Critical Thinking: Outsmarting Your Own Mind
Your brain lies to you — and we're going to prove it.
In this course, you'll experience firsthand how easily the mind can be fooled — and how those blind spots quietly sabotage reasoning, analysis, and judgment, the very skills your work depends on every day.
Through live demonstrations, you'll watch your own brain misfire in real time — and learn to catch it before it costs you clarity, accuracy, or opportunity. From there, we'll unpack the groundbreaking work of Daniel Kahneman — the psychologist who won the Nobel Prize in Economics for proving just how predictably the human mind misleads us. You'll explore his two-system model of thinking, see how cognitive biases, assumptions, and mental shortcuts quietly distort judgment, and learn the practical tools that overcome them.
Then we'll put it to work. You'll approach problems like both a strategist and a scientist — breaking them apart, questioning assumptions, and spotting the hidden patterns and details that others miss. You'll learn to read a situation for what it actually is, not what your instincts insist it must be, and to think with a precision most people never develop.
For professionals whose work depends on getting it right — on contracts, programs, budgets, and people — clear thinking isn't a soft skill. It's the one that protects every other skill you have.
By the end, you'll think with greater precision, see what others overlook, and understand why even the smartest people make predictable mistakes — so you don't have to.
This course is taught by Melinda Milheim, JD, who has spent thirty years studying human behavior — including how the mind misleads us and how people make decisions under uncertainty — across decision science, behavioral economics, game theory, and the law. She put it to work where the stakes were real, on more than $7.7 billion in federal contracts for major weapon systems, missile systems, engineering, and R&D programs — high-dollar, high-consequence work where clear thinking under pressure wasn't optional. She draws on that experience, along with her law degree and MBA studies, to translate the research into practical tools your team can use the moment they leave the room. An award-winning instructor, featured speaker, and content creator, she is also the author of the forthcoming book Powder Keg: The Science & Strategy of Successful Negotiations.
Best for: Everyone. Clear thinking isn't a niche skill. This course is built for any professional whose work depends on getting it right: leaders, analysts, managers, contracting and program staff, technical experts, and anyone who makes decisions, solves problems, or sizes up a situation under pressure.
Format: Two-day, delivered in person or virtually. Phoenix Canyon issues every attendee a certificate of completion documenting the training hours as well as CEUs and CLPs earned. Attendees earn 16 CLPs/1.6 CEUs. Some organizations apply these toward Continuous Learning or Professional Development requirements; please check with your workplace to confirm their policy.
You might also consider (Critical Thinking page, bundle removed)
Skilled Decision Making: The Difference Between Being Good and Being Lucky — This course is about the moment of choice: how to make sound decisions under pressure, with incomplete information and real consequences on the line
Seeing Around Corners: The Art & Science of Risk Management — Learn to think like a professional poker player. Risk isn't a gamble when you know how to read the odds. Measure likelihood and severity, weigh the tradeoffs, and judge which risks are worth taking.
Mind Games & Money Moves: The Psychology of Negotiation — Anytime you can't get what you want without someone else's cooperation, you're negotiating — and the most dangerous negotiation is the one you don't know you're in. Learn the science and strategy of getting what you want.
Pricing is set per engagement. Contact Phoenix Canyon to request a quote.
Your brain lies to you — and we're going to prove it.
In this course, you'll experience firsthand how easily the mind can be fooled — and how those blind spots quietly sabotage reasoning, analysis, and judgment, the very skills your work depends on every day.
Through live demonstrations, you'll watch your own brain misfire in real time — and learn to catch it before it costs you clarity, accuracy, or opportunity. From there, we'll unpack the groundbreaking work of Daniel Kahneman — the psychologist who won the Nobel Prize in Economics for proving just how predictably the human mind misleads us. You'll explore his two-system model of thinking, see how cognitive biases, assumptions, and mental shortcuts quietly distort judgment, and learn the practical tools that overcome them.
Then we'll put it to work. You'll approach problems like both a strategist and a scientist — breaking them apart, questioning assumptions, and spotting the hidden patterns and details that others miss. You'll learn to read a situation for what it actually is, not what your instincts insist it must be, and to think with a precision most people never develop.
For professionals whose work depends on getting it right — on contracts, programs, budgets, and people — clear thinking isn't a soft skill. It's the one that protects every other skill you have.
By the end, you'll think with greater precision, see what others overlook, and understand why even the smartest people make predictable mistakes — so you don't have to.
This course is taught by Melinda Milheim, JD, who has spent thirty years studying human behavior — including how the mind misleads us and how people make decisions under uncertainty — across decision science, behavioral economics, game theory, and the law. She put it to work where the stakes were real, on more than $7.7 billion in federal contracts for major weapon systems, missile systems, engineering, and R&D programs — high-dollar, high-consequence work where clear thinking under pressure wasn't optional. She draws on that experience, along with her law degree and MBA studies, to translate the research into practical tools your team can use the moment they leave the room. An award-winning instructor, featured speaker, and content creator, she is also the author of the forthcoming book Powder Keg: The Science & Strategy of Successful Negotiations.
Best for: Everyone. Clear thinking isn't a niche skill. This course is built for any professional whose work depends on getting it right: leaders, analysts, managers, contracting and program staff, technical experts, and anyone who makes decisions, solves problems, or sizes up a situation under pressure.
Format: Two-day, delivered in person or virtually. Phoenix Canyon issues every attendee a certificate of completion documenting the training hours as well as CEUs and CLPs earned. Attendees earn 16 CLPs/1.6 CEUs. Some organizations apply these toward Continuous Learning or Professional Development requirements; please check with your workplace to confirm their policy.
You might also consider (Critical Thinking page, bundle removed)
Skilled Decision Making: The Difference Between Being Good and Being Lucky — This course is about the moment of choice: how to make sound decisions under pressure, with incomplete information and real consequences on the line
Seeing Around Corners: The Art & Science of Risk Management — Learn to think like a professional poker player. Risk isn't a gamble when you know how to read the odds. Measure likelihood and severity, weigh the tradeoffs, and judge which risks are worth taking.
Mind Games & Money Moves: The Psychology of Negotiation — Anytime you can't get what you want without someone else's cooperation, you're negotiating — and the most dangerous negotiation is the one you don't know you're in. Learn the science and strategy of getting what you want.
Pricing is set per engagement. Contact Phoenix Canyon to request a quote.