critical thinking leader

The Crucial Role of Critical Thinking in Leadership

Leadership is more than just guiding a team; it's about making decisions that shape the future of an organization. Critical thinking plays a pivotal role in effective leadership. Here are five key reasons why it's essential for a leader to have critical thinking skills:

1. Informed Decision-Making

Leaders are constantly faced with complex challenges. Critical thinking empowers them to gather information, assess options, and make well-informed decisions. It ensures decisions are based on facts and analysis rather than assumptions.

2. Problem-Solving Abilities: 

Leaders encounter obstacles and problems regularly. Critical thinking enables them to identify root causes, analyze potential solutions, and implement effective problem-solving strategies. It encourages a proactive approach to challenges.

3. Adaptation to Change

In today's dynamic business environment, change is inevitable. Critical thinking allows leaders to adapt to new circumstances, evaluate the impact of change, and make adjustments swiftly. It fosters resilience and flexibility.

4. Effective Communication

 Leaders must convey their vision and ideas clearly. Critical thinking helps them structure their thoughts logically, present ideas persuasively, and engage in constructive dialogues with their team, fostering collaboration.

5. Innovation and Creativity

To stay competitive, leaders need to foster innovation. Critical thinking encourages creative problem-solving and the exploration of new ideas. It allows leaders to identify opportunities for growth and adapt to evolving trends.

In conclusion, critical thinking is the cornerstone of effective leadership. It equips leaders to make informed decisions, navigate challenges, adapt to change, communicate effectively, and drive innovation. Leaders with strong critical thinking skills not only steer their organizations to success but also inspire their teams to reach new heights.

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By Colin Baker Leaders Staff

Colin Baker

Leadership and Business Writer

Colin Baker is a business writer for Leaders Media. He has a background in as a television journalism, working as...

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Updated Apr 29, 2022

6 Critical Thinking Skills That Create Great Leaders

5 steps to becoming a good critical thinker, a list of critical thinking skills, the impact of changed critical thinking.

“Thinking is hard work; that’s why so few do it.” Those words from Albert Einstein ring true in so many areas of life. In the business world, a lack of thinking often leads to disappointment and disaster. As important as it is to think in the first place, it’s also crucial for leaders to change  how  they think. In Thinking for a Change , John Maxwell states, “One of the reasons people don’t achieve their dreams is that they desire to change their results without changing their thinking. ” To do so, people need to adopt critical thinking skills.

When someone uses critical thinking skills, they begin to transform into the best version of themselves. Doing so is no small feat, though. Your level of critical thought is tied to your beliefs and your expectations.   Because the critical thinking process requires growth and introspection, there are few critical thinkers out there.

However, if you’re reading this article, you’re likely interested in developing the mindset of a critical thinker—someone who is capable of solving the world’s greatest problems. 

Take the next five minutes to learn how to become an effective critical thinker who can successfully tackle any challenge. 

Determining how to think critically can be a challenge, but  John Maxwell  provides a helpful guide to transforming how you think. By adopting this process, you’ll be able to solve problems and embrace an  entrepreneurial spirit  that will change you and your business. Here are the five steps to gaining critical thinking skills as Maxwell describes.

1.  Expose yourself to good input.  Read as much as you can from reputable sources and other good thinkers. When you come across a great idea, record and save it. Use the idea in the future as a way to stimulate more thinking.

2.  Expose yourself to good thinkers.  Don’t just sit at your desk and read a book or article from a critical thinker. Seek out other people (in person) who will challenge your thinking as well. These should be people who are also trying to grow and learn. One way to do this is by joining a mastermind group full of high-performers and entrepreneurs like yourself. 

3.  Choose to think good thoughts.  Be intentional about your thinking process. Focus on the positive. If you dwell on the negative, it should come as no surprise when adverse outcomes happen.

4.  Act on your good thoughts.  It’s not enough to simply think good thoughts. Act on them as well. More importantly, act on them quickly. Ideas end up having a short shelf life, so you must work on them before they hit their expiration date.

5.  Allow your emotions to create another good thought.  Use the momentum of good thinking as a tool to fuel more good ideas. Allowing your emotions to feed that process continually creates a self-feeding system you can capitalize on.

So, what are critical thinking skills?  Maxwell provides a helpful list in  Thinking for a Change . After all, critical thinking is the ability to think rationally and put together logical connections. These skills can help in all aspects of your life as they cultivate  innovative leadership . To become a skillful critical thinker, master the following critical thinking skills from Maxwell’s book.

1. Big Picture Thinking

Someone who looks beyond the immediate moment and considers the ramifications of their actions is a person who engages in big picture thinking. They understand that others think and see the world differently.

To practice big picture thinking, actively listen to others and set aside any agendas. All of this is in service to greater goals. As Maxwell puts it, “The person who forgets the ultimate, is a slave to the immediate.”

To practice big picture thinking:

• Have a vision for the future.
• Think like a leader.
• Account for all the variables you may encounter.
• Note what obstacles you may find.
• Draw a road map of where your team is going.
• Connect the past with the future to show a meaningful journey.

2. Realistic Thinking

Though leaders may have far-reaching dreams, they must also be realistic in their thinking. That includes developing a deep appreciation for the truth, which can be challenging for some. 

Winston Churchill famously said, “Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing has happened.” To be a realistic thinker, you need to become comfortable with facing the truth, even if it’s difficult.

To become a realistic thinker:

• Show appreciation for the truth.
• Do your homework, including making sure you collect concrete facts.
• Consider the pros and cons of each solution.
• Imagine the worst case scenario just to be ready for it.
• Align your thinking with the truth to promote the right solution.

3. Strategic Thinking

Every solution and goal requires having a plan. Without a plan, you can’t expect to make much progress in achieving your top objectives. 

Planning means developing strategic thinking. While some challenges may feel insurmountable, strategic thinking helps to break the journey down into more manageable “bite-size” parts. When you do this, you can focus on each step more effectively. 

Which parts can you tackle yourself, and which can involve  delegation  to others? Strategic thinking shows that it’s not just what you hope to accomplish that matters, it’s  how  you do it.

4. Focused Thinking

As much as you might like, you can’t devote all of your thinking to every topic under the sun. While you might feel tempted to engage in exhaustive thinking, you must be more selective. 

In other words, practice focused thinking. 

Understand that it’s impossible to know everything and everyone. If you focus your energies, you can concentrate on the most important things you want to learn.

To get more focused:

• Remove all distractions.
• Set aside time dedicated to focused thinking.
• Establish specific goals.
• Monitor your progress toward your goals.
• Keep items of focus in sight when you work.
• Identify your strengths and areas of expertise.

5. Unselfish Thinking

John Maxwell describes unselfish thinking the best when he wrote, “There is no life as empty as the self-centered life. There is no life as centered as the self-empty life.”

Unselfish thinking means not thinking of yourself all the time. Think of others and what their needs are first, and identify how you can provide value to their lives.

To practice unselfish thinking, you must examine your motives carefully. Is what you’re doing for your benefit or the benefit of others? If you’re not careful, you could slowly, but surely, slide back into selfish motives.

6. Bottom-Line Thinking

When referencing bottom-line thinking, John Maxwell doesn’t mean thinking of the bottom line in financial terms. Instead, it means setting standards that you have to meet if you want to succeed. 

Bottom-line thinking involves thinking about what has to occur to reach the most important goal in various areas of your life. Once you set aside any emotions and wants, you can determine what accomplishments really matter to you. 

Take a moment to think of what your bottom line is in the following areas:

• Life Purpose

As you develop your critical thinking skills and become a critical thinker, you’ll understand the power of change. Any significant change has to come from within, and that all starts with how you think.

As a leader, you can not only change the way you think, but you can inspire others to think differently as well. From there, the impact of critical thinking spreads to touch all parts of your life, leading to beneficial results.

For those wanting to change the world, it begins with what’s in your head.

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3 Simple Habits to Improve Your Critical Thinking

• Helen Lee Bouygues

But simple doesn’t mean easy.

Too many business leaders are simply not reasoning through pressing issues, and it’s hurting their organizations.  The good news is that critical thinking is a learned behavior. There are three simple things you can do to train yourself to become a more effective critical thinker: question assumptions, reason through logic, and diversify your thought and perspectives. They may sound obvious, but deliberately cultivating these three key habits of mind go a long way in helping you become better at clear and robust reasoning.

A few years ago, a CEO assured me that his company was the market leader. “Clients will not leave for competitors,” he added. “It costs too much for them to switch.” Within weeks, the manufacturing giant Procter & Gamble elected not to renew its contract with the firm. The CEO was shocked — but he shouldn’t have been.

