The Management Tip of the Day

To Improve Your Employees' Critical Thinking, Help Them Practice.‌ One important aspect of critical thinking is the ability to compare ideas clearly and succinctly. It's a skill that, like any other, grows with practice. To help your employees get better at sorting through a range of information, give them informal opportunities to try. For example, after a client call, you could ask someone to tell you, in a few short sentences, what the takeaways were. Or, after a strategic planning meeting, you could ask someone for the pros and cons of the initiatives that were discussed. If the employee struggles to identify what's important, try using a resource-constrained thought experiment: "If you could share only one insight with the CEO, what would it be?" or "If we had only $1,000 for this project, how should we allocate it?" You'll know the person has mastered this skill when they can, on the spot, summarize a project's key points and their implications for future work. Today’s Tip  To Improve Your Employees' Critical Thinking, Help Them Practice One important aspect of critical thinking is the ability to compare ideas clearly and succinctly. It's a skill that, like any other, grows with practice. To help your employees get better at sorting through a range of information, give them informal opportunities to try. For example, after a client call, you could ask someone to tell you, in a few short sentences, what the takeaways were. Or, after a strategic planning meeting, you could ask someone for the pros and cons of the initiatives that were discussed. If the employee struggles to identify what's important, try using a resource-constrained thought experiment: "If you could share only one insight with the CEO, what would it be?" or "If we had only $1,000 for this project, how should we allocate it?" You'll know the person has mastered this skill when they can, on the spot, summarize a project's key points and their implications for future work. This tip is adapted from “A Short Guide to Building Your Team's Critical Thinking Skills,” by Matt Plummer ADVERTISEMENT Our content. Your success story. Get access to HBS's world-famous case studies and 4 complimentary eBooks with our new subscription plans. Choose your subscription plan Newsletter The Daily Alert Links to all the digital articles published in the last 24 hours. Sign up Bundle HBR's 10 Must Reads 2020 (Paperback + Ebook) by Harvard Business Review, Michael E. Porter, Nitin Nohria, Katrina Lake $34.95 Learn more Don’t forget you’re entitled to 20% off your first purchase* *Use promo code HBRORGREG4. View details here. View in browser Contact us Manage newsletter preferences Privacy policy Unsubscribe

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