Ever hear someone complain that “common sense isn’t so common anymore”? Growing up, it felt like a favorite refrain of the older generation. But if we stop to analyze it, what exactly is “common sense”?
In essence, common sense is the basic, practical knowledge that most people in a society accept as true without needing formal proof. It is intuitive and experiential, rooted deeply in cultural norms.
Common sense is what tells you that if you leave your phone charger at home, your battery will be dead by noon. It’s what makes us wary of strangers in dark alleys. But common sense has a dangerous underside: it often leads us to assume that because everyone believes something, it must be true.
This is where critical thinking enters the frame.
Unlike common sense, critical thinking is an active, disciplined process. It’s not about what you think, but how you arrive at your conclusion. It involves analyzing information, challenging assumptions, and evaluating arguments methodically.
For example, when you see an ad claiming a miracle health cure, common sense might say, “It has five stars on the review page!” Critical thinking asks: “What scientific studies support this? Was the study peer-reviewed? What are the potential side effects?” When we hear a political slogan—like the ubiquitous “Make America Great Again”—critical thinking pushes us to ask: “What is the specific definition of ‘great’ in this context, and what is the actual plan to achieve it?”
Too often, we vote for a personality rather than a platform because we haven’t taken the time to examine the underlying logic.
The Mental Hurdles
If critical thinking is so beneficial, why don’t we do it more? Because our brains are wired with cognitive biases—shortcuts that feel efficient but often lead us astray. To think critically, we first have to recognize the “filters” distorting our view:
- Dogmatism: This is the act of accepting a statement as inherently true simply because it was delivered by an authority or tradition. It kills inquiry at the assumption stage: “This is just how things are.” Think of someone who accepts a historical account purely because it’s in a textbook, without ever questioning the primary sources.
- Emotional Reasoning: This occurs when we assume something is true simply because it feels true. When fear, anger, or excitement become our primary sources of truth, objective reality is sidelined. We might believe a dubious cure works simply because the salesperson spoke with passion, overriding scientific consensus.
- Confirmation Bias: The tendency to seek out information that confirms what we already believe while ignoring evidence that contradicts it. It turns the mind into a filter, letting in the “truth” and blocking the “noise.” If you only read news sources that mirror your own political views, you aren’t informing yourself; you’re just echoing yourself.
- Fallacious Thinking: This is the use of logically unsound arguments that sound persuasive. You see this in Ad Hominem attacks (attacking the person instead of the argument), Misused Appeals to Authority (claiming something is true just because a “famous” person said it), and the Bandwagon Fallacy (assuming something is right because everyone else is doing it).
Taking the Wheel
I’ve thrown a lot of terminology at you. Kudos for sticking with me. Let’s bring this home.
Surface-level understanding and prefabricated narratives are comforting. As humans, we hate leaving things unanswered. In an age of information overload, no one has the time to independently verify every single claim they encounter. So, I suggest a strategy: pick your battles.
Socrates famously claimed that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” Regardless of the source, there is profound truth in those words.
Ask yourself: What in my life causes me the most stress? What do I wish I could do, but feel I can’t because of something someone once told me? The crux of Socrates’ point is that we must “know ourselves.” It’s time to look at the influences in your life that you’ve never questioned and start grilling them.
The hardest part of critical thinking isn’t questioning a stranger trying to sell you a product; it’s questioning yourself.
Why do I do this? Why did I choose this path over another? Why do I view that group of people the way I do?
These questions are painful because they require us to admit we might have been wrong, deluded, or fooled. That doesn’t feel good. But like exercise, the process is uncomfortable, while the result—a stronger, more resilient version of yourself—feels awesome.
You might not be the leader of a country, a state, or a corporation, but that doesn’t mean you have to be a follower. Resolve to become the leader of your own mind.
You’ll thank me later.
What is one ‘common sense’ belief you’ve recently questioned? Let me know in the comments!
