ThinkWell4Life — Thinking Skills That Become Habits

The Problem

"Most of us were taught what to think, and rarely how. Under pressure we jump to a conclusion, overlook the one thing that mattered, or settle for the first idea. Knowing a technique is not enough either: the hard part is remembering to use it when it counts. Thinking well is a skill, and a skill becomes reliable when it becomes a habit."

What you'll achieve

Outcomes you can expect

Use nineteen thinking skills on real situations from your own life, from a quick pros, cons and alternatives to a full plan with a plan B
Make important decisions step by step, with a provisional decision you test before it is final
Find the real problem beneath the symptoms, and generate alternatives beyond the obvious
Turn each skill into a habit, and see your sixteen thinking habits move from the start of the course to the end

The science behind it

What you'll learn

The twelve ThinkWell techniques and five universal strategies, and how they combine in real life
The sixteen Habits of Mind (Costa and Kallick), and which habit makes each skill stick
How to practise just past what is easy, use feedback and tell effective effort from simply more hours
What the research says about teaching thinking, stated honestly, with an evidence grade on every claim

What's included

Everything you get

49 tools across 10 modules, 22 of them built for this course
A reader and a one-page card for every module, and private fillable workbooks for 47 of the tools
An audio guide for every tool, and full research references on every Learn tab
A check-in on sixteen thinking habits at the start and the end, a stretch log in every module, and the ThinkWell Practice Gym with 610 prompts across six areas of life

Who it's for

The right fit

Designed for For students, adults and anyone who has to think something through: a study plan, a career choice, a family decision or a problem at work. Also suited to a class or group, where each technique is tried with one to seven others.

A thinking-skills course built on ThinkWell, developed by the EquipU4 team at Stellenbosch University for the LearnWell programme. You learn nineteen practical skills, from weighing pros, cons and alternatives and taking all information into account to planning, decision-making and problem-solving, each with its own image to remember it by. Every skill is paired with the habit of mind that makes you use it when it matters, and grown with stretch, feedback and effective effort. You practise each one on a real situation from your own life, take a check-in on sixteen thinking habits at the start and the end, and finish with one whole undertaking of your own that uses the full toolkit.

Common questions

FAQ

Do I need to be a student?

No. The skills work on any decision, plan or problem: study, work, family, health or community. The examples come from everyday life as well as student life.

Is this a course about intelligence?

No. It is about using the thinking you already have more deliberately: standing back, giving thinking time, and choosing the right technique for the task.

Where do I start?

With Captain of My Own Ship and the Thinking Habits Check-In in the first module: they introduce the whole toolkit and give you a starting point.

Ready to begin?

Nineteen practical thinking skills, each paired with the habit that makes you use it when it matters

R1,195 /year · Annual subscription — 12 months’ full access

Buy Now →

Try it free for 24 hours

The whole course for a day, no card needed. Whatever you write is kept if you buy. Trial terms

Buy any 3 courses and save 20% — mix & match your own bundle.

Not sure this is the one? Find the right course for you →

Secure payment by PayFast.