Critical thinking is learning to think for yourself and to develop your own independent opinions, back by sound reasoning and support. The term critical thinking describes the deliberate thinking that helps you to decide on what to believe and how to act. It helps to examine a problem or issue from many angles to arrive at the best possible solution.
             It is important to be a critical thinker because it enables one to lead a more enriching life through examinations of one's own beliefs and practices, and those of others. This examination maximizes one's freedom to make responsible choices with respect to those beliefs and practices. It further enables one to envision paradigms of thinking and action which stimulate continual intellectual, moral, and personal growth. Being a critical thinker is a commitment to continous life-long learning.
             If we did more critical thinking we would be inclined to be more honest with ourselves and to admit what we don't know. We would be less afraid to say "I was wrong" and be able to learn from our mistakes. Our beliefs would really be our own, not simply passed on to us by others. We would be less easily manipulated and think more independently. Critical thinking would help us develop the ability to imaginatively put ourselves in the place of others and understand the viewpoints of others. We would develop the ability to listen with an open mind, even to a conflicting point of view. We would have the patience to think before acting. Our emotions would be less likely to cause us trouble; we would develop ways to sort through our feelings and constructively harness our emotions. We would strive for a better understanding of issues, resisting "quick fix" solutions. We would hold ourselves to high standards of thinking, and we would look for these standards in the thinking of others. We would recognize where we and others fall short of these standards.
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