10 Exercises for Critical Thinking

As product managers climb the career ladder, they often struggle with being given the opportunity to own a vision. One reason managers hesitate to provide the opportunity is junior PMs get buried under execution tasks and don’t have the time to focus on big-picture thinking.

If you feel this is happening to you, consider a series of exercises: some practical, others theoretical.

1. Graphs in the News Many are misleading, practice questioning them. (YouTube Video with examples)

2. Express yourself in Different Formats Think writing, video, audio, short-form, long-form

3. Work Backward Tried and tested by Amazon. Think where you want to be in X time, what do you need to do now to make that happen

4. Explain Concepts to Kids Good old tech interview question but it works

5. Empathize with Others Imagine you lived life with a disability. Or look at images and imagine the point of view (POV) of the person who took them or who is in them.

6. Debate with Self or Friends Grab something from the headlines and practice taking different POVs

7. Think about a Competitor Imagine how they are measuring success or failure.

8. Build an Argument Map Pick an argument where multiple reasons are involved and break things down.  (More on argument maps).

9. Experiment with Brain Teasers and Ethical Dilemmas Force yourself to think through sticky situations

10. Read, Read, Read Understand how others think by reading

Resources:

Able: Academic Approach

6 Critical Thinking Exercises

6 Main Types of Critical Thinking

5 Critical Thinking Skills

7 Exercises for Critical Thinking

7 Mental Exercises for Critical Thinking

9 Exercises

7 Critical Thinking Examples

Critical Thinking Workbook