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The First Alchemist: Text Version

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TWO DAY PROGRAM: CRITICAL THINKING FOR LOCAL OR STATE MUNICIPALITIES

TITLE of COURSE: Exploring the Foundations of Thinking Skill Optimization

This is a 12 hour course, to be offered from 9:30 am to 5 pm, with a 1 hour lunch break, and a 15 minute break in the afternoon session.
Detailed Description of the Course
Managers nationwide bemoan the lack of critical thinking employed by their staff. Yet most of the criticism of the staffers is followed only by non-actionable admonishments. This short course lays a foundation for understanding exactly what critical thinking is, and how it relates to rational thinking, systems thinking, decision science, and even creative thinking. The importance of a lifetime commitment to learning, in order to acquire the basic knowledge to feed into the mental apparatus that carries out the critical thinking, as well as the other thinking activities mentioned, will be part of this exploration. In this interactive program, participants will explore the importance of reason and logic, as well as their limitations. Participants will also gain a working knowledge of the philosophical discipline called “Theory of Knowledge.” A key takeaway of the program will be exposure to and experience using a method that allows the active learner to gain specific tools to be able to discern factual descriptions from falsehoods, opinions, oversimplifications, exaggerations, and understatements. Learners will also gain extended practice with rational thinking, which is the most basic layer of human cognition.
NOTE: Much of the material has been loosely inspired by the popular college psychology textbook “Tools for Critical Thinking: Metathoughts for Psychology” by David Levy (Waveland Press.) It is recommended that the students have a copy available. The “Go-Getters” will read Chapters 1, 5 and 6 ahead of the program. This is a total of 18 pages.
Timed Outline of Exploring the Foundations of Thinking Skill Optimization
Day 1
- 9:30 – 10:00 am: Introduction of Instructor, History of Content Development, Participants
- 10:00 – Noon: What is a fact?

Introduction to Dichotomous versus Full-Spectrum Thinking

How do facts differ from opinions, lies, oversimplifications, exaggerations, and understatements?

Making Objective and Subjective Statements / Descriptions

Interactive discussion will include breaks for individuals to practice

1. 1. 1. 1. distinguishing black and white pairs, from those that are most usefully seen as bracketing a spectrum of more subtle differences.
      2. describing simple objects using only facts from specified categories

- Noon – 1 pm: LUNCH
  
  1:00 – 2:45 pm: Introduction to Thinking Skill Optimization:
  - - 7 Steps to Compounding Competence and Cultivating Clarity
      
      The importance of each step, and how each fits into the whole system that, over time, will allow the disciplined practitioner to make the most of their mental gifts, will be described. We will spend at least 15 minutes with participants individually practicing Step 3, or Rational Thinking, with exercises that build neural connections between previously siloed spheres of knowledge. Students will be provided with a method to create their own follow-up exercises to deepen their knowledge after the program.
- 3:00 – 5:00 pm: Types of “Things”
- - - When we use the word “Thing,” it could refer to a wide spectrum of different types of entities. Two main classifications are actual physical objects and human constructs. Examples could include books, pens, couches, and safe deposit boxes for the object category, and democracy, free-will, and ethics, and banks for the construct category. The great German philosopher Schopenhauer defined two other types of things, related to first, space and time, and finally, the one perceiving the “things.” The great ancient Indian philosopher Kanada (who lived sometime between 600 BCE and 200 CE) had many more categories that he used to help define reality. Cultivating clarity at a more advanced level, the goal of this program, requires us to be able to distinguish which category of “thing” we are thinking about, so that we have specific and appropriate judgement criteria to apply before using the data and information that we think we have as reliable knowledge. Learners will participate in an interactive discussion introducing these three ways of categorizing “things.” Individuals will then make their own lists of examples, and create statements about the things that are true or false. Participants will be encouraged to comment on others’ lists. Where does real estate fit in each of these systems of categorizing “things”?
Day 2

9:30 – 10:00 am Recap of Day 1, Instructor’s, Participants’ comments, thoughts

10:00 – 10:45 Rational Thinking: Reprise, Practice

More practice with “compare and contrast”

“Be” someone else. “The other’s shoes…”

Experience (recognize) cognitive dissonance (say, or write and read, something nice about someone you dislike, without sarcasm.)

Reinforce importance of daily practice of “compare and contrast.”

10:45 -Noon Introduction to Logic and Reason

We will define the types of Logic (Inductive, Deductive, Frame of Reference, Abductive)

We will use critical thinking to refine our definitions of inductive and deductive logic, both of which start with accepted truths

Logic is subject to “Garbage In, Garbage Out” problems

Participants will engage with exercises to categorize different logical processes.

