, contribute thoughtful insights, and work collaboratively towards common goals.

Teams thrive when individuals can critically evaluate ideas, contribute thoughtful insights, and collaborate toward common goals.

Critical thinkers foster a positive team dynamic by promoting open communication, constructive feedback, and shared problem-solving.

Ethical Decision-Making: 

Critical thinking plays a crucial role in ethical decision-making. 

It enables individuals to carefully consider the ethical implications of their choices, ensuring that decisions align with organizational values and ethical standards.

Examples of Critical thinking in workplace

These examples illustrate how critical thinking is not a theoretical concept but a practical and invaluable skill in the workplace, applicable across various scenarios and roles.

Decision-Making in a Crisis:

Imagine a senior executive facing a sudden crisis that could impact the entire organization.

Critical thinking comes into play as they analyze the situation, interpret available information, make inferences about potential outcomes, and explain their decision-making process. 

In this scenario, critical thinking enables the executive to navigate the crisis with a level-headed approach, considering various factors before deciding on a course of action.

Project Management and Problem-Solving:

Consider a scenario where a project manager faces unforeseen challenges in the implementation of a crucial project.

Critical thinking skills allow the manager to analyze the root causes of the issues, interpret the implications for project timelines and goals, make inferences about potential solutions, and explain the chosen strategy to the team. 

The ability to problem-solve through critical thinking ensures the project stays on track and meets its objectives.

Effective Communication and Conflict Resolution:

In a team setting, conflicts may arise due to differing perspectives or misunderstandings. 

Critical thinking helps team members analyze the underlying issues, interpret each other’s viewpoints, make inferences about the root causes of the conflict, and explain their concerns.

By applying critical thinking to communication, individuals can engage in constructive dialogue, find common ground, and contribute to conflict resolution within the team.

Strategic Planning and Innovation:

An organization aims to enter a new market and needs to develop a strategic plan. 

Imagine an organization looking to enter a new market and needing to develop a strategic plan. 

Critical thinking becomes crucial in analyzing market trends, interpreting consumer behavior, making educated guesses about potential challenges and opportunities, and explaining the reasoning behind the chosen market entry strategy.

Integrating critical thinking into strategic planning not only fosters innovation but also equips organizations to adapt to the ever-changing dynamics of the market.

Quality Improvement in Processes:

In a manufacturing setting, consider a scenario where a quality control manager identifies a recurring issue with a product.

Critical thinking becomes essential as the manager analyzes production processes, interprets data on defects, makes educated guesses about potential causes, and explains the proposed changes to improve quality. 

Applying critical thinking to process improvement ensures that decisions are well-founded and contribute to long-term efficiency and product quality.

Employee Training and Development:

HR professionals tasked with enhancing employee skills use critical thinking to analyze the training needs of the workforce, interpret the relevance of different training programs, make inferences about the potential impact on employee performance, and explain the chosen development initiatives.

Critical thinking in this context ensures that training efforts align with organizational goals and contribute to the professional growth of employees.

How to Develop Critical Thinking Skills in the Workplace?

This holistic strategy ensures that critical thinking becomes not just a skill to acquire but a fundamental aspect of the organizational culture, contributing to enhanced decision-making and problem-solving capabilities across the workforce.

Here are some steps that can be taken to develop critical thinking skills in the workplace.

1. Continuous Learning and Education:

Promoting continuous learning and education is essential for nurturing critical thinking skills in the workplace. This includes offering employees access to workshops, training programs, and online courses tailored to foster critical thinking development.

Workshops could focus on problem-solving methodologies, logical reasoning, and decision-making processes. 

These initiatives empower employees to enhance their analytical abilities, interpret information effectively, and continually refine their critical thinking skills. 

By investing in ongoing education, organizations demonstrate a commitment to fostering a culture of intellectual growth and adaptability.

2. Fostering a Culture of Curiosity:

Creating a workplace culture that values curiosity is essential for nurturing critical thinking skills. 

This involves promoting an environment where asking questions is encouraged, and diverse perspectives are welcomed. 

Leaders play a pivotal role in fostering curiosity by modeling inquisitive behavior, acknowledging and rewarding employees for their curiosity-driven contributions, and creating platforms for open discussions. 

Cultivating curiosity not only stimulates critical thinking but also instills a proactive mindset that seeks to understand complexities and explore innovative solutions.

3. Practicing Reflection and Self-Awareness:

Critical thinking is strengthened through reflective practices and self-awareness. 

