I am continuing with the series about how to become a better YOU. This time, I am touching upon critical thinking.

Thinking critically is a matter of attention. It is a way to be able to utilize your mental awareness and realize that a thinking process is in progress.

Begin by practicing awareness every time you choose to think about a particular topic.

Realizing that your mind is thinking is the first step.

Basic critical thinking is composed of these six basic skills:

1. Interpretation: “Do you know what I mean?” asked Ruben, one of the participants who attended the Leadership through Safety Awareness Workshop I presented at my company last week. As I was looking into his eyes, I could see he was still confused about his new role.After talking for a few minutes, we were able to dissipate his concerns and doubts. I realized that the information I presented triggered some self-doubts in him that distracted him and made him too uncomfortable to communicate the true meaning of the information he had learned to others.We worked together for about five minutes and at the end, he was able to tune into his interpretation skills beyond self-judgment and focus only on mental awareness.To think critically means to directly analyze and or evaluate information beyond any sense of self-judgment. It enables you to have the ability to think outside the box and to drop any sense of judgment towards oneself. Always try to be present when you are thinking.
2. Analysis: This refers to the ability to “read between the lines.” It is to possess the capacity to connect the pieces of information given and determine their true meaning.
3. Inference: The ability to understand and recognize the elements needed to determine an accurate conclusion. Interpretation and inference work hand in hand, and you can use this simple skill to become more precise in your interaction with others.
4. Evaluation: Ask yourself this question: How credible are my expressions of my experience? How factual are my opinions? Do I exaggerate to make my inputs more impressive?Evaluate your interactions with others with impartiality. You are not looking for deficiencies to bring yourself down; it is quite the opposite, you are looking for clues for where to make corrections that will help you become a more interesting person, the type of person whose sense of self-evaluation is based on growth and well-being.
5. Explanation: It is important to know that not everyone has or needs the level of information you have. To become a better communicator requires attention. It requires patience and self-awareness.On our journey to become the very best version of ourselves, we want to have the courage to face ourselves and ask: Do I communicate well? Am I correctly and frequently saying what I mean?Learn through practice to identify your level of communication with others. Ultimately, remember that one of the best tools to communicate is to become a better listener.
6. Self-Regulation: Thinking critically is a matter of attention and self-regulation is an ally. Self-regulation is the skill that allows you to have an awareness of your thinking process.It is the skill that helps you develop greater abilities to connect the proper elements of information to obtain the desired results. Sometimes we allow our self-interest to play a factor in what we decide to understand.It is very dangerous because it can make our progress more difficult. Critical thinking is an extension of communication and to self-regulate our personal biases is crucial for a successful interaction with others.

Getting unstuck is a life process, therefore make life simple again. Allow for the opportunity to free yourself from self-limiting beliefs through the practice of critical thinking when it comes to interaction with yourself and others.

What can we do to make life simple again? Think about it.

Seven Easy Keys

Leaders must understand their goals and resolve to enter a state of discipline based on their desire to lead consciously.

Years ago, as I entered the world of self-improvement, I never knew how to handle the amount of new information. It was a huge source of incoming energy in the form of eye-opening discovery. It was as if all of a sudden I was given a huge bundle of information that I needed to absorb and digest in just a few weeks. I used to drive my car while listening to the wisdom of people such as Seneca the Stoic, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Tony Robbins and even lectures by Paramahansa Yogananda.

My radio stations became centers of lectures and interviews. I had CDs with absolutely no music other than the music at the beginning of their material presentation. I used to read many books, all kinds, (I still do) and I dedicated my time to assimilating all this new information. Those were indeed pretty exciting times for me.

Technology has changed and the way we receive information is tremendously different these days. More than ever we possess the freedom to do the most exhaustive research on our smartphones. It is a whole new world, a new world of infinite possibilities and opportunities to do, say and act in any way possible.

Humanity is evolving and changing very fast, and it is time to commit to work on ourselves, to understand that we must be greater than our fears, limiting beliefs, false ideas, and self-imposed barriers. It is time to become the very best version of ourselves.

I will divide this into seven different posts so we can make it more digestible while respecting everyone’s time. I will be posting on a weekly basis and providing other interesting material for your reading pleasure.

1. Become a Better Listener
2. Improve Your Critical Thinking Techniques
3. Sharpen Your Communication Skills
4. Practice Patience
5. Control of Mind and Emotions
6. Develop Healthier Sleeping Patterns
7. (SPA )Study, Plan, and Act Everyday

Key Number One: Better Listener

Next time you spend time with a friend or with someone you love or even with the stranger on the train who tries to start up a conversation with you by mentioning the weather. Pay attention! Be present by creating a direct contact. Develop sensitivity and understand that every person needs attention when it comes to communicating.

Better listeners are considered to have a gift, the gift of patience (the fourth step). If you are an individual who thinks you don’t have a lot of patience or much time to waste, you can still practice good listening. Set aside time and communicate to the other person that you will be paying undivided attention to them for five minutes or so and that you are willing to discuss their issue within the allotted time.

The idea is to be completely present and to listen carefully Many people are just looking to be heard. One of the greatest gifts you can give someone is your undivided attention through a period of uninterrupted time. Abstain from giving advice right away and instead, discuss the issue in a collaborative way where the person wanting to communicate can listen to himself or herself and perhaps obtain their own answer.

Listening consciously is challenging but not impossible if you start practicing one minute at a time. Ultimately, it is better, to be honest, and tell the other person you can’t listen to them right now than to listen half- heartedly. This way you will show them more consideration and respect.

In an article published in the LA Times, author Robert Lee Hotz reported – “Understanding whether differences in mental capacity or intellectual ability can be attributed to gender has long confounded scientists, parents, equal rights activists and educators.”

To be sure, men’s and women’s brains are more alike than not, but they are not the same–in size, sense or sensibilities – disregard gender, don’t justify your sense of attention because of that. Be human, that is it.

Ultimately, leaders must listen actively; listening goes well beyond being quiet and giving someone your full attention. Listening requires you to be aware of body language, facial expressions, mood, and natural behavioral tendencies.

In the science of yoga, care is critical for the development of meditation, also known as Dharana. According to Eastern psychology, it is possible to attain a further state of attention wherein all other mental movement stops. At this point, the mind ‘becomes one’ with the essential nature of the object of concentration, (listening).