Critical Thinking in 2026

A few days ago, Mike Novogratz (CEO of $GLXY) tweeted something that really landed with me. He said we might already be living in a world where truth itself feels unstable. You know, add AI-generated images, deepfakes, video manipulation, and the problem just accelerates.

Look, he’s not wrong about the pressure we’re under. But I think the deeper issue isn’t that truth has disappeared. It’s that our capacity to judge calmly is being eroded. I mean, how many times have you watched a movie trailer online only to realize halfway through that it was fake?

Critical thinking in 2026 isn’t just about logic or intelligence anymore. It’s about whether we can maintain judgment when we’re under emotional strain.

I was reminded of this just this week while teaching a class on persuasion and critical thinking at a business school here in Paris. The discussions were intense, thoughtful, cool-headed. We did touch on some difficult issues during the introductory discussion. But what struck me was that people who had every reason to react emotionally were doing the opposite. They were slowing down. Questioning assumptions. Watching their own reactions.

That’s a real contrast to what’s out there around us.

You know, we’ve all seen how quickly public discourse collapses when emotion takes over. Recent incidents, amplified by video and commentary, show how two sides can look at the same evidence and arrive at radically different “truths.”

The Minnesota shooting is one recent example. What struck me wasn’t the disagreement itself, but how quickly commentary on both sides removed space for independent judgment. On one side, moral certainty left no room to think. On the other, visible facts were blurred until perception itself was called into question, and then they doubled down with their own narrative.

Different directions, same outcome. In both cases, the audience wasn’t being helped to think. They were being told how to think.

This is where critical thinking quietly dies. Not when facts disappear, but when interpretation gets outsourced. When emotional certainty replaces personal judgment. When alignment is rewarded more than understanding.

From a distance, the pattern is clear. When fear, anger, or identity take control, critical thinking shuts down. Certainty rises. Curiosity disappears. Language hardens. And this is a human bug, not a feature.

What’s abundantly clear is that the only solution to reversing this deepening crisis is good leadership. While there are certain things beyond any individual’s control right now, what we can do is arm ourselves for the betterment of ourselves and our organizations.

This is why critical thinking today starts inside, not outside.

From my perspective, three things matter more than ever.

First, emotional self-awareness. If you don’t know what state you’re in, you can’t judge what you’re seeing. Anxiety narrows perception. Calm restores nuance. I’ve observed in myself that in an emotional crisis, I can rarely think clearly. I was recently a victim of a scam (irreversible loss of funds). I sought advice and took no action around it for 24 hours.

Second, distance from constant information flow. Continuous exposure isn’t being informed. It’s cognitive flooding. Stepping back protects judgment. I know it’s tempting to want to keep informed—I have the same tendencies. But overexposure is a trap.

Third, plurality of sources and psychological literacy. Most distortions are emotional before they’re ideological.

Critical thinking isn’t about being right. I personally try to challenge my assumptions. Like, what’s behind people’s actions? Why do they make these choices? What’s pressuring them to act in such a way?

It’s about staying capable of thinking when others cannot.

As we move toward the rest of 2026, this might become one of the most valuable skills a leader, citizen, or individual can cultivate. Not because the world is confusing, but because it’s deliberately engineered to overwhelm.

Clarity, judgment, and restraint aren’t optional anymore.

They’re acts of responsibility.

This is your last line of defense.