Employees can engage in journaling, self-assessment exercises, and regular reflection sessions to evaluate their thinking processes, decision-making patterns, and problem-solving approaches. 

Encouraging individuals to critically assess their own thoughts and actions fosters a continuous improvement mindset. 

Additionally, feedback from supervisors and peers can provide valuable insights, contributing to the ongoing development of an individual’s critical thinking skills.

Employees can participate in activities such as journaling, self-assessment exercises, and regular reflection sessions to assess their thinking processes, decision-making patterns, and problem-solving approaches. Encouraging individuals to critically evaluate their thoughts and actions fosters a mindset of continuous improvement.

Furthermore, receiving feedback from supervisors and peers offers valuable insights, contributing to the continual development of an individual’s critical thinking skills.

4. Problem-Solving Exercises and Case Studies:

Practical application is crucial for honing critical thinking skills. 

Organizations can incorporate problem-solving exercises and case studies into training programs or team-building activities.

These exercises present real-world scenarios that require individuals or teams to analyze information, interpret data, make inferences, and develop solutions. 

Engaging in hands-on problem-solving not only reinforces theoretical knowledge but also allows employees to apply critical thinking in a contextualized and meaningful way.

5. Integrating Critical Thinking into Daily Work:

To truly embed critical thinking into the workplace culture, organizations should integrate it into daily work practices. 

For a genuine integration of critical thinking into the workplace culture, organizations should weave it into daily work practices.

This involves incorporating critical thinking skills into job roles and responsibilities, making it a natural part of employees’ professional routines. 

Leaders can encourage employees to share their thought processes during meetings, presentations, or project discussions, creating opportunities for collective critical thinking.

By making critical thinking an integral aspect of daily work, organizations foster a mindset where analytical thinking is valued and consistently applied.

6. Taking small steps or act small :

Taking small steps or acting in a measured, incremental manner is a effective approach to developing critical thinking in the workplace. 

This strategy involves encouraging employees to break down complex problems or projects into smaller, more manageable components. 

By addressing one aspect at a time, individuals can focus on detailed analysis, interpretation, and inference for each segment. 

This step-by-step method not only enhances their critical thinking skills but also allows for continuous reflection and adjustment as they progress. 

The act-small approach fosters a habit of thoughtful consideration, enabling employees to fine-tune their problem-solving abilities and make well-informed decisions at each stage of a task or project. 

Moreover, it cultivates a mindset that values the journey of critical thinking, emphasizing the significance of each small step toward achieving larger goals in the dynamic landscape of the workplace.

Final Words 

In wrapping up, understanding the five key components—analysis, interpretation, inference, explanation, and problem-solving—helps us grasp the essence of critical thinking skills in the workplace. These components work together like tools in a toolbox, allowing us to break down complex problems, understand their meaning, make logical predictions, explain our decisions clearly, and ultimately solve challenges. The importance of these components lies in their combined strength, empowering individuals to think critically and make informed decisions. 

About The Author

Tahir Abbas

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What is Critical Thinking and Why is it Valuable in the Workplace?

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• > What is Critical Thinking and Why is it Valuable in the Workplace?

There are times at work when you simply have to “do.” A tight deadline, a demanding project outline, or a highly particular superior might mean that it makes sense to complete a task without too much mental tinkering. But work like this can be unsustainable and worse — it won’t leverage your ability to think critically.

There is value in thinking critically in every aspect of your life. From making decisions in your personal life, to interrogating the media you consume, to assessing your work with a critical eye, applying critical thinking is an essential skill everyone should be trying to hone.

At your workplace, critical thinking can distinguish you as a leader, and a valuable mind to bounce ideas off. It can help improve the quality of your work, and the perception those higher up the chain have of you.

Here’s what you need to know about critical thinking in the workplace:

What Exactly is “Critical Thinking”?

  In a nutshell, critical thinking is the ability to think reasonably, detaching yourself from personal bias, emotional responses, and subjective opinions. It involves using the data at hand to make a reasoned choice without falling prey to the temptations of doing things simply because they’ve always been done a certain way.

Critical thinking takes time. It might be quicker simply to take instruction at face value, or rely on the traditions of your team. But without analyzing the reasons behind decisions and tasks, it becomes extremely easy to adopt bad habits. This might be time-wasting meetings, inefficient uses of effort, or poor interactions with team members. Taking the time to ask “why” you’re doing something is the first step to thinking critically.

