[#13] Hindsight of LIY

I am a huge supporter and promoter of learn-it-yourself (LIY / self-teaching). I encourage people to take learning matters into their own hands, owing to the internet. There is nothing that can stop anyone from learning anything if they have basic reading and writing skills.

Myself, for the good majority of my career, or rather the portion of knowledge I have gained in general till now, has been based on LIY. Interpreting things in your own natural way first and then understanding what other experts have to say, and where your perception falls short is what I call a good learning experience.

However, the mind is not perfect. It tends to form biased opinions, presumptions, preconceived notions, and false beliefs, which in turn affect our clarity in learning something, as well as the learning process itself.

Wikipedia describes Hindsight bias as a knew-it-all-along phenomenon. When I read this, I could immediately connect with it and was able to recollect so many incidents where I have uttered that phase. But in all fairness, did I really know it?

Having confidence in wrong beliefs can be disastrous in the short AND long term. Learning is a process that should be very neutral.

Did you have similar experiences?

-- Sumeet

LDT | Guest Posts | Resources | Wisdom