The relationships between logic and reason, reason and emotion

Noon – 1 pm LUNCH

1:00 – 2:45 pm Theory of Knowledge (Epistemology)

Introduction to How We Know What We Think We Know

Redundancy of Facts

Facts “Holding Hands”

Multiple Independent Sources of Data

Necessity of Contemplating Complexity (Systems Thinking)

Importance of Recognizing “The Anomaly”

Authority versus Experience

A little history of modern epistemology

Participant exercises (sharing invited) to explore their professional use of theory of knowledge.

Resources for further study of Theory of Knowledge

3:00 – 3:20 pm Strategies to Cultivate Curiosity, Develop Discipline to Practice Compounding Competence and Cultivating Clarity

Instructor Hints

3:20 – 3:30 pm Open discussion / Sharing ideas to Cultivate Curiosity and Develop Discipline

3:30 – 5:00 pm What is Critical Thinking, Really?

Introduction: Questioning and Confirming the Context, The Role of Doubt

Doing your own research: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly; The Current, Long-term, and Eternal

Introduction to “Calibration of Confidence” concept

Putting it all together to communicate capably

TWO DAY PROGRAM: CRITICAL THINKING FOR THE WORKPLACE

Day 1: Thinking Skill Optimization for the Workplace: The Master Key
This program will introduce an all-new Seven Step Method for Thinking Skill Optimization. Starting with the importance of building a foundation of knowledge as “grist for the thinking mill” by cultivating curiosity, the method defines the difference between critical thinking and logic, moves on to rational, creative, and systems thinking, before wrapping up with a basic introduction to the theory of knowledge and clear communications. Obviously with a one day presentation, each section is short, but some will include practice exercises, with small groups reporting back to the entire group.
Day 2: What is a Fact?
Facts are about either things (concrete objects), qualities (features), or thoughts (constructs). The type of legitimate statements regarding each group differs. The simplest to evaluate are statements about concrete material objects (things, such as a brain). Some of the characteristics (qualities, such as color) of those things are also relatively straightforward to judge. Others are complicated and difficult (intelligence, patience).
Events (a track and field competition) and geometric constructions (triangles) are two additional separate categories that have different applicable judgment criteria.
Constructs are a whole different type of “thing,” which are based primarily on thoughts. Constructs require a totally different standard of evaluation. Constructs include scientific, economic, philosophical, political and religious theories, world-views, and entities, as well as organizations, including banks, schools, clubs, families, companies and The United Nations.
We can enhance the ability of groups to communicate and make good decisions about constructs by embracing the goal of examining utility rather than ultimate truth.
Modern humans experience many conflicting loyalties. By embracing the thinking skill of evaluating constructs by their utility rather than an often unprovable standard of ultimate truth, we can minimize unnecessary disagreement, and move toward tolerance, acceptance and co-operation.
The seminar will also provide an opportunity to consider how the consciousness of the person stating the facts about all these different types of “things” influences our perceptions and judgments.
This seminar will build on the Thinking Skill Optimization for the Workplace: The Master Key program. It includes time for small groups to practice the factual evaluation techniques, for things, qualities, events and constructs.

10-HOUR WORKSHOP: CRITICAL THINKING FOR THE WORKPLACE (IN PERSON OR VIRTUAL)

THINKING SKILL OPTIMIZATION METHOD
STEP	COMMON TERM	CONSTRUCTING COMPETENCE	WHAT’S THE POINT?
1	Being Human	Cultivate Curiosity!	Cultivating Open-mindedness
2	Critical Thinking	Question the Context!	Solve the Right Problem
3	Rational Thinking	Compare – Contrast!	Make Effective Use of How Our Brains are Wired
4	Creative Thinking	Connect – Create!	A Recipe for Intuition
5	Systems Thinking	Contemplate Complexity!	Appreciate Multi-Level Interactivity
6	Decision Science	Calibrate your Confidence!	Build Your Own Theory of Knowledge
7	Clear Communications	Converse & Compose Capably!	Be able to Explain How You Know What You Say You Know

The Cultivating Clarity methodology allows you to:

- NEVER WASTE A MISTAKE
- Walk away with techniques to improve your analytical and creative thinking skills.
- Enhance the function of the natural structure of your brain.
- Begin to be able to learn new things more easily.
- Develop and balance your intuition.
- Optimize your thinking skills through enjoyable workshops.
- Recognize and weed out the negative aspects of what some people believe is critical thinking.

Empowerment Thinking Starts Here