The only way to cope with life’s everyday complexities is by commanding your mind. In that, whatever you are doing, feel about a situation, or whichever action you want to undertake, all are determined by the quality of your thinking. Critical thinking helps one gain control over their life, deal with life’s challenging situations, and make a rational decisions for the matter. Therefore, before acting on any decision made, it is important to think critically about the situation at hand and evaluate the best solution to apply. Thus, this paper will apply the critical thinking steps in my personal experience describing what I will do at various stages to combat the problem and make a decision. Before arriving at the last carefully thought decision, I will follow up on each of the stages of critical thinking to arrive at a sound decision. According to Medeiros et. (2019), the steps of critical thinking are; identifying the problem, detaching from emotional involvement, and determining solution criteria. They also include gathering and evaluating information, considering personal values and beliefs, and choosing and evaluating the solution.
On identifying the problem, I will look at the niche that exists in my family. Many times I overreact when a small dispute or rather a disagreement arises and therefore, I do not relate well with my mother since such an episode occurred ten years ago. I am sure she cannot stand me either though I have reformed and would like to go to my childhood home someday. On the same note, having separated from my children’s mother, the children were affected by the separation and are not doing well in school. Therefore, after a careful evaluation, I decided to move into my childhood home after my mother passed on and transferred my children to another school.
After a series of counseling sessions, I have conceded that healthy control of my emotions is vital. This is because it enables me to engage more effectively in critical thinking before jumping to vague conclusions or overreacting. On the same note detaching from negative emotional dispositions will enable me to build a better relationship with my family as they have always considered me problematic and hard-headed. The criteria I will employ to determine solutions is outlining positive solutions that will guide me in discerning whether the decision made is good.
Over the years, since falling out with my mother and my children’s mother, counseling has taught me a lot about upholding my values and beliefs as I have related them in my day-to-day life. In my decision, some of the beliefs I have is that the Bible teaches forgiveness and makes resolves the Christian way. The values important in my decision are courage and resilience as it is not easy given that my childhood home will always remind me of my mother. On the same note, my children will have to start afresh in the new school. With all that transpired between me and my mother and her being on the death bed, I accept her imminent death and the solution that stands out is moving back to my childhood home. However, the anticipated outcome of the solution is to create a way to reflect on my past while reevaluating the decisions I made back then and starting afresh, and therefore, this decision will give me closure. The children will have a clean start and hence improve academically and the proximity will enable easier follow-up.
Reference
Modeiros, K. E., Williams, B. C., & Damadzic, A. (2019). Creative problem solving: Processes, strategies, and considerations for leaders. In Leader Thinking Skills (pp. 176-204). Routledge.