Merriam-Webster defines an expert as someone having, involving, or displaying special skill or knowledge derived from training or experience. We got to like the sound of that!
Are you the first to say, “I don’t know?”
Do you have a sense of wonder and delight at everyday details?
For most, the answer is ‘no’, which is why we have so much trouble identifying where we are today. Where we are in the business world or where we stand competitively as an athlete. We refuse to look dumb and admit we don’t know. Instead, we feel more comfortable providing an answer we believe others want to hear; “I make good money,” or “I can always improve.” Imagine trying to answer which job to take, which college to play ball at, or even determining how to pick fiends.
Unfortunately, we are not open-minded enough to let anyone know we really don’t have a clue. It’s as if we are afraid of the work curiosity creates. By not knowing something will require us to ask questions, to investigate, and even though the research may lead us to knowledge, we are more afraid SOMEONE will realize we don’t know something. Unfortunately, that SOMEONE is US!
Dean Graziosi in his book, “Millionaire Success Habits” describes our inability to truly answer questions is one of the biggest challenges facing each one of us today. It begins with “there are so many things…vying for our attention…that if we don’t manage modern life, it will manage us.
So going forward let’s establish a “friendly relationship with a question mark,” and listen to Laura Fox describe how her 96-year-old grandmother helped her twin brother and she became comfortable with the words, “I don’t know and help them start on an adventure.” If we don’t, we are going to become Experts in our Own Minds and our self-perceptions of expertise, our closed-minded thought will only produce the title, Earned Dogmatism.
Until next blog, Value Questions, not Silence!
Al McCormick