Sometimes, data is available which allows you to make reasoned decisions based on absolute facts. If you can show that a new best practice can objectively improve current processes with hard data, you’ve used the very basics of critical thinking. That said, actual numbers aren’t always available when making a decision. Real critical thinking involves taking a careful look at situations and making a decision based on what is known, not what is felt.

Why Is Critical Thinking Important in the Workplace?

The short answer to the above question is this: critical thinkers make the best decisions, most often. And in the workplace, where choices about how to complete tasks, communicate information, relate with coworkers, and develop strategy are so common, critical thinkers are extremely valuable.

A savvy hiring manager will make this part of the recruitment process. It’s pretty easy to gauge how someone is inclined to solve a problem — ask them how they would deal with a specific situation, and give them the opportunity to use their critical thinking skills, versus deferring to an emotional, or prescribed reaction. Employing people who can think and act reasonably will pay enormous dividends down the road.

Using your critical thinking skills in the workplace will define you as a problem solver. This is not only useful career-wise (although having upper-level people at your company think highly of you is undoubtedly a benefit) it also establishes you as a leader among your fellow team members. Demonstrating your ability to solve problems and accomplish goals effectively will help instill confidence in you with all your coworkers.

How to Use Critical Thinking in the Workplace

The first step to actually using critical thinking is approaching every situation with an open mind. You need to be receptive to all information available, not just the kind that satisfies your preconceived notions or personal biases. This can be easier said than done, of course — lessons learned and beliefs held are often done so with a reason. But when it comes to critical thinking, it’s important to analyze each situation independently.

Once you’ve analyzed a situation with an open mind, you need to consider how to communicate it properly. It’s all very well and good to approach situations with objective logic, but it doesn’t do you any favours to sound like  Mr. Spock  when you’re conveying your conclusions. Be tactful, patient and humble when you are explaining how and why you’ve come to decisions. Use data if available to support your findings, but understand that not everyone is able to remove emotion from situations.

The final, and perhaps least obvious, application with critical thinking is creativity. Often, getting creative means pushing boundaries and reshaping convention. This means taking a risk — one that can often be worth the reward. Using a critical thinking approach when getting creative can help you mitigate the risk, and better determine what value your creativity can bring. It will help you and your team try new things and reinvent current processes while hopefully not rocking the boat too much.

Learn More About Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is a valuable skill for all aspects of your life. It benefits problem solving, creativity, and teamwork. And it translates particularly well to the workplace, where it can distinguish you as a valuable employee and leader.

Taking the extra time to examine things objectively, make decisions based on logic, and communicate it tactfully will help you, those you work with, and your work goals prosper. To learn more about how to do that, have a look at our  Critical Thinking and Problem Solving for Effective Decision-Making   workshop and register today!

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What is Critical Thinking in the Workplace?

Critical thinking is one of the most highly sought after skills in the workplace. Critical thinking skills allow a person to analyse information, arrive at conclusions and make sound decisions. Applying critical thinking in the workplace is an essential skill everyone should be trying to improve. It can set you apart as a leader, improve the quality of your work, and the perception those higher up the chain have of you. So what is critical thinking, and why is it important in the workplace?

Although it sounds negative, critical thinking is not about being cynical or resistant. Critical thinking in the workplace is a deeper level of thinking where we question, analyse and draw conclusions about information and evidence. According to the  Cambridge Dictionary , the definition of critical thinking is “the process of thinking carefully about a subject or idea, without allowing feelings or opinions to affect you.” Essentially this means to think about something without falling prey to personal bias or doing things the way they have always been done.

Top companies are placing increasing importance on critical thinking skills in business. Business success depends on a person’s ability to learn quickly and perform in jobs requiring decision making and problem-solving. To keep up with the rapid advancements in technology and rapidly changing business environments, businesses need critical thinkers to make reliable decisions and ensure the company moves forward.

Why is Critical Thinking Important in the Workplace?

Critical thinking skills are valuable in all roles in an organisation. These skills enhance communication, creativity and problem-solving. Thinking critically in the workplace allows you to connect ideas, evaluate arguments, find errors and solve complex issues. The workplace is packed with situations that require teams and individuals to approach complex problems and solve them using new and innovative approaches. Employees who can communicate and relate with coworkers, develop strategies and overcome issues are more likely to succeed. 

Critical thinking is especially important in three areas of business:

• problem-solving
• communication

Leaders often need to think critically when making decisions that impact the business. They need to employ critical thinking skills when considering situations and weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of possible solutions. Critical thinking is an essential skill for successful leadership.

