Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking Application

Critical thinking is the art of thinking in a manner that is critical. This means that prior to making a decision one must be informed about possible repercussions and/or outcomes, this is particularly true in the case of both employers and an employees. A decision maker must be willing to “choose how to respond to opportunities and problems on the basis of a simplified and approximate account of the situation” (George & Jones, 2005, pg 475), while a stakeholder (in this case an employee) must be willing and able to complete any task that is put before him or her. The stakeholder must also make an informed decision based on their personal code of ethics.

Based on that belief it becomes evident that one might find it easier to make an informed decision, if one were willing to examine ones own manner of thinking and put that thought process through a serious of tests and questions (Paul & Elder, 2006). One must be willing to take apart a thought, breaking it down into the smallest parts, keeping in mind that at times the sum of the parts are more important than the whole.

In critical thinking one must determine what problem needs to be resolved. And once the problem is determined it becomes “even more important to know that the action you take is based on the right answer to the right question. If you ask the wrong question but get the right answer, you can end up making some very bad decisions" (Reed, 2007).

It is important to realize that though one cannot possibly think of every possible alternative, subsequent consequence, or dispute resolution, one can look to be better informed especially about issues that might not directly affect or influence ones own abilities, i...

... middle of paper ...

...e benefits of having a consolidated contact database. Those who have thought it through are now able to call the office and have any admin give them a phone number!

References

Buchanan, E. (2007, Aug). Can there be leadership without followership? Fire Engineering, Vol. 160, Issue 8, p105-110, 4p. Retrieved August 24, 2007 from EBSOHOST Research Database.

George, J. M., & Jones, G. R. (2005). Understanding and Managing Organizational Behavior (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Paul, R. & Elder, L. (2006). Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Learning and Your Life (2nd ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Reed, S. (2007, Jul 23-29). Wrong questions, right answers, bad decisions. Mississippi Business Journal, 7/23/2007, Bol. 29, Issues 30, p 26, 1/3 p. Retrieved August 24, 2007 from EBSOHOST Research Database.