by Chad Lupkes
Introduction[]
So, how did your campaign meeting go?
Terrible. The campaign manager kept getting angry, the head of the communications department kept coming up with stupid jokes that kept everyone distracted, and everyone had all these little tiny problems that they were really concerned about, but had nothing to do with the task at hand. I didn't know what to do. How can I make sure that we will really make the right decision to help our cause?
You just described everything you need to make sure you don't miss anything. Here is what you need to remember:
People Are Emotional.
Laughter Always helps.
Find the Lost Problem.
These three sentences are the main components for a technique to ensure that the process of critical thinking has been or will be used in the decision making process. The first letter of each word corresponds to one of the eight components of critical thinking, which are Perception, Assumptions, Emotions, Language, Argument, Fallacies, Logic and Problem Solving. I will break down how these phrases come up easily, and therefore remind people to use the eight portions of the critical thinking process.
People Are Emotional[]
A difficult assessment will get people upset as they work through difficult portions of a decision. It is also easy for people to be possessive if they have worked hard on a project, only to have it be torn apart by their peers. If someone who has gone through this presentation sees someone exhibiting emotions at a meeting, they will be reminded of the entire set of phrases, and will start thinking about what they have missed. In particular, this phrase corresponds to the concepts of Perception, Assumptions and Emotions.
- How do your perceptions differ from the person you are communicating with? What differences in upbringing exist, and how do they change how you or they think? What experiences do you have in common, and which ones set you apart?
- What assumptions have been made by the author or speaker? What assumptions have you made when starting to consider the situation? How do those assumptions change the framing of the problem?
- Do emotions make a difference in the way that you view the situation? What words or phrases cause an emotional reaction? Are any of the phrases used by the author showing an emotional response?
Laughter Always helps[]
The telling of jokes is so common in the business world, this is easy to think about in almost any setting, including campaigns. Many jokes are plays on words, which helps remind people about the language differences between people. Others present the person's stance on an issue in subtle ways. In particular, this phase of critical thinking corresponds to the concepts of Language and Argument.
- What language is being used? Be aware of not just what people are saying, but how they are saying it. What words and phrases are they using to bring their points across, and how can they be misinterpreted? Be sure that attitudes and emotional catch phrases don't cause automatic reactions that could cause miscommunication and incorrect conclusions.
- What is the logical argument that is being presented? In the situation you are looking at, what sides exist, and where do they stand on the issue? What is the common ground?
Find the Lost Problem[]
Problems have roots that go far back into how a company communicates and operates at a core level. Many times, the problems that require quick decisions go back further than a simple fire, and the objective of any corporate fire fighter should be to find the root problem at the core of the company. This is 'the lost problem' that may reveal other problems that have been overlooked up to now. In particular, this phase of critical thinking corresponds to Fallacies, Logic and Problem Solving.
- What fallacies exist in the author or speaker's statements? What source is he or she using for the statement, and how do your sources differ? Why is your information correct, and why is their information not correct?
- How can you apply logic to the situation? What logical errors exist in the conclusions being reached? Listen to the people you are working with. Are they saying things that contradict each other?
- Use your problem solving skills to find out what needs to be fixed and how you can fix it. Many times there is a large problem underlying all the little crises that we deal with on a daily basis. If we can find and solve this problem, things will get a lot easier, and the smaller "fires" will not have fuel.
Apply this on Wikia[]
If you would like to apply this type of critical thinking to an argument here on Campaigns, copy the following:
*Perception *Assumptions *Emotions *Language *Argument *Fallacies *Logic *Problem Solving