Knowing what you don’t know
A teacher once asked his students what they would do if they became a multi-millionaire. One of the students said, "I would buy a nice house, a car and travel the world." Another announced, "I would donate half of it to charity and invest the rest in business." The third student said, "I would give it all to you, teacher, because you are the source of all my knowledge." Impressed, the teacher asked, "Really? You would give me all your money?" The student, however, replied, "Of course not, teacher. I was just kidding. It was a joke, just like your knowledge."
A few years ago, I was trying to get an appointment with an important minister as a part of the lobbying effort of the organisation for which I worked. His personal assistant informed me that I am on the standby list and may have to meet him at his residence with perhaps 15 minutes' prior notice! After waiting all day, I finally received the call at around 11:00pm.
Clad in his sleeping attire, the minister welcomed me warmly in his lovely home with the living room walls lined with books. Our conversation started with his book collection, moving on to his achievements and other mundane issues while the clock ticked loudly in my ears as I waited desperately for the opportunity to mention my agenda. Midnight struck, but he went on talking as though he had just unlocked all the world's knowledge! At 1:15 am, I made a desperate attempt to veer the talks to our business, only to have him say, "Mahtab, let's discuss the official topic in the office!"
Such behaviour is called the "I know it all" syndrome, and they are found in people who are "apathetic". We have all had similar experiences, and it is useful to know when to remain silent. It is certainly wiser to remain silent when faced with someone who has the "I know it all" syndrome and has no care for his listeners. It is also a good idea to keep silent when angry or not in your normal state of mind. Most importantly, it helps immensely when one is smart enough to understand that he or she can gain more knowledge by listening rather than speaking.
Often, we don't know as much as we think we do. When put to the test, most leaders are unable to explain their jobs even though they think they understand it all. Are you finding it hard to believe? If we take the buzzwords that we use, then we will find that we cannot define them accurately. While we use them often enough, their meanings are usually not so clear if we are to define them. They cover gaps in our knowledge, serving as placeholders that polish concepts we don't fully understand.
Adopting a "learn it all" or "I don't know all" mindset is the key to being the smartest. It brings agility to learn in you. It involves embracing the discomfort of uncertainty, setting learning goals, experimenting, and reflecting on experiments. A leader must adopt this mindset. A leader can use various tools and techniques, such as observation, hypothesis testing, imagination, curiosity, past experiences, and sharing with mentors to gather evidence and draw conclusions. Knowledge can also be obtained from feedback and collaboration, self-care, and resilience which in turn helps in improving skills and performance that inspire and influence others.
Individuals, particularly leaders, who are not aware of their own ignorance are likely to be annoying, outdated, irrelevant, and unprepared for the challenges and opportunities of the future. It is important to remember, if knowledge is power, knowing what we don't is wisdom.
The author is founder and managing director of BuildCon Consultancies Ltd.