| Refine Your Reasoning |
| Be willing to argue. |
| Use Deductive Reasoning |
| Check Your Assumptions |
- It’s easy to reach wrong conclusions from wrong assumptions.
- Identify your assumptions.
- Do your best to verify them before you build your case upon them.
|
| Know Your Own Bias |
- Strong preferences and prejudices that may prevent us from evaluating arguments fairly.
- Acknowledging these can increase the likelihood of coming up with more effective
arguments.
- Good reasoners guard against their own “soft spots” to increase their
objectivity.
|
| Take Time Before Concluding |
- Careful reasoners resist impulsive judgements.
- They thoroughly review an argument to make sure they have addressed all questions.
- Don’t get so excited about a bright idea that you stop the hard analytic work in
thinking the problem through to the end.
|
