Figmentations

I just got back from re-taking a great NLP (Strategist) training course with SRICoaching.  The key foundational principles of this training started off simply with ”Presuppositions of NLP” and “Prime Directives of the Unconscious Mind”.

Additionally, I recently came across another interesting body of work from ”The Foundation and Center for Critical Thinking” at CriticalThinking.org. 

In the NLP Strategist course that I took, I observed how some students, myself included, can have a difficult time fully associating with the Unconscious Mind work even though they intellectually grasp the concept.  One big learning I had is that even though some concepts in any learning environment might, for whatever reason, not be fully accepted at first, it’s important to reserve judgement and not ”throw the baby out with the bathwater.”  Thus, I am looking further into the aspects that particularly intrigue me…

You see, I’m especially curious to see if the concepts from the Center for Critical Thinking work might be more readily grasped by those that aren’t too keen on believing in the “unconscious mind” right off the bat.  And, perhaps the Critical Thinking work might be an easier segue into the powerful “Unconscious Mind” concepts for some.  While I would say “the jury is still out”, I plan to share my discovery work with you here.  Hopefully you are equally curious in the outcome.

I definitely expect to find considerable overlap in these two bodies of work; and I will be curious to see what doesn’t overlap, too.

Just for a taste of what the Critical Thinking work might include, I found this one interesting article on the CriticalThinking.org website entitled, “Learning to Think“, which briefly describes six types of thinking and four types of thought patterns.  Quoted directly from this article, they are as follows:

Six Types of Thinking: 

• Critical Thinking, the ability to analyze, deconstruct, and evaluate;
• Creative Thinking, the ability to construct new lines of thought;
• Systems Thinking, the ability to understand complex patterns in context;
• Scientific Thinking, the ability to observe, validate, and evidence;
• Interdisciplinary Thinking: the ability to unify, transfer, synthesize, & integrate;
• Prosocial Thinking: the ability to build rapport through compassion and concern

Four  types of thought patterns:

• Drawing Distinctions: Comparing and contrasting between similarities and opposites;
• Organizing Systems: Sorting, nesting and categorizing using part-whole thinking;
• Forming Relationships:Making connections, interactions, associations, and cause & effect explicit;
• Taking Perspectives: Seeing different points-of-view and seeing new possibilities.

I look forward to further exploring and reporting my learnings here, as well as to hearing your thoughts and suggestions as well.  Please let me know what you think!