• HB Helen Lee Bouygues is the president of the Paris-based Reboot Foundation . A former partner at McKinsey & Company, she has served as interim CEO, CFO, or COO for more than one dozen companies.

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Article • 8 min read

Critical Thinking

Developing the right mindset and skills.

By the Mind Tools Content Team

We make hundreds of decisions every day and, whether we realize it or not, we're all critical thinkers.

We use critical thinking each time we weigh up our options, prioritize our responsibilities, or think about the likely effects of our actions. It's a crucial skill that helps us to cut out misinformation and make wise decisions. The trouble is, we're not always very good at it!

In this article, we'll explore the key skills that you need to develop your critical thinking skills, and how to adopt a critical thinking mindset, so that you can make well-informed decisions.

What Is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is the discipline of rigorously and skillfully using information, experience, observation, and reasoning to guide your decisions, actions, and beliefs. You'll need to actively question every step of your thinking process to do it well.

Collecting, analyzing and evaluating information is an important skill in life, and a highly valued asset in the workplace. People who score highly in critical thinking assessments are also rated by their managers as having good problem-solving skills, creativity, strong decision-making skills, and good overall performance. [1]

Key Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinkers possess a set of key characteristics which help them to question information and their own thinking. Focus on the following areas to develop your critical thinking skills:

Being willing and able to explore alternative approaches and experimental ideas is crucial. Can you think through "what if" scenarios, create plausible options, and test out your theories? If not, you'll tend to write off ideas and options too soon, so you may miss the best answer to your situation.

To nurture your curiosity, stay up to date with facts and trends. You'll overlook important information if you allow yourself to become "blinkered," so always be open to new information.

But don't stop there! Look for opposing views or evidence to challenge your information, and seek clarification when things are unclear. This will help you to reassess your beliefs and make a well-informed decision later. Read our article, Opening Closed Minds , for more ways to stay receptive.

Logical Thinking

You must be skilled at reasoning and extending logic to come up with plausible options or outcomes.

It's also important to emphasize logic over emotion. Emotion can be motivating but it can also lead you to take hasty and unwise action, so control your emotions and be cautious in your judgments. Know when a conclusion is "fact" and when it is not. "Could-be-true" conclusions are based on assumptions and must be tested further. Read our article, Logical Fallacies , for help with this.

Use creative problem solving to balance cold logic. By thinking outside of the box you can identify new possible outcomes by using pieces of information that you already have.

Self-Awareness

Many of the decisions we make in life are subtly informed by our values and beliefs. These influences are called cognitive biases and it can be difficult to identify them in ourselves because they're often subconscious.

Practicing self-awareness will allow you to reflect on the beliefs you have and the choices you make. You'll then be better equipped to challenge your own thinking and make improved, unbiased decisions.

One particularly useful tool for critical thinking is the Ladder of Inference . It allows you to test and validate your thinking process, rather than jumping to poorly supported conclusions.

Developing a Critical Thinking Mindset

Combine the above skills with the right mindset so that you can make better decisions and adopt more effective courses of action. You can develop your critical thinking mindset by following this process:

Gather Information

First, collect data, opinions and facts on the issue that you need to solve. Draw on what you already know, and turn to new sources of information to help inform your understanding. Consider what gaps there are in your knowledge and seek to fill them. And look for information that challenges your assumptions and beliefs.

Be sure to verify the authority and authenticity of your sources. Not everything you read is true! Use this checklist to ensure that your information is valid:

• Are your information sources trustworthy ? (For example, well-respected authors, trusted colleagues or peers, recognized industry publications, websites, blogs, etc.)
• Is the information you have gathered up to date ?
• Has the information received any direct criticism ?
• Does the information have any errors or inaccuracies ?
• Is there any evidence to support or corroborate the information you have gathered?
• Is the information you have gathered subjective or biased in any way? (For example, is it based on opinion, rather than fact? Is any of the information you have gathered designed to promote a particular service or organization?)

If any information appears to be irrelevant or invalid, don't include it in your decision making. But don't omit information just because you disagree with it, or your final decision will be flawed and bias.

Now observe the information you have gathered, and interpret it. What are the key findings and main takeaways? What does the evidence point to? Start to build one or two possible arguments based on what you have found.

You'll need to look for the details within the mass of information, so use your powers of observation to identify any patterns or similarities. You can then analyze and extend these trends to make sensible predictions about the future.

To help you to sift through the multiple ideas and theories, it can be useful to group and order items according to their characteristics. From here, you can compare and contrast the different items. And once you've determined how similar or different things are from one another, Paired Comparison Analysis can help you to analyze them.

The final step involves challenging the information and rationalizing its arguments.

Apply the laws of reason (induction, deduction, analogy) to judge an argument and determine its merits. To do this, it's essential that you can determine the significance and validity of an argument to put it in the correct perspective. Take a look at our article, Rational Thinking , for more information about how to do this.

Once you have considered all of the arguments and options rationally, you can finally make an informed decision.

Afterward, take time to reflect on what you have learned and what you found challenging. Step back from the detail of your decision or problem, and look at the bigger picture. Record what you've learned from your observations and experience.

Critical thinking involves rigorously and skilfully using information, experience, observation, and reasoning to guide your decisions, actions and beliefs. It's a useful skill in the workplace and in life.

You'll need to be curious and creative to explore alternative possibilities, but rational to apply logic, and self-aware to identify when your beliefs could affect your decisions or actions.

You can demonstrate a high level of critical thinking by validating your information, analyzing its meaning, and finally evaluating the argument.

Critical Thinking Infographic

See Critical Thinking represented in our infographic: An Elementary Guide to Critical Thinking .

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Critical Thinking in leadership: Is it necessary?

October 23, 2020 by Lauren Dunleavy

Critical thinking in leadership;Is it Necessary?

Is critical thinking an important component of leadership? One would think it is a useful tool to have in your thinking toolbox. So, what exactly is critical thinking? It was easy to find many similar definitions but; Critical thinking is defined as “ the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgement” (Merriam-Webster, 2020). Critical thinking has been around for at least 2500 years. Mr. Socrates himself supposedly established a method of questioning that was able to shut down claims of knowledge back in the BC era that was very similar to critical thinking as we know it today(Paul et al., 1997). So what is critical thinking used for? It should be used for many things, but mainly we use critical thinking when we want to analyze options in making decisions(Paul et al., 1997). 

How and why is critical thinking applied in the workplace? Critical thinking in the workplace comes in many forms. We see critical thinking being used in teams to help effectively resolve problems. We even see critical thinking being used in the workplace to help teams figure out what issues exist, and then we see teams come up with possible answers for those issues. Why is critical thinking applied to research theories? Lets evaluate this question! 

One place where critical thinking has become a necessity is in leadership. Leadership is defined as a process where a person influences a group of people to achieve a set of common goals (Northouse, 2016). Leadership in theory has dated back to over 5000 years ago, where it was found to have been written in ancient Hieroglyphics (Paul et al. 1997). In ancient times, leadership was suggested that those who appeared powerful were to be followed. The need for critical thinking in leadership has always been around. A model was developed in 1925, called the watson-glaser critical thinking model which helps organizations identify factors in people that are important for critical thinking and judgement making, which explains why critical thinking needs to be a part of leadership approaches (Cox, 2011). 

Critical thinking is applied to leadership approaches because it’s important for leaders to have critical thinking skills, be able to understand logical relationships between ideas, recognize the importance and the relationship of an argument, as well as recognize mistakes in reasoning and then be able to make the right decisions (Sanscartier, 2013). 

There are many different leadership approaches to look at in applying critical thinking. Let’s evaluate critical thinking within the transformational approach of leadership. Transformational leadership theory suggests that it is a process that changes people(PSU WC L10 P2).  It is a leadership approach that is able to get leaders to motivate followers to do more than what is expected (PSU WC L10 P2). A leadership approach that enables a leader to generate and build an empire. It is part of the “new leadership paradigm” which focuses more attention on charisma and affect in leadership (Northouse, 2016). There is a lot of evidence that Transformational leadership focus is highly successful (Northouse, 2016). One factor affects another, in that a leader must appeal to the followers by appealing to their principals and higher cause (PSU WC L10 P4). Critical thinking is a larger component of the transformational theory because, in order to go through a process and be able to transform a person would need to make real, sometimes hard decisions. 

