It takes guts to say that “I don’t know” but trust me the world opens up for you. Human beings find it intolerable to say it to themselves or to the group that ‘they do not know’. Right from our childhood we keep getting sermons that we should know. If someone in public tell you with utter intense surprise, don’t you know this ? I am sure it makes you feel, not okay, may be for some time. Not to know is not a desirable state that we all look forward. All attempts are being made to project or confabulate that ‘I know’. There is lot of pressure that we carry just to show that, we know.
The world is full of people who would leave no stone unturned to make you feel that they know more than you. Lot of their energy is directed towards establishing their superiority of knowing more. We all have heard of a story, there was a man of wisdom, who used to put a belt around his stomach, ensuring that the knowledge inside should not out move. People complicate their life in thousand ways, just to stay in this utopia of the knowing more.
On the other side are the people who unnecessarily think that other know more. Some of them are political while many unaware. We tend to see the first type more in the corporate world. Don’t you remember the last meeting where, one of your colleague was unstoppable, irritating everybody around ? The person kept continuously stating points that the team was already well aware of. He was influencing the senior officers who had come from the Corporate Office.
Haven’t you also done something like this? Speaking in the meeting to position yourself as
knowledgeable. Some individuals carry this fear of not knowing to the extent of being anxious and this could lead to strange behaviors. I have seen committee members in interview who test their knowledge, instead of the applicant knowledge. Not sure, they interview to select or reject.
None of the behavior mentioned above would ever bring new knowing, hence the knowing is generally low. Behavior do not change, principles are not understood and ignored, short term is killing the long term, just because of ego – ‘I know’.
When the leaders in the organisation are not able to appreciate the value of ‘I don’t know, or
stay aware that they are always in the process of knowing. Organisations also start getting in to the, ‘I know’ syndrome. You will see this view settling in to the cultural fabric of the organisation over a period of time. Organisation will stop seeing the emerging and the fallacy of ‘knowing’ will manifest in the dwindling growth. Leadership even, after this may not be able to see, organisation also may not recognize the opportunities or threat and end starts approached faster.
It is said that once you define a tree as mango or banana tree, you stop observing it. You would tend to miss the small new leaf, the fruit bud or many other smaller changes. The point is when you carry the notion that you know you stop learning, you stop experimenting, or you take it for granted. MD of one of the organisation that I earlier worked with would take no time to say that ‘ He does not know’.
Everything becomes simply open to knowing, when you say; I don’t know!
The world is full of people who would leave no stone unturned to make you feel that they know more than you. Lot of their energy is directed towards establishing their superiority of knowing more. We all have heard of a story, there was a man of wisdom, who used to put a belt around his stomach, ensuring that the knowledge inside should not out move. People complicate their life in thousand ways, just to stay in this utopia of the knowing more.
On the other side are the people who unnecessarily think that other know more. Some of them are political while many unaware. We tend to see the first type more in the corporate world. Don’t you remember the last meeting where, one of your colleague was unstoppable, irritating everybody around ? The person kept continuously stating points that the team was already well aware of. He was influencing the senior officers who had come from the Corporate Office.
Haven’t you also done something like this? Speaking in the meeting to position yourself as
knowledgeable. Some individuals carry this fear of not knowing to the extent of being anxious and this could lead to strange behaviors. I have seen committee members in interview who test their knowledge, instead of the applicant knowledge. Not sure, they interview to select or reject.
None of the behavior mentioned above would ever bring new knowing, hence the knowing is generally low. Behavior do not change, principles are not understood and ignored, short term is killing the long term, just because of ego – ‘I know’.
When the leaders in the organisation are not able to appreciate the value of ‘I don’t know, or
stay aware that they are always in the process of knowing. Organisations also start getting in to the, ‘I know’ syndrome. You will see this view settling in to the cultural fabric of the organisation over a period of time. Organisation will stop seeing the emerging and the fallacy of ‘knowing’ will manifest in the dwindling growth. Leadership even, after this may not be able to see, organisation also may not recognize the opportunities or threat and end starts approached faster.
It is said that once you define a tree as mango or banana tree, you stop observing it. You would tend to miss the small new leaf, the fruit bud or many other smaller changes. The point is when you carry the notion that you know you stop learning, you stop experimenting, or you take it for granted. MD of one of the organisation that I earlier worked with would take no time to say that ‘ He does not know’.
Everything becomes simply open to knowing, when you say; I don’t know!
No comments:
Post a Comment