Critical Thinking
Three Point Thursday #5 | Thinking Well, Being the Fool, Learning to Say No
Here’s your weekly three-pointer to open your mind.
Read the online version here
The mission of “Three Point Thursday” & about the author here
How to Think Well
“The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool.” —Richard Feynman
Humans are weird.
Sometimes, they question what they believe. Except, of course, their strongly-held beliefs. Those beliefs, they never consider questioning. Why would they? They know them to be true, and have for a long time!
It’s exactly those strong beliefs that deserve a reexamination every once in a while. Think critically about their accuracy. Consider whether your thoughts and general beliefs are serving you well or not.
I’m sure some still are, but it’s also likely there are some that aren’t.
A synthesized definition of critical thinking is “With an open mind, non-emotionally analyzing the available facts, evidence, data, observations, and arguments + reflection on experience to form a judgment.”
The biggest enemies of critical thinking are cognitive biases.
Cognitive bias is “a systematic thought process caused by the tendency of the human brain to simplify information processing through a filter of personal experience and preferences.” as defined by TechTarget.
Explanation: Every person has a different perspective on life.
And often, as individuals we make the mistake of thinking we see the world objectively. Or that we understand everything going on in our lives.
But this couldn’t be further from truth.
In reality, we are ignorant, emotional, and often irrational creatures.
And because the world is such a complex place, we simplify it by coming to conclusions about it based off our experience.
But that’s the problem—our individual experience is such a thin slice of the broader human experience.
Which is just 1 reason why it’s important to read books—you learn about ideas and perspectives you’ve never heard before. You get a wider slice of reality.
And to be clear, it’s not to say you should abandon your values or opinions—but it’s a catastrophic mistake to not consider other, potentially better ones.
“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”—Aristotle
It’s wise to try your best to avoid the following:
Obstacles to Critical Thinking
Conformity bias - “Everyone else I know thinks this, it must be right!” or “Everyone’s doing it this way, it must be the best!”
Confirmation bias - only seeking information that confirms your prior beliefs
Quickly making large generalizations about anything
Lack of effort put into understanding a topic (yet still speaking on it)
Overestimating your knowledge about a topic (common)
Emotional attachment to a particular belief (extremely common)
If you realize that a particular stance of yours is weak, flawed or outdated, admit it and change (improve).
Developing Critical Thinking—Questions to constantly ask yourself
How much research have I actually done on this? (Books/Podcasts/Articles/Statistics)
Is this belief beneficial to me, or is it limiting me?
Am I just memorizing, or do I really understand?
Do I truly listen to what other people say…or do I just wait until they’re done speaking so I can say my opinion?
How many perspectives have I considered? (People from different cultures/ with different values/opinions/ideas)
Does this person trying to give me advice read above a 6th a grade level?
Write.
What’s the #1 best way to develop better critical thinking?
Writing.
How?
Because when it’s time to put pen to paper, the holes in your knowledge get exposed.
Because it’s difficult to write about stuff you don’t know about (unless you’re just writing nonsense).
It forces you to be able to reasonably make a case for what you believe.
Writing more has made my life significantly better.
Through consistently journaling, I think more clearly, am a calmer person, speak better, and am also happier as a result of writing about all the stuff I’m grateful for.
It doesn’t even matter what you write. Just get thoughts onto paper.
Also, you’ll understand your own mind more. And you’ll remember things better in general.
Get a journal and start writing.
The Secret to Improvement
Want to become powerful?
Then ask good questions and ask often.
Common Situation: Someone (whether they realize it or not) letting their ego and/or fear stop their learning and development.
They don’t ask for further explanation; they pretend to already understand. They don’t try something new, because they don’t want to fail.
People do this because they don’t want to be viewed as idiotic in front of people they wish to impress.
But not asking questions or trying new things is the real failure. How else do you expect to gain new insights and skills?
“If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid.” —Epictetus
I certainly felt like a fool when I first released this newsletter.
I’ve loved reading and writing since I was a kid, but doing it publicly is a completely different and new thing.
I also certainly felt like a fool when I first started speaking Spanish.
It’s pretty much impossible to be more foolish than someone starting to speak another language—because you literally sound like an idiot.
But you have to start somewhere. And I loved it so much I just kept doing it.
And maybe more importantly, it made me realize the true power of embracing a beginner mindset in order to improve.
Anyways, here’s the legendary Mike Tyson, explaining the importance of this mindset in whatever it is you want to pursue:
It’s a fact you have to seek discomfort if you want to grow.
Even if you screw up a bunch of times before you get good. Even if you think the question you’re asking is ‘dumb’.
What’s more dumb is to never try, and never give yourself the chance. To not ask, and never know!
“It is hard to fail, but it’s worse never to have tried to succeed.” —Theodore Roosevelt
To Focus, Say No
“Focusing is about saying no.”—Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs was the genius responsible for the idea of what you’re probably reading this article on.
He was a champion of saying no in order to focus.
Example: There’s something you love doing, working on, or learning about. But every time someone offers to do something else, you agree, because they’re your friend. You’re frustrated because you never get to put enough effort into your craft. You feel like you’re not maximizing your potential.
The antidote is saying no sometimes.
Miss a night going out? Sun’s still going to come up.
People joke on you? So what.
If it’s something you enjoy doing, then it doesn’t matter what other people think you should be doing.
I’ve been laughed at a bunch for saying no to something else so I could read, play basketball, or learn Spanish.
So what.
There’s no reason to get mad at people for misunderstanding you.
If you have a vision of how good you want to be at something, other people aren’t going to see it.
Because it’s YOUR vision.
“If you aren’t willing to be mocked, you’ll never be able to lead.”—Naval Ravikant
You might’ve faced similar ridicule when you take time to pursue something.
So what.
It’s impossible to please everyone.
Making sure everyone agrees with everything you do is the path to mediocrity. And misery.
Not to say you should cut off friends and never go out and have fun; that’s obviously unhealthy.
But to master something, you need focus.
And the key to focus is having time available for deliberate practice.
You get time for deliberate practice by sometimes saying no to situations that don’t involve improvement of your skill. Regardless of the social response.
“You have no responsibility to live up to what other people think you ought to do. I have no responsibility to be like they expect me to be. It’s their mistake, not my failing.” —Richard Feynman