What if a person is not a good critical thinker? Can they still be a good leader? Having poor critical thinking skills can lead a person to make bad decisions, errors, repeated mistakes and even make bad assumptions. Weak critical thinking skills can cause a person to be unable to evaluate and prepare for situations (Sanscartier, 2013). So it looks like being a leader may require some critical thinking skills. So, are leaders that lack critical thinking skills doomed forever? WIll they be able to lead in a productive way? Apparently, there are still ways to develop and master critical thinking skills. 

So what does this all mean? Catherine Rezak from the International Institute of Directors and Managers suggests that leaders should take control of their critical thinking processes, evaluate them and then take action on them (Rezak,2020). So critical thinking skills could be learned, it just depends on a person’s discipline and drive to follow through with the learning process as well as adaptations to understanding it. Whether or not a person has critical thinking skills, the implications of the research suggest that critical thinking skills can be learned, or they can be innate and either way, they are useful in leadership. This is significant because although not everyone may have these skills, they still have an opportunity to learn them. 

       So what’s next? Being able to attain critical thinking skills means that possibly anyone could be a leader because the skills are transferable as long as the person is able to take control and use discipline to learn.  All of this information suggests that a less than good leader, who lacks critical thinking skills may make bad decisions, misjudge an issue, and ultimately fail the leader systems in place. One example of this is when I first started working in wraparound as a family support worker. WHen i first started I had no idea what I was doing. The job was really a fly by the seat of your pants kind of job, until you can learn the skill sets. There was a lot of critical thinking involved, when I was untrained. I had to be able to understand a full situation that I had never experienced before and know when and what skillset to use with the family member. When I used the wrong skill set, the team was unable to plan with a family, in turn creating turmoil. Being able to understand, evaluate and come to the correct decision is such an important part of leading a team. The good thing is that if we don’t know what we are doing, there is always an opportunity to learn! 

In conclusion, the evidence presented today suggests that leaders who have, or attain good critical thinking skills will be able to evaluate, judge, better understand and resolve issues more efficiently. We need more critical thinkers in this world! Using critical thinking within leadership approaches is an important component and probably should not be overlooked. A leader should have good critical thinking skills. 

Paul, R., Elder,L., Bartell, T. (March 1997). Critical Thinking: Research, findings and policy recommendations. Retrieved from: https://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/a-brief-history-of-the-idea-of-critical-thinking/408 

Cox, K. (November 25, 2011). The evolution of leadership. A look at where leadership is heading. Retrieved from: https://cvdl.ben.edu/blog/the-evolution-of-leadership-a-look-at-where-leadership-is-heading/

Rezak, C. (April, 2020). Developing your Critical thinking skills. Retrieved from: https://www.marchfifteen.ca/leadership-the-importance-of-critical-thinking/#:~:text=A%20leader%20with%20critical%20thinking,reasoning%2C%20and%20make%20proper%20decisions .

https://www.iidmglobal.com/expert_talk/expert-talk-categories/leadership/leadership_skill/id45293.html#:~:text=Developed%20in%201925%2C%20the%20model,Inference

Northouse, P.G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice. 7th Edition. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

Pennsylvania State University (2020). Leadership in work. Module 7: Power and influence Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/2075467/modules/items/30110461

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How Critical Thinking Helps Leaders Work Through Problems

March 10, 2022 | Category: Blog , Critical Thinking

When it comes to drawing the right conclusions and making the right decisions to benefit an organization, critical thinking is a vital leadership skill, indeed.   Critical thinking allows leaders to rise above the noise, assumptions, and biases that sabotage decision-making. Leadership coaching can help develop and train critical thinking skills in many ways.  

Critical thinking is an analytic approach to problem-solving and decision-making. By developing their critical thinking skills, leaders take direct action to improve their decision-making and their organization’s position. Leadership coaching can help leaders develop critical thinking, training their minds to think instead of merely learning facts.

Critical thinking helps you differentiate facts from assumptions.

Why Critical Thinking is Vital for Leadership

Critical thinking optimizes decision-making. But in the context of intelligent leadership, it does more. Critical thinking makes desirable outcomes more likely.

Like intelligent leadership itself, it is reasoned, purposeful, and goal-focused. It allows leaders to formulate informed and relevant inferences, solve problems, calculate probabilities, and make better decisions.

In my book,  Wheel of Intelligent Leadership , I have  defined   critical thinking as an essential outer-core leadership competency. Since the quality of leadership depends on the leader’s quality of thoughts, critical thinking skills define one’s effectiveness as a leader. Critical thinking is the core component of strategic thinking, a less abstract measure of one’s ability to lead. In addition to strategic thinking, critical thinking allows leaders to:

• Embrace change
• Inspire others
• Create a vision and rally the “troops’ around it
• Understand how the different parts of the organization work together as a whole

Shallow thinking on the part of the leader is costly. It hurts the organization, the employees, and the clients.  Critical thinking  enables leaders to apply their knowledge to the everyday challenges of their work. Thus, instead of walking-talking encyclopedias, they become valuable decision-making assets for their organizations and employees.

Leaders with good critical thinking skills can model this behavior for their peers and reports, further improving the company’s talent pool.

Can Critical Thinking Skills Be Trained? 

As a leadership coaching expert, I firmly believe that it is possible to learn and practice all inner and outer-core leadership competencies. That includes critical thinking.

In my executive coaching books and blog posts, I have deconstructed critical thinking into three components.

• The ability to recognize assumptions .  An assumption  is a conclusion one reaches through the filter of one’s biases, desires, and views. Facts are observable. They exist without the need for validation. Basing decisions on assumptions instead of facts is risky and ill-advised.
• The ability to evaluate arguments.  Leaders capable of critical thinking look to break problems down to basic principles, consider alternatives, and challenge or test assumptions.
• The ability to draw conclusions.  Having gathered plenty of quality data and putting it through the filter of their critical thinking skills, intelligent leaders can draw better, more relevant conclusions that lead to better decisions.

Executive coaching  can improve  critical thinking by improving the sub-skills that contribute to it.

How Leadership Coaching Can Help Develop Critical Thinking Skills

Leadership coaching, at least the way I understand it, views critical thinking as one of the fundamental levers through which it can effect meaningful, sustainable positive change.

Leadership coaching can make you a better critical thinker. 

Business coaching and executive coaching professionals work with leaders, helping them gain a measure of their existing critical thinking skills, providing them practical solutions to improve their skills, and helping them measure the progress they make.

• A leadership coach can give you an objective assessment of your critical thinking skills.
• Executive coaches know how to ask the right questions to steer their coachees onto the path of improvement.
• Leadership coaching considers self-awareness and emotional intelligence the cornerstones of intelligent leadership. Self-aware and emotionally intelligent leaders understand the value of different perspectives.
• Business coaching encourages leaders to understand the strategic drivers of success for their organization in practical, financial terms.
• Coaches can provide valuable input, critique, and opinions, introducing alternative views and improving the decision-making skills of their clients.

Critical thinking is the leader’s best friend when it comes to decision-making. This outer-core leadership competency allows you to rise above the fray, eliminate distractions, and draw the correct conclusions.

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Mastering Critical Thinking: A Guide for Leaders

Summary: Critical thinking is a fundamental skill for effective leadership. Top leaders think clearly and rationally, analyze and evaluate information, and make sound judgments and decisions. Here is what to know, what matters.

Dear Dr. Sylvia,

I am a great leader. I’m not bragging. I know what I know.

For example, I am great at the thirty-thousand view of what needs to be done.

However, I am a total failure at the lower level, where the weeds (daily work systems) need to be cleared. I also suck where the trees (employees or products) must be pruned.

Similarly, I want to teach my executive team how to be critical thinkers and come to me with their solutions. Then, I, as the CEO, can be extremely helpful with long-term plans.

Critical thinking is falling way behind for most of us.

What can I do to help the various teams I support grow to be the best possibl e?

At the thirty-foot level, I can help them see we are building cathedrals rather than just being stone setters.

Cathedral Builder

Dear Cathedral Builder,

I am sure you are referring to the well-known “Cathedral Story.” It goes like this: a man who passed a bricklayer and asked what he was doing.

The worker responded. “Oh, I am here every day, just putting one brick atop another. It’s a tedious and meaningless job. I can’t wait to go home.”

Then, the same man went around the corner, talked with another worker, and asked, “What are you doing?”

Above all, the response was quite different. “Oh, I’m here putting one brick on top of another to help as we build a beautiful cathedral. I know I am part of a meaningful venture. And I love how most of us work together to create what matters. I only have a small yet important part in the process.”

Critical thinking means seeing both root causes along with future vision.

Leaders skilled in critical thinking are better equipped to solve problems. They also make informed decisions and communicate their ideas effectively.