Problem Solving

Problems arise within all organisations daily. Some have a straightforward solution, whereas others require a more complex approach. As a business leader or employee, it’s essential to think critically when facing more significant issues. Thinking critically will enable you to produce several alternative solutions to a problem, ensuring that the decision made is best for the company overall. 

Enhances Communication

There is a strong link between critical thinking and communication. Applying critical thinking skills to communication allows you to consider the perspectives of others, anticipate how they might respond and formulate the most appropriate response. This leads to effective communication and improves productivity.

How to Improve Critical Thinking in the Workplace

Here are the top three ways to improve critical thinking skills in the workplace to become a more effective employee:

Ask Questions

Consider the Source

Questioning is an essential skill to develop if you are trying to perfect your critical thinking skills. When presented with a problem, asking questions will help you understand and evaluate it. Questioning is a great way to learn more about a situation and help expand how you think about things.

Uncovering the source of information can help you understand the motivation or perspectives behind it. When learning or problem-solving, you should consider the source’s motivation and evidence to support their argument. Examine if there may be other possible solutions or perspectives.

Once you have questioned the new information and considered multiple perspectives, you need to form your own opinion and act on the information. If it’s a common issue or situation, you can research using the internet or discuss it with others who have also encountered the same problem. Search for reputable information from sources like news sites, educational institutions and nonprofit organisations

How to Measure Critical Thinking

There are several critical thinking tests to measure critical thinking skills in the workplace. The most applicable test to the workplace is a reasoning test. Reasoning skills play an essential role in workplace tasks requiring different elements of intelligence like critical thinking, problem-solving and tasks involving creativity. A reasoning test enables employers to assess critical thinking skills in the workplace.

Critical thinking and reasoning processes require active and thorough processing of information by collecting, analysing, conceptualising, combining and assessing it. Many jobs performed in organisations require these skills. Although we can develop these skills, a person with advanced reasoning skills is likely to perform more effectively in tasks requiring reasoning skills, such as critical thinking.

Every person is unique, and so are our reasoning skills. Genetics, education and intelligence all contribute to our level of reasoning skills. A reasoning or cognitive ability test is designed to assess critical thinking skills. The reasoning test will produce an assessment of our current level of reasoning skills, what this might look like in practice and which reasoning skills we may want to develop. As we can learn any other skills, we can also learn reasoning skills if we want to.

Examples of Critical Thinking the Workplace

There are many critical thinking in the workplace examples. Some of them we do regularly and may not identify them as critical thinking skills. 

• Risk Assessment

Employees in the construction industry or in health and safety departments often need to complete risk assessments. This requires them to consider the situation before them, identify potential hazards and predict areas that may produce a level of risk. Risk assessments require employees to think critically about the information from multiple perspectives, such as the types of contractors entering the site, evaluate possible risks and overcome these problems

• Data Analysis

Multiple roles and industries require the analysis of data. These include accountants, business analysts and marketing strategists. While digital applications can collate large data, only humans can analyse and interpret what the data may be telling us. For example, a digital marketing strategist looks at website data, infers what it means, and develops a strategy to improve. This process requires marketing strategists to apply critical thinking skills to evaluate the situation.

• Recruitment

One of the fundamental elements of critical thinking is being able to look at a situation objectively. This is also fundamental in recruitment. Recruiters and HR Managers need to analyse several CVs and other information objectively to identify the ideal candidate for the role. Demonstrating the ability to hire without considering age, gender, and other factors shows the ability to think critically. 

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Critical Thinking Will Be Necessary When Using AI

Artificial intelligence is gaining widespread adoption in the workplace, and critical thinking skills will be key to successfully using the technology to improve work and limit negative consequences.

AI is a powerful tool, but the results need to be questioned and verified by humans in your organization, said Justin Reinert, SHRM-SCP, a corporate trainer and principal of Performance Accelerated Learning, speaking April 15 at the SHRM Talent Conference & Expo 2024 (Talent 2024).  

“AI offers an opportunity and an imperative for enhanced critical thinking skills in the workplace as responsibilities for some will change from producers to verifiers,” he said.

Critical thinking is the practice of analysis to understand a problem or topic thoroughly. Critical thinking typically includes steps such as collecting information and data, asking thoughtful questions, and analyzing possible solutions.

This important skill is even more necessary in the age of AI, because the technology is still prone to negative outcomes, such as the potential for making up or “hallucinating” information, generating biased results and demonstrating gaps in reasoning.

