161–170 of 267 posts
Ah yes. Always knew my superior general knowledge was due to my absolutely incredible intellectual humility.
A few years ago the guy I was sharing an office with at work was cleaning off his desk and found a stack of resumes. He said they were all from the batch that I was hired from and asked if I wanted to know why I was picked. Very cautiously I said yes. He told me I was the only one who when really pushed during the technical interview said "I don't know". Their initial strategy had been to start easy on some topic and…
I was listening to some Christian on a video criticizing atheists and saying something related to the god of the gaps fallacy.
He commented something along the lines of "you have to have an answer to these things!"
No. No you don't.
You don't just invent some fairy tale just because you don't understand something.
Often the best answer is "I don't know"
What I was firstly taught as a young mathematician was honesty, not humility.
A few years ago the guy I was sharing an office with at work was cleaning off his desk and found a stack of resumes. He said they were all from the batch that I was hired from and asked if I wanted to know why I was picked. Very cautiously I said yes. He told me I was the only one who when really pushed during the technical interview said "I don't know". Their initial strategy had been to start easy on some topic and…
"I don't know" is often the best answer. I was listening to some Christian on a video criticizing atheists and saying something related to the god of the gaps fallacy. He commented something along the lines of "you have to have an answer to these things!" No. No you don't. You don't just invent some fairy tale just because you don't understand something. Often the best answer is "I don't know"
A questionnaire from the article: 1) I am willing to admit if I don't know something. 2) I like to compliment others on their intellectual strengths. 3) I try to reflect on my weaknesses in order to develop my intelligence. 4) I actively seek feedback on my ideas, even if it is critical. 5) I acknowledge when someone knows more than me about a certain subject. 6) If someone doesn't understand my idea, it's probably b…
> 6) If someone doesn't understand my idea, it's probably because they aren't smart enough to get it. (reverse) One of my high school teachers said something like: if someone doesn't understand your explanation, then you don't know it as well as you think you do.
A questionnaire from the article: 1) I am willing to admit if I don't know something. 2) I like to compliment others on their intellectual strengths. 3) I try to reflect on my weaknesses in order to develop my intelligence. 4) I actively seek feedback on my ideas, even if it is critical. 5) I acknowledge when someone knows more than me about a certain subject. 6) If someone doesn't understand my idea, it's probably b…
Answer yes or no AND write a short explanation of why.
Then the judge of the answer sheet should decide if points for or against are awarded for each question.
As an example, I just am really bad at complimenting others. Both because my own overall standards are so high and also because that was never a skill I learned; so I'm actually very shy at doing so. Maybe I should have been complimented more, and better trained as a child to compliment others.
I explained 6 in a different reply under this thread. However a different way of getting the data (which would be better and yield a clearer view) could be to ask: "If someone doesn't understand my idea what are the possible reasons?"
7) This one is just painful. It really depends on who you're exposed to on a daily basis and how you relate to them. I _have_ marveled at how smart, driven, or successful some others are... mostly the successful and driven parts though.
8/9) Emotional reactions are different from how you try to handle emotional reactions.
A questionnaire from the article: 1) I am willing to admit if I don't know something. 2) I like to compliment others on their intellectual strengths. 3) I try to reflect on my weaknesses in order to develop my intelligence. 4) I actively seek feedback on my ideas, even if it is critical. 5) I acknowledge when someone knows more than me about a certain subject. 6) If someone doesn't understand my idea, it's probably b…
> 6) If someone doesn't understand my idea, it's probably because they aren't smart enough to get it. (reverse) One of my high school teachers said something like: if someone doesn't understand your explanation, then you don't know it as well as you think you do.
if someone doesn't understand your explanation, it might be that you don't understand the person well enough or you don't know the correct way to explain to that person in a plain language
Scanning the comments, I don't really see anyone discussing the value of "superior general knowledge". I like knowledge, so I find value in attaining it. However, depending on your goals, intellectual humility will set you back a great deal. Most people use confidence and certainty as a signal, and suppressing these means they'll pick someone over you (for a promotion, for a relationship, for a contract, for your kno…
One can very much be humble and confident. Especially in an interview or promotion situation, I'm proud of and speak to my accomplishments and the skills and knowledge I've been able to obtain, but I can also speak with real honesty about the mistakes I've made, tend to make, and my own shortcomings. I talk about both without hesitation. Though I know it's entirely anecdotal, I've found most of the time those traits…
A questionnaire from the article: 1) I am willing to admit if I don't know something. 2) I like to compliment others on their intellectual strengths. 3) I try to reflect on my weaknesses in order to develop my intelligence. 4) I actively seek feedback on my ideas, even if it is critical. 5) I acknowledge when someone knows more than me about a certain subject. 6) If someone doesn't understand my idea, it's probably b…
I would add some important evaluations. These are some less obvious, deeper aspects of intellectual humility: 10) I accept that someone with less experience may have better ideas than I have, even in my own field of expertise. 11) Even if I am not certain of myself, I am willing to suggest and defend my ideas because they deserve equal treatment. 12) I am willing to forgo new ideas when they hurt momentum too much. 1…
There are also people who assume their ideas in fields they don’t have experience in are good, precisely because of that lack of experience. They think their “outsider’s perspective” significantly increases their likelihood of being correct because they “think outside the box” or some such. It’s the opposite of humility, and supremely frustrating to deal with!