In addition, great leaders cut through the noise and distractions. Once they identify the root causes of problems, they develop creative solutions that can transform their organizations.

Consider the example of Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon. Bezos has been widely credited with transforming the retail industry through his innovative ideas and business strategies.

Subsequently, one of the keys to his success has been his ability to think critically. For example, when Bezos first started Amazon, he recognized that the traditional retail model was not working. He saw an opportunity to leverage the power of the internet to create a new type of retail experience. The hypothesis was that his way would be more convenient and accessible to customers.

Jeff Bezos used critical thinking to launch Amazon.

This required him to think creatively and develop a business model based on customer-centricity, innovation, and long-term growth.

Similarly, Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motor s, has been praised for her leadership skills, particularly her critical thinking ability.

In addition, when Barra took over as CEO of GM in 2014, the company faced several challenges. A major one included a significant safety crisis related to faulty ignition switches.

Mary Barra at GM recognized that the company needed to change its culture and problem-solving approach.

In short, she emphasized the importance of transparency, accountability, and collaboration. In addition, she encouraged employees at all levels to speak up and share their ideas. This helped GM to address the safety crisis, restore trust with its customers, and improve its overall performance.

Let’s explore the fundamental principles of critical thinking. This means we will provide practical strategies for leaders to apply these principles daily.

For example, we will discuss the common thinking errors and biases that impede effective decision-making. This includes the importance of effective communication.

Next, We will provide examples and case studies of leaders who have successfully applied critical thinking to achieve their goals.

By mastering critical thinking, you can become a more effective leader and positively impact your organization and community.

Critical thinking objectively analyzes and evaluates information to make informed decisions and solve problems.

All in all, it is a fundamental skill for effective leadership. This means it is essential for making sound judgments in complex and rapidly changing environments. Here we explore the basic concepts of critical thinking and the importance of developing this skill for leadership success.

• Definition of Critical Thinking: Critical thinking is analyzing and evaluating information objectively, without bias or prejudice. It involves using logic and reason to identify the strengths and weaknesses of arguments, knowledge, and evidence. By thinking critically, leaders can make informed decisions, solve problems, and communicate their ideas more effectively.
• Importance of Critical Thinking in Leadership: Effective leaders must make decisions quickly and confidently. This includes the ability to evaluate information carefully. Next, to ensure that their decisions are based on sound evidence. Critical thinking is essential for influential leaders to identify problems’ root causes and evaluate potential solutions.
• Key Components of Critical Thinking: There are several key components of critical thinking, including:

Without critical thinking, mistakes can be costly.

• Evaluating evidence : This involves examining the credibility and reliability of evidence. Then to determine its usefulness in supporting a particular argument or position.
• Identifying biases and assumptions : involves recognizing personal biases and assumptions that may influence one’s thinking and considering alternative perspectives.
• Generating and evaluating alternatives: This involves developing multiple solutions or options. The next step is to assess them based on their feasibility, effectiveness, and potential consequences.
• Critical thinking objectively analyzes and evaluates information: This is how to make informed decisions o and solve problems.

Each specific area of business has its way of looking at what is critical to success.

• Example 1: Effective Decision-Making in Healthcare: In healthcare, critical thinking is essential for making decisions that can significantly impact patient outcomes. For example, a physician treating a complex medical condition must analyze and evaluate the available information. Next, identify potential treatment options and assess their effectiveness and risks. By using critical thinking skills, the physician can make informed decisions that lead to better outcomes for the patient.
• Example 2: Strategic Planning in Business: Critical thinking is essential for strategic planning and decision-making. For example, a CEO planning to expand the company’s operations into new markets must analyze and evaluate potential risks and benefits. After that, identify potential obstacles and challenges and develop a plan that maximizes the chances of success. Using critical thinking skills, the CEO can make informed decisions leading to long-term growth and profitability.

Without critical thinking, we can end up with lost revenue and expensive legal concerns.

3. Example 3: Evaluating Scientific Research: Critical thinking is essential for evaluating the credibility and reliability of research findings. For example, a scientist conducting research on a new drug must analyze and evaluate the available data. That way, identify potential biases or flaws in the study design and evaluate the potential risks and benefits. By using critical thinking skills, the scientist can make informed decisions about the safety and effectiveness of the drug.

4. Example 4: Effective Problem-Solving in Engineering: Critical thinking is essential for effective problem-solving in engineering. For example, an engineer tasked with designing a new product must first analyze and evaluate the available information. Then go on to identify the potential design flaws or issues. And finally, develop a solution that meets the customer’s needs while adhering to safety and quality standards. Using critical thinking skills, the engineer can develop innovative solutions that improve the product and enhance customer satisfaction.

5. Example 5: Effective Communication in Public Policy: Critical thinking is essential for effective communication and decision-making in public policy. For example, a policy analyst evaluating a proposed policy starts by analyzing the potential impacts of the policy after identifying potential unintended consequences and communicating the results to the public.

All leadership teams do better if they are schooled in critical thinking. That is the major way to keep the potholes and pitfalls limited.

In summary, business, the essential motor of society, has an opportunity to be the most creative force on the planet using critical thinking as a base.

In conclusion, to everyone, and especially you, dear Cathedral builder, let’s do deep thinking so that we all have the opportunity to engage in dignified and satisfying work.

Here’s to your success,

Sylvia Lafair

PS. Much of what I learned about critical thinking is based on the work of my mentor, Willis Harma n, who taught at Stanford University and was President of The Institute of Noetic Sciences in California. You would enjoy looking at some of his books for the thirty thousand views of modern business.

PSS. Much of what I learned from Dr. Harman is now available in our Total Leadership Connections online program. Contact us for more information and to join now.

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Critical thinking enables leaders at every level to understand the impact of their decisions on the business as a whole and ensures both alignment with organisational goals and accountability for results.  

The "new normal" is a different kind of competitive landscape, buffeted by geopolitics and global instability, rapid technological change, unique financial pressures, a rising tide of data and information to filter through, and the proliferation of new corporate business models.

The mind-set that made leaders successful in the past probably won't ensure success in the future. In fact, several recent studies and surveys have identified critical thinking as the number one requirement for successful leadership in the 21st century. Yet there is mounting evidence that many current and emerging leaders lack this quality. And it is this competency gap that is shaking up and reshaping leadership as we have come to know it.

Leadership in the "new normal"

In the wake of the economic crisis, we all know what a failure of leadership looks like. The companies that folded in the GFC serve as stark examples of what happens when decisions are based upon erroneous, partially false or incomplete information and when management fails to think clearly and strategically about the full implications of its actions. The resulting fall-out put an end to business as usual and created a "new normal" that looks markedly different from anything anyone has seen before.

Business organisations must be prepared to do things differently if they expect different results. In this demanding, dynamic landscape, it is only natural that they also require a different mind-set from those in charge.

The equation works like this: Thinking drives behaviour; behaviour drives results. So enterprises that want to change the results - and, indeed, change the organisation itself - can achieve the highest leverage by changing the thinking of leaders and managers throughout the organisation.

But what kind of thinking - or rather rethinking - will be required of leaders if they want to succeed in the "new normal"?

Why critical thinking is critical

Critical thinking appears to be exactly what is needed from leaders who are navigating the volatility of the "new normal". Diane Halpern, an award-winning professor of psychology at Claremont McKenna College and a widely read author on the subject, offers this definition in her seminal book, Thought and Knowledge :

"Critical thinking is the use of those cognitive skills or strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome. It is used to describe thinking that is purposeful, reasoned, and goal-directed - the kind of thinking involved in solving problems, formulating inferences, calculating likelihoods, and making decisions ... it's the kind of thinking that makes desirable outcomes more likely."

If ever there was a time for clear, discerning, solution-centric thinking, this is it.

Every two years since 1983, Executive Development Associates (EDA) has conducted an extensive survey on trends, growth and the evolution of executive development. The 2009/2010 EDA Trends in Executive Development: A Benchmark Report revealed trouble on the horizon for corporations seeking future business leaders.

To gauge the readiness of the next generation of leadership talent, EDA asked senior executive development professionals to share their views on the strengths and weaknesses of the incoming leadership group - the people who are most likely to fill executive-level positions in the next three to five years - and the subsequent impact on executive development.

The survey identified "hot topics" in executive development for the next two to three years. At the top of the list was leadership, followed by "business acumen, honing skills in strategy execution, leading / managing change, and talent management."

But when asked "What competencies are your leaders lacking?" their responses indicated little confidence that leaders had what it takes to execute in these critical areas successfully. Here's what they said was missing:

• Strategic thinking
• Leading change
• Ability to create a vision and engage others around it
• Ability to inspire
• Understanding the total enterprise and how the parts work together

What critical thinking looks like

Having established the need for a mind-set shift to more critical thinking, we need to be clear on what that means in the workplace.

