I was recently at a conference where one of the speakers said “Learning is more than gathering information”. That statement had a profound effect on me for many reasons. We looked at the difference between knowledge and wisdom and were asked “How many people have you met who have an immense amount of knowledge, are like walking encyclopedias but aren’t very wise? And how many people are very simple and don’t have a wealth of knowledge or information but are very, very wise?”
Take that question and add one of mine. Which person, the knowledgeable or the wise, leaves the biggest impact on you, so you remember the conversation, the context and take those words of wisdom and apply them to your life? My answer is the wise one.
In the days of vast amount of knowledge available at the tip of our fingertips, the world is fast become an even playing field when it comes to gathering knowledge. A great deal of it, through open source is available for no cost. Wisdom however is something that is priceless.
If we listen to all the knowledge that we’re bombarded with, we will close down and start ignoring it. There is way too much information to remember coming at us at the speed of light (thanks to technology). We can’t possibly retain it all. We can however look for guidance from those who have a wealth of wisdom because they see context, relevance and how it impacts us.
Do you consider yourself wise or knowledgeable? Regardless, which would you rather be?
I know many people with post graduate degrees coming out of their ears who can’t find a job. Why? Because they’re scholastically overqualified but don’t have the savvy, the perception and perspectives needed in a fast paced, competitive world. They get lost in their knowledge and get stuck on research but don’t integrate it and use it as needed to move themselves and organizations forward.
When choosing my development team I didn’t look at their degrees as much as experience, impact, awareness factor and openness to grow, learn and create. Knowledge can hold you back in the realm of what was already studied and documented. My team looks at possibility. How they live their lives, their work ethic and open-mindedness got them chosen for my team. I'm seeing the same trends more and more in the corporate world. Who do you think would serve your organization better? Perhaps it’s time to look at a culture change?
Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com
Related Stories: | Topics:Leadership, Donna Karlin, Ottawa, Canada |
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Recent Comments | 8 Total
November 14, 2007 at 4:49pm by Donna Karlin
Thanks Joel : )
Best, always
Donna
November 14, 2007 at 6:44pm by Donna Karlin
Hey Joe...
That's great! Can I quote you on that? Seriously? (stay tuned for a future co-blog)
that's a great dialogue in itself and food for thought. Thanks a million..
Donna
November 15, 2007 at 1:24pm by Donna Karlin
Yep Joe...
Interested?
D
November 15, 2007 at 4:46pm by Joe Raasch
Yes I am. Do we need to schedule some time to chat?
November 16, 2007 at 10:35am by Mike
Donna,
I couldn't agree with you more. Wisdom is formed over time through one's life experiences. However, not everyone seems to possess wisdom. Can it be that some people just can't retain or retrieve what they've learned? Or perhaps one isn't exposed to diverse experiences?
I have meet may people who certainly have demonstrated great knowledge, but as you suggest, don't flourish in today's fast-paced environment or worse yet, make bad business decisions based solely on what they learned through instruction.
Personally, I consider myself the wiser rather than the intellectual. Early career advancement made it difficult for me to finish my degree but I was able to advance to VP level positions without it - albeit a more difficult path.
People who are going to be sucessful today must possess may qualities, behaviors and experience that you mention. I agree! The time is right for a culture change.
November 16, 2007 at 4:28pm by Lynda M Graham
How true wisdom is what will take us to what really matters in this world the BIBLE and what GOD is trying to say to all of us if we just had enough wisdom to read it.!!!!
November 19, 2007 at 3:57am by Eri Sudiono
Hi Donna,
I agree completely with you. However, depend on the configuration of the team though when you want to choose knowledge over wisdom or vice versa.
When I had the luxury to choose people to work in my team, for the programmer/analyst level however, firstly I looked for the proofs that s/he is quite skilled for the role. I mean, I can not recruit somebody who has not proven to be skilled enough to develop a piece of computer code, say. Then, I would explore her/his view and willingness to grow.
For someone with leadership role, be it leading a team of two (including her/himself), or say leading a team of twenty, I would certainly see her/his wisdom and balancing it with her/his experiences in leading teams. I had to carefully see if s/he used to use text book approach or more using her/his wisdom (coming from her/his experiences). But, the latter is very difficult to spot, sometimes I managed to see it only when s/he was on board ;)
A year ago I met somebody who was quite senior in the organisation management structure and acknowledged to be an experienced manager and pushed his people to follow his text-book approach directions. He was so pushy although most people told him that not in every situation and organisation his directions could work. And later he knew that a group of people did not follow his direction because of the difference circumstances faced by them, and surely he was proven wrong. Still he did not admit it :).
If you ask me which one will make a business organisation better a knowledgeable or a wise one, then I would say that organisation needs both. But if the question is more for a person, I would then say a wise person. People can only grow if s/he has the "wise" quality. Knowledge is good only for a particular time. That's what I always say to my student mentees/proteges.
November 19, 2007 at 11:51am by Donna Karlin
Eri...
Beautifully stated!
It brings me back to an earlier discussion about the importance and relevance of context and organizational culture. We have to look at fit, personalities, history...so many factors and then it's about choices.
Many thanks!