You're Wrong ...About My Being Right

Thinking is hard work.  Thinking about thinking; more so.  What influences our thinking also influences the conclusions that we arrive at.  Like everything else, improvement in thinking is borne out in practice.  Our thinking can be of poor quality.  It’s something I have been contemplating. 

I have been guilty of superficial thinking, intellectual laziness, and inconsistent thought.  Worse yet, I have sometimes regurgitated an opinion of a respected expert or peer without gathering enough information to form my own conclusions based on facts. 

I’m just cynic enough to believe that many people do not really want to learn anything.  They avoid conversations that do not support their views.  Rather than responding with facts, they seek to discredit those that they disagree with.  It has taken some introspection to separate my general perception of myself from actual fact.  I too have been guilty of using loaded terms and evoking an emotional response- just to garner a win for my side.  In the end, I may be “winning”, but not positively influencing; and, I’m certainly not learning anything myself.

I have recently taken some small steps towards becoming an active critic of my thinking.  In doing so, I have found the following guidelines helpful:

• Facts should not simply be absorbed.  Facts should always be accompanied with questions. 
• Don’t jump to conclusions.  Find out more.  Find out more from opposing viewpoints.
• Listen.  Don’t just wait for your opportunity for rebuttal- listen.
• Stay focused.  Finish thinking a problem or issue through.  Don’t divert.  What is pertinent?  What is merely a distraction?

As humans, we’re hard-wired for social interaction.  In groups, learning is not as important as conveying that we are like-minded with our peers.  If we’re not careful we allow others or groups to do our thinking for us.  The quality of our thinking is critical to efficiently solving problems.  Quality thinking allows us to draw appropriate conclusions and reduce the amount of time suffering the consequences of irrational thought.


"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it 
than we do from learning the answer itself"         ~ Lloyd Alexander