Now I’d like to help you examine your own thinking as a way to help you understand what might

be happening each time you need to examine an issue or make a decision.

Here are some essential questions to reflect upon.

If you can honestly answer these (and I encourage you to pause this video after each question

to briefly consider your first or gut reaction, there are text fields below this video where

you can type thoughts.

Then later, spend more time reflecting on these questions and add to your initial entry):

Question 1 – What is the truth? Can you differentiate the difference between truth and opinion?
(Hint: Truth is discovered or is simply the way things are. But opinion is created by people and
is relative to their own points of view)

Question 2 – Who do you trust? Why? Do you think about why you trust the people and the
institutions you trust? Have they consistently been the best sources of information and ideas?
Or are they just a habit?

Question 3 – Where do you get the information that forms your worldview? Why? Do you
consider the sources of what you “know?” Do you think about why this pool of sources is what
it is? Have you ever considered widening this pool?

Question 4 – Do you reach conclusions and judgments based upon your ability to gather,
evaluate and determine the relevancy and reliability of facts and evidence?

Question 5 – Can you tell truth from a lie? How do you do this? Do you apply logic, reason,
rational evaluation, common sense, anecdotal evidence, nonjudgmental observation and
selfless reflection? Or are you relying on a “gut” feeling?

Question 6 – Can you recognize "what really is" from what you believe "ought to be?" For
example, have you ever heard the phrase that human unhappiness often comes from the
struggle between "what is" and "what ought to be." What happens when you discover this
conflict in yourself?

Question 7 – Which barriers are most common in your critical thinking process and which ones
do you see in others?

Once you start thinking about these questions it can be difficult to not to be hard on yourself in
terms of critical thinking, you shouldn’t be. Most of us fall into less-than-ideal thinking patterns
for all kinds of reasons. The important thing is to regularly examine our thinking patterns
through the lens of critical thinking.
In other words are we being the best critical thinkers we can be? And if not why not?

You will succeed as future effective critical thinkers if you keep in mind the value of honesty,
wisdom, discernment and the need to distinguish the truth from the lie. Some would say that
we live in a time of unprecedented self-interest whether in institutions, politics or the media.
This breeds an environment ripe for deceptive arguments, deceitfulness and outright fraud.
The antidote? Well, it’s critical thinking.

RECAP

Reflecting on our own thinking can alert us to patterns that inhibit critical thinking. The paths to
successful critical thinking include honesty, wisdom, discernment and the need to distinguish
the truth from the lie.