You aren’t born with critical thinking skills. As we get older, I think we really start to understand how much we don’t know. We question the world around us, and we grow from our experiences (if we are lucky enough to not be so stubborn.)

I understand that everyone has their own perspective. I have learned  that being right is not my end goal. It doesn’t matter to me if anyone else agrees with me or not. Opposing point of views help me to realize that the world would be a dull place if everyone thought just like me.

I do not want my boys to share the same views I do if they have reasons to think otherwise. What I do want them to have is critical thinking skills. When I think about my educational background, I really was challenged to think critically in my honors history class my junior year of high school. I didn’t always see eye to eye with my teacher, but I learned so much. 

Additionally, my Western Civilization core curriculum at Providence College was a challenging but rewarding experience. The philosophy component was probably one of the best critical thinking opportunities I have ever had.

After I transferred to Indiana University to be a business student, I learned the time value of money. I learned to think critically in my business law class. I also learned that investing right away in my future after graduation would be super important.

I think I had the best of both worlds with my liberal arts and business background. I might have forgotten most of the course work I learned in college, but I will never lose my ability to think critically about the world I live in and question it. I will not follow blindly, and I will research what I don’t understand. I will question the motives and incentives others have when they share information with me. I will ask why until something makes sense to me.

Anyway, I know I will probably make more mistakes as a parent than I will ever admit, but I will be sure my boys understand how important it is for them to think for themselves.