In general, critical thinking is the ability to deal with the contradictions and problems of a tumultuous environment in a reasoned, purposeful, productive way. Decisions are made using an approach that is fair, objective, accurate and based on information that is relevant to the situation.

Critical thinking is also reflective and focused, constantly evaluating the thinking process itself. It is thinking with a purpose. Critical thinking requires a healthy dose of skepticism and an equal measure of good judgement.

For decades, companies have relied on the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal , a widely used assessment tool for evaluating the cognitive ability of current and future leaders. Developed in 1925, the model identifies factors that are key to critical thinking and decision making and predicts judgment, problem solving, creativity, openness to experience and other leadership behaviours.

Five sub-tests measure critical thinking as a composite of attitudes, knowledge and skills:

• Recognition of assumptions
• Interpretation
• Evaluation of arguments

Professionals with high scores in these sub-tests are able to identify and examine the assumptions, influences and biases that might sway them. They stand back from the fray and strategically assess the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. They make business decisions that answer the right questions, solve the right problems, mitigate risk and improve productivity. They also lead from a position of strength, being able to motivate and move people both inspirationally and intellectually by providing solid reasons for actions.

Whether they lead teams, departments or entire enterprises, leaders who apply the skills of critical thinking to their roles perform at a higher level and offer their organisations a distinct competitive advantage.

Critical thinkers think differently about their impact on the organisation - understanding how their decisions and actions influence business both inside and outside their narrow functional silos. These leaders are able to balance department or team issues with broader company issues and embrace a larger responsibility for the success of the organisation. This keen sense of accountability is what enables them to execute for results now while fulfilling their obligations to positively impact the future.

Leaders who engage in critical thinking also understand the total organisation and how the individual parts work together. Context is key. Now more than ever, business acumen is foundational to effective leadership. It is impossible to apply critical thinking skills to the business of making money without an understanding of the business drivers that connect day-to-day decisions and actions to key financial and strategic performance goals of the organisation. It is one thing to understand one's role as a leader. It is altogether another thing to understand how to set direction and directly affect the outcomes.

Critical thinking is big-picture thinking too. As Hagemann describes it, "Leaders need to be able to comfortably climb to the 30,000-foot view and analyse a dynamic system, while simultaneously and adeptly analysing information to quickly make decisions across levels." Critical thinkers operate from a broad perspective in order to make sure the correct problems are addressed and they are taking acceptable risk. They recognise the difference between short-term gains and sustainable, long-term results and lead accordingly.

The advantages of this kind of leadership behavior are readily apparent. Critical thinking enables leaders at every level to understand the impact of their decisions on the business as a whole and ensures both alignment with organisational goals and accountability for results. It's exactly the type of leadership behaviour demanded by the "new normal" - and exactly what's missing. And this disconnect is likely to intensify over time.

Given the critical-thinking competency gap exposed by the EDA survey and other research, the obvious assumption is that the traditional development process that businesses have relied upon in the past to prepare leaders simply hasn't kept up. So, what's the solution? To accelerate development and raise leadership accountability to a whole new level of awareness and action, there needs to be a new emphasis on critical thinking in leadership development.

Learning to think like a leader

The good news is critical thinking is a skill that can be taught. According to Halpern, "There is a large body of evidence showing that people can learn to think better. Of course, education makes us all more intelligent, but critical thinking is more focused. Everyone can learn to recognise and use the skills of critical thinking, and we can always get better."

New competencies, however, may require a deeper, more analytical approach. The challenge today is not to discard what has been learned in the past, but to build upon traditional competencies with a whole new and more complex set of skills, tools and sensitivities.

Leaders in the new normal need to learn how to be discerning, how to think clearly and wisely, and how to be accountable for their impact on the business.

Discovery learning in leadership courses

Critical thinking can be impacted by the right leadership courses. However, the process can be more challenging than improving a behavioural skill, because you can't easily measure it. Success is demonstrated in results.

As with any skill, intellectual or otherwise, the key to building critical thinking - and achieving successful results - is practice. Research has demonstrated that people learn best when they are actively involved in the learning process and engaging in the behaviours they want to learn. But what's vital in developing critical thinking skills is framing the concept of practice within a relevant, job-related context.

Acquiring critical thinking skills requires participating in learning experiences that force you to consider new ways of thinking about and acting within complex situations that are directly related to the work you do. You need the opportunity to respond to issues, reflect on and reframe your experiences, develop new thinking, and, in turn, engage in new behaviours and actions that are relevant to your position and objectives.

Developing your critical thinking skills

In addition to participating in these types of leadership courses, leaders can take charge of their own critical thinking development by taking these actions:

• Get some feedback about your critical thinking skills from a trusted boss, colleague or coach Are you jumping to conclusions or using a reasoned, analytic process as you work toward a goal? Are you able to put aside biases and assumptions during analysis and decision-making? What kind of "thinker" are you perceived to be and why?
• Challenge yourself to develop a deeper understanding of your company's business, especially its financial and strategic drivers of success Are you clear about what drives the organisation's decisions, how financial success is achieved and how you impact both strategy and the bottom line? Are you making decisions that are aligned with this understanding?Is your knowledge of the business strong enough to drive behaviour and to engage teams and employees?
• Use multiple sources of data to form an "information web" before making a decision or forming a conclusion Are you asking a lot of questions? Identifying stakeholders and their issues and opinions? Separating facts from assumptions?Are you using the Internet as "one" source of information rather than "the" source? Can you analyse information from different perspectives and viewpoints?
• Take time to think Are you rising above the fray when it's important to make a decision, take action or form an opinion? Are you aware of the distractions getting in the way of your thinking time and taking action to minimize these distractions? Are you finding time and space to let your mind focus and reflect on important issues?
• Ask for input, critique and opinions from others as you analyse alternatives Are you checking tentative conclusions with others? Using peers, coaches or mentors to critique your thinking process? Are you willing to open your mind to other ideas or alternatives?

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Balancing Critical And Creative Thinking For Effective Leadership

Written by: konstantina karatza , executive contributor, executive contributors at brainz magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise..

In the dynamic and ever-evolving world of leadership, two modes of thinking play a crucial role in driving success and innovation: critical thinking and creative thinking. These two cognitive processes, though distinct, are equally valuable for effective decision-making and problem-solving. While critical thinking enables leaders to analyze and evaluate information objectively, creative thinking empowers them to generate novel ideas and explore alternative possibilities. Striking a balance between these two thinking styles is essential for leaders to navigate complex challenges and inspire their teams toward meaningful achievements.

Critical thinking, characterized by logical reasoning and evidence-based analysis, is a systematic approach to problem-solving. Leaders who engage in critical thinking meticulously examine information, question assumptions, and evaluate the validity of arguments. They rely on data-driven insights, explore cause-and-effect relationships, and seek objective evidence before making informed decisions. By analyzing risks, identifying potential pitfalls, and weighing pros and cons, leaders employing critical thinking minimize errors and make sound judgments.

Furthermore, critical thinking helps leaders uncover biases and challenge the status quo. By adopting a skeptical mindset, they can identify flaws in existing processes and propose improvements. This kind of thinking ensures that leaders are not swayed by popular opinions or conventional wisdom but instead base their decisions on logical analysis and objective facts.

On the other hand, creative thinking is a cognitive process that allows leaders to transcend conventional boundaries and envision innovative solutions. It involves the generation of fresh ideas, combining unrelated concepts, and thinking beyond traditional approaches. Creative leaders encourage divergent thinking, embracing ambiguity and uncertainty as catalysts for breakthroughs. By encouraging their teams to explore different perspectives and experiment with new approaches, leaders foster an environment that nurtures creativity.

Creative leadership thinking also involves connecting seemingly unrelated dots and identifying patterns or opportunities that others might miss. It allows leaders to approach problems from different angles, considering multiple possibilities and brainstorming creative solutions. Leaders can inspire their teams to take risks, embrace change, and think outside the box by cultivating an environment that values and encourages creative thinking.

While critical thinking and creative thinking offer unique advantages, the most effective leaders recognize the importance of balancing these two approaches. A leader who solely relies on critical thinking may find themselves confined by traditional norms, missing out on innovative solutions and growth opportunities. Conversely, leaders who overly prioritize creative thinking without critical evaluation risk making impulsive decisions that may not be based on a solid foundation of evidence.

