The ironical of critical thinking

People are funny.

They admire those with critical thinking skills, yet they do not encourage their children or their employees to develop critical thinking skills.

One good example is the way parents treat their children.

They know that it is important to encourage their children to ask questions, since asking questions is a sign of development of critical thinking.

They are rather patient when their children start to ask the first Why.  When it comes to the second Why, they are still patient.

However, once it gets to the fifth Why, the parents start to get impatient.

They tell their children to go to play or to watch TV.

They are effectively stopping their kids from developing critical thinking skills.  As a result, the kids grow up as a normal kid, instead of the bright and smart kids.

The same thing happens in the office environment.

Many bosses say that they want to hire people with critical thinking skills, and they want their employees to take initiative.  However, when the employees start to ask questions, the bosses get very impatient.

Some bosses even tell the employees to “just do as I say”.

How are the employees going to develop critical thinking skills if they cannot even ask questions?

If the bosses are wise enough, they will see it as the opportunity to groom the next successor. They should feel happy that their employees take an interest in their decisions, and want to know more about the reasoning behind the decision.

Many of us are great thinkers.  The only problem is that our parents, our teachers and the employers stop us from developing to the fullest potential.

Many governments in the world are doing the same thing.

They just want hardworking and obedient people.  They do not want people who go to the street to demonstrate their unhappiness over certain policies.

They do not think the common people are smart enough to understand complicated national and international policies.  However, they agree that many criminals are smarter than the law enforcement team.  That is why the battle against the law breakers is a continuous battle, and in most cases, a losing battle.

If people are not smart enough, they will not produce children who are smart law breakers.

The reason that many people in illegal activities are smart is that of survival sake.  The environment encourages them to develop critical thinking skills.  Without street smart, they cannot survive.

The best way for a parent to encourage their kids to develop critical thinking is to let them ask questions, then let them find the answers.

The path to find the answers may cause problems for the parents.  Their toddlers may put everything into their mouth to taste if it is edible, sweet or sour.

That is the way they learn.

Bosses need to fork out money for the employees to try a certain system.  The system may fail, and everyone will learn a lesson from the failed attempt.

However, that is the best way to encourage critical thinking, and to improve employees morale.