Critical thinking & communication skills rev5.24.10

Leadership skills 101 - critical thinking and its importance to effective management; clarifying and confirming

1. Critical Thinking & Communication Skills Leadership 101 Modules One and Two

2. Learning Objectives Define critical thinking and effective communication skills Integrate skills into everyday decision-making and workplace interactions Be able to distinguish between fact and opinion Exhibit excellent interpersonal communication ability

3. 1.2 Types of Thinking Problem Solving Decision Making Critical Thinking Analyzing Evaluating Reasoning New Ideas Creative Thinking Right Left

4. What is Critical Thinking??? WARNING: THIS MAN IS NOT THINKING CRITICALLY!! Source: http://profmulder.home.att.net/introwhatis.htm

5. Activity: “Don’t Be A Lame Brain”

6. Critical Thinking – QUICK Overview

7. Good Thinking Skills Are… CLEAR ……….....rather than........UNCLEAR ACCURATE …....rather than…….INACCURATE PRECISE ……....rather than…….VAGUE RELEVANT …….rather than…….IRRELEVANT CONSISTENT ….rather than……INCONSISTENT LOGICAL ……….rather than……ILLOGICAL COMPLETE ……rather than……INCOMPLETE FAIR …………….rather than…....BIASED

8. I am probably the greatest thinker since Socrates! Ask questions…be willing to wonder Define the problem Examine the evidence Analyze assumptions and biases Avoid emotional reasoning Don’t oversimplify Consider the interpretations Embrace uncertainty

9. Case Study: Evaluating Facts

10. Let’s take a break…10 Minutes

11. Communication Skills Definition : Communication skills is the set of skills that enables a person to convey information so that it is received and understood.

12. Be aware of all three parts of the messages you send: • Words • Tone • Body Language Communication Notes

13. Clarifying and Confirming Clarify : You are seeking information to help you understand what the speaker is saying and/or why he or she is saying it.

14. Clarifying and Confirming Confirm : You are stating your understanding of what someone is saying and why he or she is saying it. Note: Your confirmation is only successful when the other person agrees that you’ve understood them.

15. Activity: Do you see what I see? Group Work & Individual Participation

16. Workplace Communication

17. Next Class…People & Resource Management June 28-29, 2010

18. RESOURCES Atwood, Christee . “Manager Skills Training” ASTD Press, VA 2008. Bartholomew, R.E and Radford, B. “Hoaxes, Myths and Manias: Why We Need Critical Thinking.” Prometheus Books, NY 2003. Decker, Bert. “Communication Skills for Leaders: Delivering a Clear Message” 3 rd edition. Thomson Course Technology, MA 2006. Gurchiek , Kathy. “Motivating Innovation” pp.31-35. HR Magazine, February 2009. “Critical Thinking Skills: Success in 20 Minutes a Day.” Learning Express, NY 2010. www.criticalthinking.com ; www.youtube.com ; www.bnet.com ; www.astd.org ; www.shrm.org