Some recent noteworthy misses include:

• Attorneys who used generative AI (GenAI) to write motions and briefs that contained made-up case citations .
• The AI-powered chatbot created by the New York City government to help small-business owners providing inaccurate information .

“The use of AI in the workplace is fast growing and quickly evolving—an individual’s ability to discern fact from AI hallucination is increasingly challenging,” Reinert said. “Without deep critical thinking skills, we face a danger where falsehoods are being incorporated into our workplaces and consumer interactions. The educators in the corporate world will have the responsibility to develop this in your people.”

He added that there are two paths forward: a path of automation and a path of new capabilities for humans.

“Typically, as technology advances, we use technology to automate processes, make things faster and more efficient,” he said. “But as we appropriate AI into our work, there is another path to be mindful of. Identify the things that are uniquely human, and make sure you develop those skills in people, and then automate what can be automated. Ensure that humans stay front of mind.”

Of course, to effectively use, train and improve AI, those involved must have strong critical thinking skills themselves.

5 Critical Thinking Skills and How to Develop Them

Reinert listed the following critical thinking skills and what employers can do to help build these capabilities in their workforce:

1. Observation , or the ability to notice and predict opportunities, problems, and solutions. Organizations can practice scenario and risk planning, engaging teams with various possibilities, mindfulness training to improve concentration and focus, and competitive intelligence exercises.  

2. Analysis , or the gathering, understanding, and interpreting of data and other information. This can be practiced through data analysis training, data interpretation workshops and data reviews.

3. Inference , or drawing conclusions based on relevant data, information, and personal knowledge and experience. This skill can be developed through case study analyses related to specific work functions, critical reading and discussion assignments, and mind mapping exercises to identify connections in disparate information.

4. Communication , or the sharing and receiving of information with others verbally, nonverbally, and in writing. Organizations can practice this skill with role-playing scenarios, through public speaking opportunities, and by holding feedback sessions and peer reviews.

5. Problem-solving , or choosing and executing a solution after identifying and analyzing a problem. Problem-solving can be developed through root cause analysis drills to find the underlying causes of a problem; working through a decision-making matrix to evaluate potential solutions based on feasibility, impact and cost; and via simulation exercises that mimic real-world challenges.

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Critical Thinking Skills in the Workplace

Critical thinking refers to the analysis and evaluation of different points to form a decision or judgment. Whether a person’s position in a company is a starting manager or a CEO , critical thinking skills in the workplace will always be an asset.

It’s a vital part of the success of a company. In order to make the best decisions, all employees must have the skills to think critically. So, what critical thinking skills are good for the workplace and how can we apply them?

Here are some of the things you can do develop critical thinking in the workplace:

Look at the problem and name the situation. Focus on the situation and evaluate all the available data given. Critical thinking involves being able to look at all the angles of an issue and evaluate properly.

Evaluation also means seeing the situation’s place in the bigger picture. How does this situation affect the company? Critical thinking isn’t just focusing on the situation; it’s being able to see the situation from all possible points of view, with the bigger picture in mind.

• Keep goals in mind

All companies may differ in terms of the goals that they have. One way of practicing critical thinking is to keep your company’s goal in mind. Don’t lose track of the ultimate objective.

Act upon that objective and make sure that all decisions that are going to be made are aligned with that. By keeping the goal in mind, the best solutions can be set up because we can make sure that all of those follows the company’s best interest.

• Look past biases

The only person who can tell his or her biases is the person itself. One way of improving critical thinking is by knowing your biases and looking past them. Decisions should always remain impartial and should always be in line with the company’s best interests and goals as aforementioned.

• Observe and ask questions

Another one of the crucial critical thinking skills in the workplace is the ability to not just accept something at face value. A critical thinker keeps an open mind about the situation. Remember that it’s important to see all possible point of views. You can do exactly that by asking questions and gathering more information! This is done in order to see all the angles people might be seeing.

Be open to points, suggestions, and further information presented by co-workers or employees. Always keep an open mind.

• Identify as many possible solutions as you can

Keeping an open mind about the situation also means keeping an open mind about the solutions. List all the possible solutions. Weigh them and find out the pros and cons of each one.

All actions have their corresponding consequences, so you need to know what entails each possible solution. For example, you may need to find out if the solutions are going to have long-term benefits or cause problems in the long run.

Don’t just be open to more information from employees and co-workers; be open to possible solutions from them as well.

