What the Hell Are You Thinking?

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What It’s About: Unprecedented UNCERTAINTY! That is our current world at a personal, local, and global level. To navigate this situation as best as we might, requires us to become better learners AND unlearners. Additionally, we must become better THINKERS. Our ability to think creatively and critically will become an even greater differentiator. Researchers and psychologists, Linda Elder and Richard Paul, have studied the stages of critical thinking, and have determined that we plateau or progress through a thinking pyramid. In studying our thinking process, they make an important point:

"Why is this so important? Precisely because the human mind, left to its own, pursues that which is immediately easy, that which is comfortable, and that which serves its selfish interests. At the same time, it naturally resists that which is difficult to understand, that which involves complexity, that which requires entering the thinking and predicaments of others..."

So What?: I wonder if many of us have become mentally paralyzed by this massive uncertainty, complicated by exhaustion, the crazy flow of life, and bombardment of echo chambers that parrot back to us how we should think. Is this limiting the space for us to more deeply THINK? It would be helpful if we put ourselves more in control of our minds rather than letting it be our unconscious boss. It may be worth considering Elder and Paul’s six stages of critical thinking. It is possible to advance up this pyramid. Please read the article to better assess what stage you’re at.

Now What?: As I enter this next stage of my life, I’m going to work at becoming a master thinker. I have work to do. According to Elder/ Paul, this stage involves:

“One who is totally in control of how they process information and make decisions. Such people constantly seek to improve their thought skills, and through experience "regularly raise their thinking to the level of conscious realization.
A master thinker achieves great insights into deep mental levels, strongly committed to being fair and gaining control over their own egocentrism.
Such a high-level thinker also exhibits superior practical knowledge and insight, always re-examining their assumptions for weaknesses, logic, and biases.
And, of course, a master thinker wouldn't get upset with being intellectually confronted and spends a considerable amount of time analyzing their own responses.”

I know it won’t be me that decides whether and/or to what extent I have progressed on the master thinking continuum. It will be you, and all those I love. I promise I will put in the work. I THINK I can.

Think Big, Start Small, Act Now,

- Lorne

One Millennial View: Ugh, words like “unprecedented” are frustrating because there is no fixing or solving implied. A new problem with no handbook to reference. It’s as if it’s meant to keep you anxious. You know what else is unprecedented? Tomorrow. July 8, 2020, has never happened before. I’m a history learner, and perhaps the only better year than 2020 for most humans was 2019 because we had most of the same technology, but weren’t going through a pandemic. While it’s perfectly fine to feel the uncertainty, if you’re going to be a thinker, THINK positive. The reason we’re even having this conversation is because it appears the overwhelming majority want what’s best for all. That’s a nice, unprecedented thing that in the past has hardly ever been true.

- Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis.

What the Hell Are You Thinking?

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