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4-Part Masterclass

Critical Thinking Skills

We use critical thinking skills on a daily basis to solve problems in our daily lives, whether at work or at home. Critical thinking is the process of analyzing facts to form sound judgment.

 Critical thinking and curiosity are the key to creativity.

– Amala Akkineni

  Critical thinking:

  • Is essential for career success

  • Is a solid foundation for decision making

  • Is a basis for well formed opinions

  • Is essential in forming and maintaining working relationships

  • Encourages creativity and problem solving

Critical thinking is a much sought-after essential skill that employers desire. 76% of employers actively seek critical thinking when hiring. This is because critical thinkers make the best decisions.

 Critical thinking effects:

  • Completion of tasks

  • Communication and information share

  • Teamwork and reliability

  • Development and strategy

 In this masterclass  series you will learn

PART 1

The 80/20 rule of critical thinking and problem solving

PART 2

How to solve problems as a team

PART 3

The 5 WHYs of getting to the root of the problem

PART 4

Real life examples and how to respond/deal with them

TOOLKIT

TOOLKIT

Anchor 1

PART 1

PART 1

80/20 rule of critical thinking and problem solving.

Team Discussion

  • During your next department meeting, download the Pareto analysis template and go through the exercises of identifying problems that currently exist in your organization that prevent you and your team from accomplishing your goals.

  • Once problems are identified, list out their causes and then score them.

  • Once you conduct this exercise on the department level, in Part 2 of this playbook, we will address how you can resolve and address this feedback and exercise as a whole team/company.

TOOLKIT

Pareto Analysis is a technique used for critical thinking and business decision making based on the 80/20 rule.

Download the toolkit to conduct your own Pareto Analysis

Anchor 2

PART 2

How to solve problems as a team

“We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them.”
- Albert Einstein

Team Discussion

  1. Which of the steps of the FOCUS model can you and your team do a better job of to uncover problems and find solutions that work?
     

  2. Look at specific company-wide problems you are dealing with right now, download this template and follow the FOCUS model with your team to come up with a simple solution. 

TOOLKIT

The FOCUS Model

A Simple, Efficient Problem-Solving Approach
This tool encourages a team-based approach to problem solving and business-process improvement.

Download the FOCUS in five steps:

“A problem well stated is a problem half solved.”  - John Dewey

Anchor 3

PART 3

The 5 WHYs of getting to the root of the problem

Critical Thinking has the potential to be a deeply creative process. 
- Pearl Zhou

Team Discussion

During your next team meeting, identify the most frequently occurring problem in your department/organization. Follow the 5WHYs framework


While asking your questions, focus on these objectives:

  • The answers are factual and based on real data.
    Steer away from emotional responses.

  • Stay clear of hypothetical problems.
    Narrow each answer down to an obvious clear statement.

  • Clearly display each statement under the question.

  • Keep the process lean and clean.
    Pick one path to define clear corrective action.

Remember: Always document every case for ease of implementation, knowledge share, future reference, and monitoring.

TOOLKIT

Download the 5WHYs problem solving sheet

“A problem well stated is a problem half solved.”  - John Dewey

Anchor 4

PART 4

Real life examples and how to respond/deal with them

“A good tool improves the way you work. A great tool improves the way you think.” 
- Jeff Duntemann

Team Discussion

  • In this masterclass, we covered many useful tools and tactics you can implement to eliminate bottlenecks in your organization. 

  • Which one (Pareto Analysis 80/20 technique, The 5 WHYs of problem solving, or The FOCUS model) can you as a team or individually commit to implementing today to eliminate roadblocks and inefficiencies? 

TOOLKIT

Download the toolkit to conduct your own Pareto Analysis

Download the 5WHYs problem solving sheet

“Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision.”- - Peter F. Drucker

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