5 Things You Cannot Teach Someone
“What the human being is best at doing is interpreting all new information so that their prior conclusions remain intact.” - Warren Buffett
In an interview with Janice B that I listened to a couple years ago, she shared the following reflections as a CEO. I find her learning spot-on because I’ve experienced all of this in my own life (the hard way):
#1 You cannot teach people experience.
I am friends with several long-distance runners who’ve shared their experience of running marathons. But the only reliable way to gain experience has been to actually run marathons and learn what works for me and how to condition my body and mind.
#2 You cannot teach people anything if they don’t want to learn it.
There are times when I get less flexible on certain things for various reasons (not interested in the topic, not in the mood, boring presentation, etc).
#3 You cannot teach people anything if they know it all.
As Phil Tetlock says, as we think and talk, we often slip into the mindsets of 3 different professions:
Preachers - when our sacred beliefs are in jeopardy
Prosecutors - when we recognize flaws in other people’s reasoning
Politicians - when we’re seeking to win over an audience
The risk is that we become so wrapped up in preaching that we’re right, prosecuting others who are wrong, and politicking for support that we don’t bother to rethink our own views.
If we’re not open minded, we condition ourselves to think that we’re always right and there’s nothing else to know/learn.
#4 You cannot teach people confidence.
My sister had no stage-fear. She used to ask me to remain confident when participating in school competitions. My parents, professors, and friends motivated me to do the same. But that didn’t build sustained confidence. The only way was to put myself out there, do things, and get better.
#5 You cannot teach people commonsense.
Growing up, I followed several superstitions by just blindly following what others were doing around me. In some situations, these “beliefs” have been harmless but in other cases, the impact has been severe. More on that soon.
Until Next Time,
Keshav :)