Achieving the ideal balance between critical thinking and creative thinking is a challenging task. Leaders must be adept at leveraging critical thinking to evaluate and validate creative ideas while embracing the potential of creative thinking to explore new possibilities. By effectively combining these thinking styles, leaders can make informed, well-rounded decisions that embrace both logic and innovation.

Organizations can implement strategies such as cross-functional collaboration, diverse teams, and encouraging open dialogue to foster critical and creative thinking in leadership. By creating an environment that values diverse perspectives and challenges conventional thinking, leaders can harness the power of both critical and creative thinking to drive growth and success.

Let's explore strategies to balance critical and creative thinking in leadership

Embrace an Open Mindset: To achieve a balance between critical thinking and creative thinking, leaders must adopt an open mindset that welcomes diverse perspectives and ideas. Encourage your team members to challenge assumptions, question existing processes, and explore alternative solutions. Create a safe space where innovative thinking is encouraged and dissenting opinions are valued. By fostering an environment that embraces both critical and creative thinking, leaders can set the stage for productive collaboration and breakthrough ideas.

Define Clear Objectives: When tackling complex problems or making important decisions, it's essential to define clear objectives. Critical thinking comes into play when evaluating options and assessing potential risks and outcomes. Ensure that you have a solid understanding of the problem at hand, gather relevant data, and objectively analyze the available information. Critical thinking helps you assess the viability and feasibility of different solutions, ensuring that your decisions are based on sound reasoning.

Encourage Divergent Thinking: Creative thinking flourishes when leaders encourage divergent thinking. Create brainstorming sessions or ideation workshops where team members can freely share their ideas, regardless of how unconventional they may seem. Foster an atmosphere that promotes curiosity, experimentation, and exploration of different possibilities. By allowing your team members to think creatively, you open the door to innovative solutions that can drive your organization forward.

Seek Input from Various Sources: To balance critical and creative thinking, it's crucial to seek input from diverse sources. Engage with people from different backgrounds, disciplines, and perspectives. This diversity of thought can help challenge your assumptions, broaden your understanding of the problem, and expose you to fresh ideas. By incorporating a wide range of inputs, you can enrich your critical thinking process and inspire creative insights that you may not have considered otherwise.

Foster Collaboration: Collaboration is a powerful tool for combining critical and creative thinking. Encourage interdisciplinary teamwork, where individuals with different expertise and thinking styles can collaborate on projects and initiatives. When team members with diverse perspectives come together, they can leverage critical thinking to evaluate ideas and creative thinking to generate innovative solutions. Foster a culture of collaboration that values both rigorous analysis and imaginative thinking.

Iterate and Refine: Balancing critical and creative thinking is an iterative process. As a leader, be open to revisiting and refining your ideas and decisions. Recognize that initial solutions may require adjustment or modification based on feedback and new insights. Critical thinking enables you to evaluate the effectiveness of your chosen course of action, while creative thinking allows you to explore new possibilities for improvement. Embrace a growth mindset that values continuous learning, adaptation, and refinement.

Develop a Balanced Skill Set: Leaders must strive to develop a balanced skill set that encompasses both critical and creative thinking. Sharpen your critical thinking skills by honing your analytical abilities, understanding logical reasoning, and staying informed about relevant industry trends. Simultaneously, nurture your creative thinking by engaging in activities that stimulate your imagination, such as reading, art, or brainstorming exercises. By continuously developing both sets of skills, you'll be better equipped to strike the right balance in your leadership approach.

In conclusion, balancing critical thinking and creative thinking is vital for effective leadership. Embracing this balance enables leaders to make informed decisions while also driving innovation and fostering a culture of creativity within their organizations. By leveraging the power of critical and creative thinking in tandem, leaders can navigate complex challenges, inspire their teams, and lead their organizations to long-term success in today's rapidly changing business landscape.

For more info, follow Konstantina on Linkedin or visit the Sisu Communication site .

Read more from Konstantina!

Konstantina Karatza, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine

Konstantina Karatza, a seasoned professional with nearly 20 years of experience in the advertising industry, made a career transition five years ago to pursue her passion for Leadership Coaching. As the founder of Sisu Communication, she is dedicated to empowering individuals and organizations to reach their full potential by embodying values such as creativity, communication, and trust. Konstantina's deep passion for traveling and exploring diverse cultures has enhanced her understanding of human dynamics and enriched her ability to connect with individuals from all walks of life, enabling her to foster inclusive environments and promote cultural awareness within organizations.

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How Business Leaders Can Cultivate Critical Thinking at Work

• By Stephanie Dillon

Stephanie Dillon

Unfortunately, increasingly, it seems as if critical thinking has evaded us. 

In the hectic pace of daily life, we can sometimes rush to business decisions without thinking them through — and get outcomes that might make us regret doing so. What happens outside of work, of course, can also impact us. The upcoming U.S. presidential election, the Israel-Hamas war and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are just a few of the key issues currently at the top of peoples’ minds, and they can very well become discussion topics in the workplace. 

I believe that critical thinking is more important than ever. As business leaders, we must encourage critical thinking and create work environments that are conducive to it. Here are five steps we can take. 

1. Encourage Questions and Help Everyone Feel Safe

Too often, people are afraid to ask questions. That fear is usually due to the environment they’re in. 

As a leader, you set the tone at work. By asking questions, you can model critical thinking and encourage others to follow in your footsteps. Demonstrate that asking someone to clarify or expand their thoughts is OK. That said, however, be sure to emphasize that boundaries are important. If an employee, say, is speaking about how a recent global conflict has impacted their family, they likely don’t want to field dozens of questions asking for more details. There’s a balance between asking questions and recognizing boundaries, and with time, you and your team will become better at distinguishing the two. 

2. Be as Transparent as Possible About Your Choices at Work

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But to the extent possible, strive to be transparent about your choices. Explain the reasoning behind your decisions when it’s appropriate to do so. By doing so, you can show your employees that you didn’t just make a decision out of the blue — you weighed different factors and then moved forward. In turn, your team members might be more motivated to be transparent about their choices at work.  

3. Study Issues Deeply — and Highlight the Importance of Doing So

I’ve previously written about the importance of business leaders learning about current and historical events . 

People often form their opinions of issues based on reading a few news reports and scrolling on social media; they miss important details that can give them more context. Study issues deeply. Research the history of a given topic to better understand what led up to current circumstances. Read various sources about the issues; don’t rely on just one publication or website. Highlight the importance of deeply studying issues to your team as well. 

4. Guide the Team Through Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking 

Rolling stones kick-start 'hackney diamonds' tour with thrilling houston concert, gerard depardieu to stand trial on criminal sexual assault charges, madison beer goes back to high school in 'make you mine' behind the scenes video, trump allies hope kristi noem’s puppy killing also kills her vp chances, supreme court puppet master’s consulting firm clients exposed in leak, kristi noem doubles down on story about killing her dog from memoir: ‘i decided what i did’, 5. seek other perspectives and opinions .

Speaking of different points of view, I can’t stress enough how important it is to seek other perspectives and opinions. It can be easy to find yourself in a bubble where all of your team members, friends and family members have a worldview similar to yours. 

But try to avoid interacting and working only with people who think like you. If you solely work with people with the same perspectives and opinions, you are robbing yourself of opportunities to learn. Additionally, by seeking varied takes, you can set a positive example to your team members — and ultimately, when we all can understand each other better, the world can become a better place. 

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Ten Great Critical Thinking Questions Effective Leaders Ask

Leadership is critical thinking in action.

The greatest military leaders in ancient times, including Julius Caesar, Sun Tzu, Hannibal, Scipio Africanus, Attila the Hun, and Gaius Marius, were all superior critical thinkers. These historically effective leaders applied their outstanding skills of analysis, interpretation, inference, and evaluation to strategic, operational, and tactical problems of all kinds. The same can be said about the great leaders today no matter what their field of endeavor.

Effective leadership at every level is as much about thinking as it is about motivating and following through. Problems must be analyzed, plans devised and tested, adaptions made as conditions change, assumptions tested, and contingencies accounted for.

To lead well is to solve complex ill-structured, real-time, problems and make sound, informed decisions. 

Effective leadership cannot happen without critical thinking.

Strong deductive reasoning skills are vital whenever contexts are precisely defined, and when operational planning establishes firm deadlines. Deductive reasoning enables the leader to articulate the sequencing, define the performance tolerances, quantify the minimum and maximum limits, ensure the provision of essential resources, and plan each event as a necessary condition for the next.

