Critical Thinking Applications
MGT 350 – Critical Thinking; Strategies in Decision-Making University of Phoenix
May 20, 2010
Critical Thinking
Making a decision is a difficult process and to make a good sound decision, critical thinking must have a defining role. Critical thinking is developing the discipline to assess contradictions and known facts to make a decision. They cannot make a decision without believing in the facts of the argument. This is the impact of critical thinking in a decision-making environment.
In the work environment, everything is determined by the ability to think and make decisions. However, at times, there can be a lack of awareness of how one should make decisions and unfortunately, the absence of clear thinking can lead to failure both in one’s professional and personal lives. Results from decision from not thinking clear will lead to frustration and in some cases, complete failure. To avoid failure and become a better thinker, critical thinking needs to be applied to every aspect of life. It can lead to performing more effectively both in personal and professional lives by empowering oneself. It can lead to avoiding huge mistakes, help to gain clarity and give one the opportunity to discover new opportunities.
The process for individuals in which they analyze their own thoughts, actions, and decisions is called critical thinking. It requires the use of knowledge, acquisition of information, and the evaluation of the collected information. A critical thinker considers the alternatives and makes a decision by simply applying reasoning and logic. When concerning the decision making process, figuring out what the problem is half the battle. In the workplace, managers have to act and decide on highly diverse problems. They seem to be faced with more than one problem any- time during the day. The importance of this is if they can identify the problem before it continues to grow. Management using their ability to detect will help in the decision making process and ultimately avoid crisis situations. Managers are prone to act more quickly to problems if they can balance solving and procrastinating over tackling issues that are ambiguous. The decision making process is not only a process that balances the goals for the managers but also can be a political process that balances the impact of various power sectors during the decision making process. Because of political process, the decision making process can take more time if the managers have to accommodate the differences.
In my work environment, managers are tasks with making tough decision with speed and accuracy. They must learn to use critical thinking in every decision they make. Managers will seek guidance and input from their chain of command and from the Office of Personal Management, also known as OPM on issues ranging from