Thinking Critically About Critical Thinking

I read a great article today about critical thinking, which everyone in every position in every industry needs to be able to do, at least on some level. Critical thinking is... well... critical to strategic planning, and according to wabisabilearning.com, there are many other benefits, as well. It encourages curiosity, enhances creativity, and reinforces the ability to solve problems, all of which are necessary elements of success in the workplace!

Good project managers have to be critical thinkers, all the time. They have to filter out the useful from the unimportant information to identify the true business need and the best solution to address it in the most efficient way possible. They have to understand what people are saying, even if they don’t use the right words to express their vision. They have to know what resources will be able to work well with the customer to meet his/her needs. They have to anticipate what could possibly put the project at risk and create mitigation plans. They have to offer solutions and recommendations when the project team isn’t sure what to do next.

Good project managers have to be critical thinkers, all the time. They have to filter out the useful from the unimportant information to identify the true business need and the best solution to address it in the most efficient way possible. They have to understand what people are saying, even if they don’t use the right words to express their vision. They have to know what resources will be able to work well with the customer to meet his/her needs. They have to anticipate what could possibly put the project at risk and create mitigation plans. They have to offer solutions and recommendations when the project team isn’t sure what to do next.

It’s true that project managers may not know everything about IT and other SMEs with whom they work, but they don’t have to be an expert in everything. A project manager will be very successful if they simply continue to hone their critical thinking skills and put them into action!