Strong inductive reasoning is essential when making decisions in time-limited contexts involving risk and uncertainty. Inductive reasoning enables the leader to function well with partial or inconsistent intel, when facing a clever and adaptable enemy, and when evaluating the downside risks of unwanted secondary or tertiary effects. Using inductive reasoning leaders develop contingency plans, improvise tactical workaround as conditions change, and when to move forward aggressively and when to pivot to an alternative approach.

Adaption achieved through critical thinking is important at every level of an organization, small or large, business, military, educational, governmental, etc. In today’s complex world, responding to these global and local challenges effectively is a responsibility shared by health care providers, first responders, educators, NGOs, businesses, law enforcement, governmental agencies, and our military and intelligence services. The need for critical thinking to defend and enhance our free and open democracy and the unfettered advancement of science has perhaps never been greater.

Effective leaders trigger critical thinking in themselves and the groups they lead by asking ten vital questions:

• How is this situation like the prior situations?
• How is this situation NOT like prior situations?
• What happens if we take this element out of the equation?
• What happens if we insert this factor into the equation?
• What exactly is the problem, and is it changing over time?
• How can we adjust and adapt to those changes?
• Why are our standard approaches consistently failing?
• How can we seize the advantage?
• Why are our people over-simplifying the complexity confronting us?
• Am I, are we, missing anything that opposition leaders are seeing?

Effectively responding to these questions demands engaging our core critical thinking skills: interpretation, analysis, inference, induction, deduction, evaluation, explanation, and reflective self-correction.

Today we can measure the force of these skills scientifically. We do not have to wait for a blunder to know that a person is weak in one or more of these skills arenas. And more to the point, these are skills that can be strengthened through an educational process aimed at teaching thinking.

Equally important to critical thinking skills are one’s critical thinking mindset. The consistent internal disposition to address problems and to make decisions using strong, fair-minded, reflective reasoning is a habit successful leaders cultivate.

Successful leaders discipline themselves and their people to interpret and analyze intelligence with care, anticipate the obvious and the not so obvious consequences of alternative courses of action, evaluate options objectively, and clearly explain to others what must be done and why. The mental disciplines most valued by thoughtful leaders are focus, foresight, intellectual integrity, professional and communicative confidence, forthrightness, and teamwork. 

These disciplines of mind, like the skills, can be reinforced in the field by leaders who create and sustain an environment that values thoughtful, well-informed, and thorough planning and problem-solving. Successful leaders know that being prepared to think is as important as being prepared to compete.

5 Decision-Making Skills of Successful Leaders 10 Characteristics of Effective Leaders

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Standardized tests are used to measure the strength of important skills and attributes in large groups of people. A standardized…

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After more than 3 decades of collecting and studying data on the reasoning skills of future professionals, one ability stands…

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{{item.title}}, my essentials, ask for help, contact edconnect, directory a to z, how to guides, reflective practice – supporting service governance and leadership.

Community Early Learning Australia’s (CELA) early education specialists share practical guidance for service leaders on how to support and strengthen reflective thinking and decision-making in their settings.

30 April 2024

Reflective practice is a foundation of quality improvement within early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. By embracing reflective practice, services can navigate the complexities of governance and leadership , ensuring that every decision and action taken is both informed and purposeful.

What is reflective practice in ECEC?

Reflective practice provides a lens through which ECEC professionals gather information, analyse, plan, enact and evaluate to ensure continuous improvement. It requires you to critically assess your actions, experiences and events to drive quality uplift at your service.

Services may gather extensive data to both inform and evaluate their practices. Some examples of collated data are:

• key practices identified in self-assessment
• past assessment and rating reports
• goals in quality improvement plans
• educational leader documentation
• incidents or complaints.

Embedding reflective methodologies into service practice supports service leaders and educators to adhere to regulatory standards, be innovative and take a responsive, inclusive approach to ECEC.

Learning through and from experience

Engaging in reflective practice and fostering a culture open to review and adaptation enables services to identify and address challenges with agility and insight. Understanding the root causes of these challenges enables services to develop targeted strategies to enhance safety, compliance and quality within ECEC settings.

The educational leader, nominated supervisor and their team all have a role to play in addressing challenging areas effectively. This is illustrated in the following scenario.

Reflective practice example

A rural service noted an increase in injuries from trips and falls. The nominated supervisor reflected with the team and reviewed risk assessments, supervision plans and ratios. They also checked that all resources and materials were safe and well-maintained. The issue persisted despite finding all areas compliant with health and safety regulations.

The next step involved consulting the educational leader. The reflection considered: If all areas met compliance standards, what could be causing increased trips and falls?

Facilitated by the educational leader, the team conducted further observations in both outdoor and indoor environments and engaged in discussions with families. They discovered post-COVID declines in children’s physical capabilities.

The educational leader guided the educators towards focusing the program on enhancing children’s physical development, setting a clear goal for all educators to support and develop this area.

Identifying regulatory improvements is also essential. Resources available on our website, including articles such as ‘ Compliance Focus – Learnings to Enhance Your Practice in 2024 ’, highlight potential challenges.

Collaborative leadership and teamwork thrive on a shared sense of responsibility and professional accountability. This fosters a positive work culture, where innovation and critical reflection are encouraged.

Reflective practice and critical reflection – what’s the difference?

Reflective practice entails reviewing our actions and experiences to encourage growth and learning. In contrast, critical reflection goes deeper. It involves considering an individual's beliefs, attitudes and values and how they align with the service philosophy.

Margaret Wheatley, an American writer, identifies 3 main elements of critical reflection: self-awareness, building knowledge, and fostering relationships.

Self-awareness is about deeply understanding our pedagogical impact on daily decisions involving children, as well as the influence of our professional knowledge, insights into children and families, and personal beliefs about children’s wellbeing.

Building knowledge involves engaging with theory, research and practice from multiple perspectives to encourage innovative thinking and problem-solving.

Fostering relationships aims to create an environment where trust, collegiality and respect for diverse viewpoints flourish. It encourages all educators to practice critical reflection, which promotes questioning established practices and acknowledges the value of different approaches.

Wheatley highlights the importance of being open to others' beliefs and interpretations to enrich our understanding. Reflective educators seek diverse opinions, are open to new ideas, rely on various sources of knowledge and are prepared to challenge the status quo. They remain conscious of their values and the wider social justice implications of their practice, ensuring ethical and well-informed decisions.

For instance, a service that is seeking to improve its enrolment processes for families from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds may decide to provide forms in multiple languages. While this strategy supports the service’s overarching goal to streamline support for families, it may not fundamentally challenge existing pedagogical beliefs.

Integrating inclusivity throughout the educational program can be more complex and potentially require significant changes in practice after surveying families, researching theories and reflecting on celebrated events. As a result, critical reflection might lead to substantial, unforeseen adjustments.

Fostering a culture of reflective practice

Reflective practice can involve interactions with colleagues, children, families, other professionals and the community. Both reflective practice and critical reflection thrive when individuals and teams are receptive to change.

Encourage reflective practice by allocating time, engaging in pedagogical discussions, utilising journals, establishing critical friendships with other services and colleagues, and pursuing professional development.

Working together and driving continuous improvement requires a growth mindset. Teams may benefit from some 1:1 mentoring with a colleague or the educational leader.

Collect information and evidence to guide decision-making.

Foster a supportive culture.

Observe, document and establish opportunities for reflection.

Practise active listening.

Be willing to adjust your approach.

Reflect collaboratively and offer professional development and training.

Refer to ‘Critical reflection and ongoing professional learning’ on page 18 of the updated Approved Learning Frameworks – ‘Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (EYLF)’ and ‘My Time, Our Place: Framework for School Age Care in Australia (MTOP)’. This section offers excellent questions you can use to prompt reflection in your service, for example: Who is advantaged/included when we work in this way? Who is disadvantaged, excluded, or silenced?

Further resources

NSW Department of Education ECEC Resource Library

Victorian Government’s Three-Year-Old Kindergarten teaching toolkit – Reflective Practice

Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework Evidence Paper – Practice Principle 8: Reflective Practice (PDF 377 KB)

Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University

CELA’s Amplify! blog

Critical reflection webinar, 2022 ECEC Roadshow

• Tips to meet Quality Area 7 – establishing and maintaining quality service operations 29 April 2024
• Our partial assessment and rating experience – Ballina Byron Family Day Care 29 April 2024
• Using reflective practice to support compliance and quality uplift 29 April 2024
• Reflective practice – supporting service governance and leadership 29 April 2024
• Understanding ECEC food safety requirements 23 April 2024

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Tuesday, 30 April 2024

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Young indians parliament to empower leaders of tomorrow, over 20 schools from jamshedpur enroll.

