Critical Thinking: The Soul of Communication

 


Critical thinking is the engine that gives meaning to communication, which is defined as a meaningful exchange of information, thoughts, and feelings between two living beings. Thought, feeling, and emotion are the starting points for communication. Before delivering this thought to the recipient, the mind develops on it. Critical thinking is a technique for constructing our thoughts logically. A clear thought process is the foundation of effective communication. Clarity of thought is bred via critical thinking.

Poor communication has a hefty cost in organisations. In US and UK organisations, the cost was estimated at US$37 billion in a white paper published by IDC in 2008.

Employee engagement and attrition are connected to inadequate communication. Although communication skills training is scheduled by companies, it solely addresses the grammatical and explicit components of communication. This kind of training does not address the fundamentals of communication, hence making it ineffective.

Leaders and managers who practice critical thinking are better able to think rationally, present strong reasoning, and construct a clear argument. Leaders may remove ambiguity in communication by thinking critically and communicating clearly.

I believe applying critical thinking will result in the whole team having great teamwork and the same goal.

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