Critical Thinking Training

The need for critical thinking is as strong today as it's ever been. With our market crumbling around us we have seen many public figures fall on their butts because they weren't properly prepared to think about the future. Not long ago, an acquaintance of mine was on a business trip and became upset because he had been denied a tip at a restaurant because he didn't understand how to think critically. It turns out that he had not been attending business critical thinking training.

Critical Thinking is the ability to organize information, facts, information and other data to come up with a sensible answer to a question. It requires that the evaluation of multiple data resources, facts and even other research to reach a fair answer. There are many unique types of Critical Thinking skills. A number of them require specialized instruction; others can be learned in the classroom and applied during the day.

In my business the most critical thinking skills I need of my employees are creativity and interpersonal skills. In my last desk job I had to conduct research at work. This required me to draw conclusions based upon my research, communicate those conclusions and justify my work using scientific and sociological procedures. As the research was conducted, I needed to justify my reasoning using logic, statistics, data, etc.. This process took several days to complete and was a difficult task to do in a chaotic and fast-paced workplace.

On the other hand in my life I enjoy using critical thinking skills when making decisions. By way of instance I would take the results of complicated mathematical analysis to determine if a business idea was worth pursuing or if it ought to be discarded. Rather than simply accept the results, I used the various analytical tools available to find better ways to maximize the profits of the business.

My favourite part of using critical thinking skills in my professional life is when I make my own resume I'm presenting my case. In many instances I have overlooked or been challenged by an employer to describe the reasoning behind my decision making process. By presenting my position from a logical and comprehensive stand point I can gain the support of my prospective employer. My recruiter has also more readily understood why I'd make the career choice I have made.

When I was a young adult I thought that critical thinking was a waste of time and I never took the opportunity to develop my analytical and critical thinking skills. It wasn't until I was in college that I started to realize what an asset my classmates had been in their careers and how much I had to learn to be successful in the workplace. A few years later I developed my own career strategies that involved using creative and interesting thinking when making decisions. I have always seen my ability to think creatively as a skill that will serve me well into my retirement. I still use some of the strategies I developed while working in the office and now they're second nature to me.

The point of view I developed while preparing to present my career success to my current employer was that he needed to re-evaluate his decision making procedures if he wanted to continue to achieve success in the business world. He had been facing tough competition from other companies in his industry, and he believed that by using critical thinking skills he could remain applicable in this competitive environment. He didn't believe his human resources department was powerful enough to encourage him in any new initiatives that were initiated. His plan was to utilize the tools he had developed to help employees become more engaged in their jobs.

The results were remarkable. As he looked at figures, he realized that when he made critical thinking skills a priority in his communication efforts, his employee retention rate increased. His profits rose and he soon had an employee base that consisted primarily of stay-at-home moms that are highly effective in their tasks. This is only one story and if you have a story that involves developing and implementing critical thinking skills, put it on your list to share with others.