Critical thinking is essential for growth

"I know you won't believe me but the highest form of human excellence is to question oneself and others."

-Socrates

Critical thinking is not by any means a new concept - it originated already in ancient Greece and many times it's associated with Socrates as the founder of the concept. This is how the Foundation for Critical Thinking defines the term: Critical thinking is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. Wikipedia definition adds to this an essential point-of-view regarding our human nature: Critical thinking... it entails effective communication and problem-solving abilities as well as a commitment to overcome native egocentrism and sociocentrism.

Why is critical thinking important?

There is a saying in Finland "Jos kukaan ei suutu, mikään ei muutu", meaning roughly "If no one gets mad, nothing changes". That, I believe, is much better nugget of an advice than "Don't bring me problems, bring me solutions.", which is a completely outdated leadership advice in the modern context. Discussion, especially critical, diverse and inclusive discussion about problems is something that is needed in order to dig out the real problems, the valuable ones, the ones that are worth solving. Going too fast to solutions might even prevent us from doing the right things and making the right choices. 

If there is no critical thinking, development stops. If we don't question our opinions, choices, concepts or decisions we'll keep on getting the same stuff, perhaps in a slightly different wrapping. Critical thinking improves our decision making, impact and focus. It also provides tools to develop ethics and confidence, as well as to engage on a deeper level. Critical thinking can also support our ability to generate broader understanding of the complicated phenomena that impact our business, as well as improve quality and efficiency in what we do. It can also help us understand ourselves and interpret the complicated world around us better. It is also a tool to dig deeper to cause-and-effect relations and help reveal the real issues we should be solving and developing solutions for. Critical thinking is definitely an essential part of a growth mindset.

Why is critical thinking considered hard, or even unpreferred in work context?

During our studies in high schools and universities, we are encouraged and taught critical thinking skills, e.g. through debates, essays, and research. However, somehow these skills are not fostered when we move to the next phase and step into the professional life. Suddenly the whole setup and context changes. We start to learn our new role, where sometimes questioning can even be considered as a burden, we might fear of being perceived as troublesome or the one always asking too many questions. We tend to fit in, not to stand out, to appear positive, to avoid risks, to avoid losing our face, to avoid too difficult discussions. And this of course, is all very human.

We have a million of reasons why we don't want to question someone else's opinions or dig deeper to root causes in the daily work, that might cause delays or extra work. Questioning or criticism appears to be especially hard towards someone who we see upwards or who is on a higher level of internal hierarchy because of her status, position or just because of her professional exposure. Sometimes this lack or fear of criticism can also be so deep-rooted in the culture as an unwritten rule, that it is almost impossible to change. Critical thinking is also hard when we focus on ourselves and our egos, which again is very human. And we might even be afraid we'll get a reputation as a difficult person if we always challenge, provide critical point-of-views or keep on asking tough questions.

How to improve and foster critical thinking?

How do we overcome these human and cultural burdens? Is there something we can do in our own contexts? Again, one important factor behind fostering critical thinking and being open about it, is trust. Trust is a prerequisite for creating a safe environment for critical and creative thinking and discussion. Creating trust is thus one of the most important tasks for a modern leader. There are many ways to spread and spark critical thinking but here are some tips how to make it an integral part of an individual's work life.