• Narrow down the solutions

Now that the items in your list of solutions come with pros, cons, and possible consequences, the next thing to do is to shorten the list. Narrow it down to the best ones. Critical thinking involves finding a way to compromise and merge different solutions together to form the best one.

This will be able to practice rational decision making. Critical thinking heavily involves the ability to think rationally – take in all the possible solutions and from there look for the best ones.

• Decide on a solution and implement it

Critical thinking doesn’t simply involve thinking of a solution. It also involves making that decision and implementing it properly. After evaluating which in the list of solutions is the best one, implement it.

The implementation of the decided action is one of the ways to see if it really is the right decision. A critical thinker will see if the solution is working, if it’s not, put a stop to it and try a different choice of action.

One crucial critical thinking skill is learning from mistakes. If one decision doesn’t work as well as expected, don’t simply give up. Instead, keep looking for a decision that will suit the situation best.

• Accept and encourage feedback

A part of learning from mistakes is to acknowledge mistakes in the first place. Before we learn from them, we find out what they are first. So, encourage feedback from the people involved in the situation.

Accept lapses and know that not everyone thinks critically 24/7. No matter what position a person has in the company, he or she is still just a person. We all make mistakes.

What sets critical thinkers apart is that they accept mistakes and learn from them. Fail fast, learn even faster.

Listen to the feedback from the people around. Don’t be afraid to ask what can be done better next time? What can be changed?

That sums up some of the critical thinking skills in the workplace . So, how can we apply them?

One of the most important ways is to keep them in mind when making decisions. Often, people can become pressured by time, peers, and or the expectations set by bosses or the people who count on them.

An integral part of learning and applying these critical thinking skills in the workplace is by giving oneself the time to think. When faced with a decision that requires critical thinking, remember the skills needed.

Don’t make hasty decisions. Don’t decide just for the sake of deciding. Set time for thinking and absorbing all information. Evaluate, and follow the steps and skills outline in this article.

Critical thinking skills can be used in every position in a company, so it’s important to have all employees, team members, or workers to have these set of skills. Employers value those who have the ability to think critically, especially in times of need.

Whether you’re a CEO or a start-up manager, critical thinking is a skill that will be used for life. For companies to run smooth, the right decisions should be made thousands of times.

Developing critical thinking skills in the workplace creates better workers. Better workers mean better work. Better work means a better workplace.

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Unit of competency details

Bsbcrt411 - apply critical thinking to work practices (release 1).

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Unit of competency

Modification history, application, unit sector, elements and performance criteria, foundation skills.

• Reflects on own performance and seeks opportunities to improve own skills and knowledge
• Identifies the key themes and ideas to be explored and ways to response to and use diverse perspectives
• Interprets and critically analyses numerical data to determine work process requirements
• Articulates ideas and requirements clearly and persuasively using techniques appropriate to audience and environment
• Participates in a verbal exchange of ideas and elicits the view and opinions of others by listening and questioning
• Interprets, evaluates and extracts relevant information from a range of texts for work requirements
• Develops clear workplace documents appropriate to audience and context
• Selects appropriate channel, format, tone and content to suit purpose and audience
• Seeks to establish interpersonal connections to facilitate work with a diverse range of people
• Identifies the implications of legal and regulatory responsibilities on own work
• Adheres to implicit and explicit organisational procedures and policies, seeking advice from others if necessary
• Uses systematic processes to gather and analyse information required to make decisions
• Uses problem-solving skills to evaluate and challenge ideas and move towards solutions
• Uses features and functions of digital tools and technologies to store and present information

Unit Mapping Information

Assessment requirements, performance evidence.

• develop solutions for two different workplace limitations using critical thinking concepts.
• use a range of critical thinking techniques to identify and address limitations in workplace practices
• ask questions to broaden understanding of task requirements
• use various information sources to provide answers to proposed questions
• develop a proposal to articulate to a broad range of workplace stakeholders a solution to an identified issue
• incorporate feedback and self-reflection to critically assess performance.

Knowledge Evidence

• critical thinking concepts and the value of applying such approaches in a work environment
• key characteristics of critical thinking processes
• sources of reliable information relevant to workplace practices
• key components of decision- making frameworks
• features and limitations of workplace practices
• legislative requirements relating to workplace practices
• components of self-evaluation and development.

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• technology, software and resources required to implement and maintain internal control procedures
• corporate governance documentation required for role
• organisational operational policies and procedures required for role.
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