Critical Thinker

After taking critical thinking in UB, I believe that the core being of a good critical thinker is to be able to determine the difference between what is valid and what is not. The difference between what is valid and what is sound is that validness has to deal with what is more true and the truth tends to demolish all lies. Nevertheless, being a good critical thinker isn’t only about what is true and what is not but it is also about how a person is able to deconstruct an impossible problem and somehow come up with a solution. With critical thinking, a person is able to recreate their values and construct new ones that leads them to make better decisions. It opens news opportunities and expands horizons when it comes to exploring in options
in both tedious and easy situations. By process of elimination and comparing the pros and cons of a situation, the best possible outcome is more likely to appear. When a situation is thought able thoroughly and critically, most of the available options are present and evaluable as well as easier to determine. By asking basic questions and analyzing background information most individuals tend to miss, a person is able to make more rational and logical conclusions based on their options. Some individuals tend to misjudge complicated situations because they may seem complex in their nature, however some of the hardest situations are solved by the simplest methods. Due to the fact that most people tend to say something is ‘too’ easy, some of the simplest questions are ignored because of their basicness. Critical thinking additionally helps a person become more aware with their thoughts and mental capabilities. Since our brains tend to use shortcuts, based on previous patterns to explain what’s going on around us, many people tend to overpass important information that is needed to get to a final decision or conclusion. Although this helps humans solve many of our basic and ‘piece of cake’ problems, it is more beneficial when it is used in our ‘fight or flight’ perspective. If someone is exploring their options whether or not to go into a crocodile pit, it is probable that their human nature screams out to stay clear of that area because of the dangers unless the person is a dare devil or just enjoying things of that matter. Well taught critical thinkers will be able to depict biases and other prejudices that tend to mislead our judgements and interpretations of the world by complete analyzation of a scenario.
When someone is more aware of their biases and takes responsibilities for them, it leads them to make more critical decision making based on their biases and the facts presented to them. By using critical thinking, the evaluation of evidence is more depended on and has a significant factor on how the conclusion of someone’s options are. When trying to solve a problem, the most common thing that people do is try to gather information about it , however critical thinkers tend to gather as much information about a problem. An example is if two people are trying to get a stain out of a shirt and one has a low level of critical thinking and the other has a high level of critical thinking. The individual with the low level of critical thinking might just put laundry detergent on the stain and assume that it would magically vanish. The difference with the person with the high level of critical thinking is that the person might do outside research for example looking at other methods that might take out the stain beside laundry detergent or what can do a better job then laundry
detergent. Since individuals with low critical thinking skills tend to fall for more advertising skims as well as assume a certain judgement over something, people with higher critical thinking skills surge in questioning and evaluating biases that contradict arguments. By applying critical thinking to everyday life, the sense of egocentrism goes straight out the door because critical thinking leads to more open-mindedness and appreciations of other aspects and perspectives of life. Once egocentric biases are identified, they can be modified to more rational and unbiased based on self reflection. This can redefine previous thoughts and create new ones that can transform negative outcomes into new ones. For example, someone might look at a water bottle and describe it as half empty, however a critical thinker might look at the same water bottle and say it is half full. Critical thinking helps a person choose better and more positive alternatives and plan for new outcomes with a better response or judgement. Needless to say, although critical thinkers gather a lot of information to come up with a more valid and rational conclusion, it does not mean that they overanalyze their information that undoubtedly slows down the decision making process.
Instead, individuals that are well in critical thinking tend to seek clarity of the patterns they observed then looking for loopholes within a certain topic. By looking at the big picture and the details, good critical thinkers are able to gather enough information that are both valid and sound to make a rational conclusion. This does not mean that a good critical thinker is going to subject to only one possible outcome. A good critical thinker might think both possibilities are valid and suspend their judgement, however good critical thinkers are able to become flexible when it comes to exploring other possible outcomes and considering alternatives ideas and options. In conclusion, critical thinking is a skill that could always be polished no matter what age or skill a person has. It is able to make a person more successful as well as more rational when making decision about their everyday life. As people use their critical thinking more and more, it will lead to more beneficial and less tedious outcomes that result in a better and organized
life.