I feel dumber than ever in the best possible way.

I have progressed throughout my 30+year career and have gone from an entry level tech to CIO, Business Owner, and Board Member. At each stage in my career, I was convinced that I knew all, that I was the expert.?Although this arrogance did help me in the confidence department, it astounds me now how little I actually knew about the bigger picture.?As an “expert” I knew the mechanics, the functions, and how things were interconnected and operated in the tiny universe that I was standing in at the time, but now I have the luxury of hindsight and a broader perspective and can see that I knew very little and more importantly, how little I know now.

I guess part of the issue is that you can’t see the bigger picture until you have had the experiences of the smaller parts of the picture. Now that I am much older and can see the bigger picture, I know that there is “big” picture larger than I will ever know.??I am back in school now (Masters program at WGU). I have gone back to school because some of the people that I have hired are quite a bit younger that I am and know things about my industry that I don’t, even with 30 years of experience in it!?The course of study I am in right now didn’t even exist that last time I was in school. It is humbling to go back after all these years, but in a good way. It’s also fun to hear from the other students of their perspectives and experiences.?

The wisdom paradox (Aristotle, although Einstein usually gets credit for the quote) tells us that the more we are exposed to thoughts, points of view, new situations, cultures, ideas, and facts, the more we appreciate just how ignorant we are and that the ways to see the world are virtually infinite.

There’s power in that. That power rests in the lack of assumptions. I have stopped assuming there’s an easy answer. I ask more questions. I listen more intently to fully appreciate and understand a point of view. I realize that anyone and everyone can be a teacher. I’m comfortable not knowing everything about something, exploring a topic I know little about, knowing full well I might never understand it. I know it is OK to make mistakes as long as I glean a lesson from it.

All of this to say that I feel dumber than ever in the best possible way.?I encourage each of you reading this to challenge yourself and discover what you don’t know.?