Young Indians (YI), a dynamic organization committed to nurturing youth leadership is organising Young Indians Parliament (YIP) which will provide school students with a platform to know about the parliamentary processes, develop critical thinking skills and enhance their public speaking abilities. Open to students from classes 9 to 12, YIP offers an unparalleled opportunity for youngsters to voice their opinions, engage in debates, discussions mirroring real parliamentary proceedings.

The Young Indian Parliament will comprise two rounds- a regional round followed by the national finals. The regional round will take place in August, simultaneously in Raipur and Kolkata, where 250 students selected from schools across nine cities in eastern India will participate. Selected students from the regional round will be a part of the National round to be held in New Delhi in November 2024. 

School Registration Open till 15th May:

To participate in this prestigious event, schools and students are required to register through the Young Indians Parliament webpage at  yischoolhub.org  by 15th May, 2024. Each school can register multiple candidates for the event.  There is no registration fee for schools or students. However, upon advancing to the regional round following the initial competition, a nominal registration fee (Rs.2500/-) will be required. This fee will cover the delegate's kit, preparation materials and lunch. 

Students to present a Campaign Pitch:

All registered students will participate in the initial round, where they will be required to create a Campaign Pitch. The students with the best Campaign Pitch will be selected for the regional round. The topics for the campaign pitch are Environmental Sustainability and Climate Change, Education and Digital Literacy, Mental Health Awareness, Gender Equality and Inclusivity, Entrepreneurship and Innovation. There is an open category where students can submit a campaign pitch of their choice. Over 20 schools from Jamshedpur already enrolled

More than 20 schools of the city have already enrolled for YIP. These include Loyola School, Little Flower School, Hill Top School, DAV Public School, Carmel Junior College, DBMS Kadma, Motialal Nehru Public School, Dayanand Public School, KPS Burmamines, Govind Vidyalaya, Jusco School South Park, Jusco School Kadma, ADLS Sunshine School, RMS High School Sonari, JH Tarapore, KSMS, KPS Kadma, KPS Mango, KPS NML, KPS Gamhariya, Narbheram Hansraj School, AIWC Academy of Excellence and Shane International School. Registrations for schools are open upto 15th May. 

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Guest Essay

A Dangerous Game Is Underway in Asia

By Mike M. Mochizuki and Michael D. Swaine

Dr. Mochizuki is a professor at George Washington University. Dr. Swaine is a senior research fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.

This month, President Biden threw one of the most lavish state dinners in Washington’s recent memory. Celebrities and billionaires flocked to the White House to dine in honor of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, posing for photos in front of an elaborate display of Japanese fans. Jeff Bezos dropped by; Paul Simon provided the entertainment.

The spectacle was part of a carefully orchestrated series of events to showcase the renewed U.S.-Japan relationship — and the notable transformation of the United States’ security alliances in Asia. The next day, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of the Philippines was also in the U.S. capital for a historic U.S.-Japan-Philippines summit, during which a new trilateral security partnership was announced.

Both events were directed at the same audience: China.

Over the past several years, Washington has built a series of multilateral security arrangements like these in the Asia-Pacific region. Although U.S. officials claim that the recent mobilization of allies and partners is not aimed at China, don’t believe it. Indeed, Mr. Kishida emphasized in a speech to Congress on April 11 that China presents “the greatest strategic challenge” both to Japan and to the international community.

China’s recent activity is, of course, concerning. Its military has acquired ever more potent ways to counter U.S. and allied capabilities in the Western Pacific and has behaved aggressively in the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and elsewhere, alarming its neighbors.

But Washington’s pursuit of an increasingly complex lattice of security ties is a dangerous game. Those ties include upgrades in defense capabilities, more joint military exercises, deeper intelligence sharing, new initiatives on defense production and technology cooperation and the enhancement of contingency planning and military coordination. All of that may make Beijing more cautious about the blatant use of military force in the region. But the new alliance structure is not, on its own, a long-term guarantor of regional peace and stability — and could even increase the risk of stumbling into a conflict.

The security partnership rolled out this month in Washington is only the latest in a string of new defense configurations that reach across Asia and the Pacific. In 2017 the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, known as the Quad, was revived, promoting collaboration among the United States, Japan, Australia and India. In September 2021, Australia, Britain and the United States began their partnership, known as AUKUS, and the United States, Japan and South Korea committed to closer cooperation in a summit at Camp David last August.

All of these moves have been motivated primarily by concern over Beijing, which has, in turn, castigated these countries as being part of a U.S.-led effort to create an Asian version of NATO designed to contain China. None amount to a collective defense pact like the NATO treaty, whose Article 5 considers an armed attack on one member as “an attack against them all.” But China will nevertheless almost certainly regard the latest agreement among the United States, Japan and the Philippines — with which it is engaged in an active territorial dispute — as further confirmation of a Washington-led attempt to threaten its interests.

It’s not yet clear how Beijing will respond. But it may double down on the expansion of its military capabilities and intensify its use of military and paramilitary force to assert its territorial claims in the region, especially regarding the sensitive issue of Taiwan. Beijing could also promote further Chinese military cooperation with Russia in the form of enhanced military exercises and deployments.

The net result may be an Asia-Pacific region that is even more divided and dangerous than it is today, marked by a deepening arms race. In this increasingly contentious and militarized environment, the chance of some political incident or military accident triggering a devastating regional war is likely to grow. This is especially likely, given the absence of meaningful U.S. and allied crisis communication channels with China to prevent such an incident from spiraling out of control.

To prevent this nightmare, the U.S. and its allies and partners must invest much more in diplomacy with China, in addition to bolstering military deterrence.

For a start, the United States and key allies like Japan should make a sustained effort to establish a durable crisis prevention and management dialogue with China involving each nation’s foreign policy and security agencies. So far, such dialogues have been limited primarily to military channels and topics. It is critical that both civilian and military officials understand the many possible sources of inadvertent crises and develop ways to prevent them or manage them if they occur. This process should include the establishment of an agreed-upon set of leaders’ best practices for crisis management and a trusted but unofficial channel through which the relevant parties can discuss crisis-averting understandings.

The immediate focus for the United States and Japan should be on avoiding actions that add to tensions across the Taiwan Strait. The deployment of American military trainers to Taiwan on what looks like a permanent basis and suggestions by some U.S. officials and policy analysts that Taiwan be treated as a security linchpin within the overall U.S. defense posture in Asia are needlessly provocative. They also openly contradict America’s longstanding “one China” policy , under which the United States ended the deployment of all U.S. military forces to Taiwan and does not view Taiwan as a key U.S. security location, caring only that the Taiwan issue be handled peacefully and without coercion.

Japan, for its part, has also become more circumspect about its own “one China” policy by being reluctant to reaffirm explicitly that Tokyo does not support Taiwan’s independence. Recent statements by some political leaders in Tokyo about Japanese military forces being ready to help defend Taiwan will almost certainly inflame Chinese leaders, who remember that Japan seized Taiwan after the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 and ’95.

Washington and Tokyo should clearly reaffirm their previous commitments on the China-Taiwan dispute. Tokyo also should confirm that it does not support any unilateral move by Taiwan toward independence and resist U.S. efforts to compel Japan to commit to Taiwan’s defense. Although American officials have reportedly been prodding Japan to join military planning for a Taiwan conflict, a large majority of Japanese residents do not favor fighting to defend Taiwan. Tokyo can best contribute to deterring China by focusing on strengthening its ability to defend its own islands.

Washington and its allies should shift to a more positive approach to China, aimed at fostering accommodation and restraint. This could include working to secure credible mutual assurances regarding limits on Chinese military deployments, such as amphibious forces and missile capabilities relevant to Taiwan, in return for U.S. limits on the levels and types of arms that it sells to the island. They could also explore increasing security cooperation with China regarding cyberattacks, the defense of sea lanes and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, as well as better collaboration to combat climate change and the outbreak of another pandemic.

China, of course, has its own role to play. In the end, Beijing, like the United States, wants to avoid a crisis and conflict in the region. Given that, it should respond to a more cooperative American and allied approach by moderating its own coercive behavior regarding maritime disputes.

None of this will be easy, given the intense suspicion that now exists between Beijing and Washington and its allies. But new thinking and new diplomatic efforts could incentivize China to reciprocate in meaningful ways. At the very least, it’s necessary to try. Focusing on military deterrence alone won’t work. Trying to find a way to cooperate with China is the best way — perhaps the only way — to steer the world away from disaster.

Mike M. Mochizuki is a professor at George Washington University and a nonresident fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. Michael D. Swaine is a senior research fellow focusing on China-related security topics at the Quincy Institute.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

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