HABITS OF MIND

1
Jonathan Dimaya
Habits of Mind

In the event where a human being is confronted with a problem, that individual may
exhibit a combination of characteristics of intelligent thinking behavior. This behavior amounts
to 16 different characteristics described by Costa (2012), as Habits of Mind. Everyone has
their strengths, weaknesses, and there are those who arent able to display certain thinking habits.
I for one, appreciate engaging in conversations while possessing the ability to distinguish
anothers boundaries. In other situations, I may exhibit poor decision making, such as not
thinking before I act. Personally, I believe that I have strength in listening with understanding
and empathy, while a habit that I would like to improve is managing impulsivity.
I like to believe that everyone around me is interesting. Whether they are my coworkers,
teachers, classmates, friends or family, if a conversation was to start, I will be glad to converse in
return. In the moments where the other person is speaking to me, I tend to become a really good
listener. Im the person at work who can give my undivided attention to someone talking to me
while moving around in a room, using both hands and feet to complete my task, and being
undisturbed if Im unable to show eye-contact. Besides being a really good listener, I always try
to understand and relate to what the conversation is about. Its important to ask questions to those
of whom I speak with, so I can thoroughly exchange words with them and to let them know they
are talking to someone instead of themselves. While using this thinking habit, I also apply
empathy. As a conversation gets deeper, I notice body language, facial expressions, vocal tones,
and word use in another person. Out of those cues, I can interpret their moods and feelings at the
time being. They could feel happy, mad, or sad, but I almost if not always reply appropriately in

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respect to their mood. Showing empathy requires good listening and understanding, which
explains why Im able to tend to the thoughts, views, and ideas of others, other than myself.
Everyone has weaknesses and I feel that managing impulsivity is mine. There are times I
find myself jumping to a conclusion before thinking about the facts. Other times, I say the first
answer that comes to mind instead of thoroughly thinking about the question. I have been an
easy test taker and I dont usually second guess myself. However, when the answer to a problem
is present (like having a teacher or tutor around), it seems the process of elimination takes over.
Its a bad habit because I abandon using my own thinking process to solve a problem that Im
confronted with and end up relying on another source to correct me. I would want to improve in
being patient enough with myself to identify problems, analyze facts, and independently come up
with a solution. My impulsivity isnt a habit whereas it happens constantly, but it may play a
major factor in certain situations.
Intelligent individuals utilize thinking habits to formulate solutions and solve problems. I
rely mostly on my listening with understanding and empathy habit, though managing my
impulsivity would be a great habit to improve on. Improving on habits I dont consider strengths
is important because thinking habits are used concurrently, not independently.

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3 pts for each area

Both Choices were
presented well
Choices were
presented through self
reflection and analysis
Paper was well
organized
Length of article
followed guidelines of
1.5 -2 pages in length
1 pt APA Formatting
followed
1 pt No Spelling
errors and sentence
structure is excellent
1 pt Rubric added to
paper
total 3 pts
12

2 pts for each area

Both choices were
presented but one
choice was not well
developed
Self reflection and
analysis was
inconsistent in both
choices
Paper was mainly
organized, but went
off track one time.
Article was close to
the page length. (1, or
3)
APA Formatting
followed
Minimal Spelling
errors
Sentence structure
good
Student followed most
of the areas but made
1-2 errors. Rubric not
available as directed.
8

1 pts for each area

Lacking development on
both choices
Self reflection and analysis
was not very clear
Length of paper was not
within guidelines due to
disorganization of the
writing style
Students made more than 3
errors in APA format,
spelling or sentence
structure. Rubric not
available as directed.
Total points earned would
be 1 or 0 pt.

HABITS OF MIND