The ability to think analytically and critically is crucial to being successful and fulfilling your purpose.
It’s so easy to be sidetracked by others from your purpose and goals in life.
You can also find yourself easily swayed by people unless you learn the power of analytical thinking.
Being able to think analytically about everything is a key skill on our journey of personal development.
Have you read Napoleon Hill’s Keys to Success: The 17 Principles of Personal Achievement (free pdf )? Napoleon Hill wrote the classic book Think and Grow Rich (freepdf ), which many of you have probably heard of before. If you’re not familiar with the books, I highly recommend you check them out.
You have to be very careful of which thoughts, ideas, and opinions you allow to enter your consciousness. Especially if you are making any decision that affects your life based on that information.
This is where being able to think analytically is crucial. There is a great chapter in theKeys To Success book where Napoleon Hill advises:
Accurate thinking is based on two types of reasoning:
1.Induction. This is the act of reasoning from a part to a whole, from the particular to the general, from the individual to the universal. It is based on experience and experimentation and draws conclusions from them.
2.Deduction. In this act of reasoning specific conclusions are based on general logical assumptions.
It is very important that you question assumptions and do not make false conclusions, based on inaccurate opinions. As Napoleon Hill says:
To be an accurate thinker, you must take two important steps:1.Separate facts from opinions, fictions, unproved hypotheses, and heresay.
2.Separate facts into two categories: important and unimportant.
We are so bombarded with information every day, from such a variety of sources, that it’s very difficult sometimes to think and process the information, never-mind actually question the facts of the article or the agenda of the writer.
I know that for myself I need to work on thinking more analytically about what, exactly, is behind some of the things I read.
Does the author simply want my money? Do they want me to buy their products? Change my vote? Speak out against or for their viewpoint?
I have a tendency to take people at face value and not see that everyone has an agenda (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). This is why it’s important to know what your purpose and goals are, so that you are not swayed and so that you can process information analytically.
Napoleon Hill offers 6 good questions that you should ask yourself when you read a book. These questions are great ones to ask yourself before you read anything (particularly on the internet and before you open your wallet to buy).
1. Is the writer a recognized authority on the subject covered?
2. Did the writer have a motive in writing the book other than imparting accurate information? What is that motive?3. Does the writer have a profit interest in the subject matter?
4. Is the writer a person of sound judgement or a fanatic?
5. Are there easily accessible sources to check and verify the writer’s statements?
6. Do the writer’s statements harmonize with common sense and experience?
Additionally, to think analytically:
Before you accept anyone’s statements as fact, you must try to find the motive behind those statements.
You must rely upon your own judgement and be cautious no matter who is trying to influence you.
I offer a lot of book reviews on this site and I try to keep in mind what I’ve learned about thinking analytically by Napoleon Hill.
When you are able to think analytically, you are not swayed by other’s opinions or thinking. You are able to concentrate on your own purpose.
How successful are you in analytical thinking? Let us know by leaving a comment. Thanks!
http://www.ameaningfulexistence.com/2010/04/05/the-power-of-analytical-thinking/
