You’re a Network Engineer who wants to stand out. How can you develop your critical thinking skills?

1 Challenge your assumptions

One of the first steps to critical thinking is to question your own assumptions and biases. You may have learned certain methods, standards, or best practices that work well in most situations, but they may not apply to every scenario. You may also have preferences, habits, or opinions that influence your decisions, but they may not be supported by facts or data. To challenge your assumptions, you need to be open-minded, curious, and willing to learn from others. You can also use tools like the 5 Whys, the Socratic method, or the SWOT analysis to dig deeper into the root causes, logic, and implications of your assumptions.

3 Apply frameworks and methods

A third way to boost your critical thinking is to apply frameworks and methods that can help you structure your thinking process and guide your actions. Frameworks and methods are systematic and logical approaches that can help you define problems, analyze situations, generate solutions, and evaluate outcomes. Some examples of frameworks and methods that are useful for network engineers are the OSI model, the TCP/IP model, the PDCA cycle, the SMART goals, or the Kepner-Tregoe method. You can also create your own frameworks and methods based on your own knowledge, experience, or goals.

4 Test and validate your solutions

A fourth way to improve your critical thinking is to test and validate your solutions before you implement them or present them to others. Testing and validating your solutions can help you verify their feasibility, effectiveness, and efficiency. It can also help you identify and correct any errors, flaws, or gaps in your solutions. You can use various tools and techniques to test and validate your solutions, such as simulations, prototypes, experiments, or peer reviews. You can also use metrics and indicators to measure and monitor your solutions' performance and impact.

5 Reflect and learn from your experiences

A fifth way to advance your critical thinking is to reflect and learn from your experiences. Reflection and learning can help you assess your strengths and weaknesses, recognize your achievements and challenges, and identify your areas for improvement and growth. It can also help you update your knowledge, skills, and attitudes based on new information, feedback, or outcomes. You can use tools like journals, portfolios, or self-assessments to document and review your experiences. You can also use tools like the After Action Review, the Lessons Learned, or the Plus-Delta to extract and apply the key learnings from your experiences.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?