Critical Thinking - An essential Life Skill

Critical Thinking - An essential Life Skill


Critical thinking is the ability to make informed decisions by evaluating several different sources of information objectively.

Critical thinking is the ability to think in an organized and rational manner in order to understand connections between ideas and/or facts.


Someone with critical thinking skills is able to think rationally and clearly about what they should or not believe. They are capable of engaging in their own thoughts, and doing some reflection in order to come to a well-informed conclusion. Critical thinkers rigorously question ideas and assumptions rather than accepting them at face value


A critical thinker understands the connections between ideas, and is able to construct arguments based on facts, as well as find mistakes in reasoning.It helps you decide what to believe in. In other words, it’s “thinking about thinking”—identifying, analyzing, and then fixing flaws in the way we think


The term critical comes from the Greek word kritikos meaning discerning. So critical thinking is a deeper kind of thinking in which we do not take things for granted but question, analyse and evaluate what we read, hear, say, or write. It is a general term used to identify essential mindsets and skills that contribute to effective decision making. While there are many definitions for critical thinking, here is one that covers its essential aspects:

Critical thinking seeks to identify reliable information and make reliable judgements. It encompasses mindset and skills, both of which can be developed through an understanding of key concepts, practice and application.




what critical thinkers do – the skills they display. You might say that a critical thinker:

-questions everything, including existing social norms and traditions
-thinks systematically, considering all aspects of a problem and looking at each element in its wider context
-carefully examines ideas and information
-looks beyond what may appear as obvious
-uses evidence to support claims
-uses logic and reason in their arguments
-avoids making assumptions
-can recognise (and avoid) logical fallacies
-strives to be aware of their own cognitive biases
-considers different perspectives
-uses the above critical thinking skills to make judgements.


How To Improve Your Critical Thinking

Define Your Question: When it comes to critical thinking, it’s important to always keep your goal in mind. Know what you’re trying to achieve, and then figure out how to best get there.

Gather Reliable Information: Make sure that you’re using sources you can trust — biases aside. That’s how a real critical thinker operates!

Ask The Right Questions: We all know the importance of questions, but be sure that you’re asking the right questions that are going to get you to your answer.

Look Short & Long Term: When coming up with solutions, think about both the short- and long-term consequences. Both of them are significant in the equation.

Explore All Sides: There is never just one simple answer, and nothing is black or white. Explore all options and think outside of the box before you come to any conclusions.


Skills You Need note that someone with critical thinking skills can:

understand links between ideas
determine the importance and relevance of arguments and ideas
recognise, build and appraise arguments
identify inconsistencies and errors in reasoning
approach problems consistently and systematically
reflect on the justification of their own assumptions, beliefs and values.

Creative vs critical thinking

Creative thinking involves searching for meaningful new connections by generating many unusual, original, and varied possibilities, as well as details that expand or enrich possibilities.

Critical thinking, on the other hand, involves examining possibilities carefully, fairly, and constructively focusing your thoughts and actions by organizing and analyzing possibilities, refining and developing the most promising possibilities, ranking or prioritizing options, and choosing certain options.

To conclude - Critical thinking is analyzing and developing possibilities to: compare and contrast many ideas; improve and refine ideas; make effective decisions and judgments; and provide a sound foundation for effective action