An algorthm for wisdom

Sitting on the porch tonight, staring off into the darkening sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of an alien craft, or two. And I got to thinking of less exciting things. . . . .

This is not an easy game, this game of constructing puzzles and sorting things out (whatever game you play, insert your career path for the word puzzle).
Many want to make this a simpler game, because wrestling with the deep wells of complexities can be daunting.
Some things are just not simple, period. Sure, there is that saying that if you cannot take something complex and explain it in simpler terms, you do not grasp the concepts. And that is true, mostly, often, but not always.
But it still doesn't mean the topic is not complex.

Without enough knowledge, things can only appear to us based on that limited knowledge. If you are color blind, things are just going to take on a different perceived reality than to someone who is not color blind.

Like in this photo here, if you cannot understand that the orientation of a light source can take something bent and make it look straight, then there is no way it can exist in your mind as a possibility.
Playing this game of "figure out the human puzzle" is often about specific knowledge. And without that specific knowledge there is no way we can get the honest answer. But, do not ever dismiss the power of taking that knowledge and blending it with decade of experience, plus a little perspective of course.

Remember, it all starts with the data. Without all of the necessary data we never get there. Without context we do not get there. Data is merely noise without context. Without experimentation and error (private practice) we do not get there. (*This by the way, is where the teachers, lecturers and so called experts might fail if they do, they might not have enough experience. I know this because I have been that young lecturer, even the older lecturer, and far too often I realized I was not the person with enough experience to be at the front of the room spouting off truths that my experience could not defend. It still happens to me even today. It is humbling. How does the saying go? "Don't let your mouth write checks that your ass cannot cash." I've been there, done that.)

And so where is "there"? What is this destination? It is quiet simply, Wisdom.
Most of us will never get there, maybe we get some toes and a foot dipped into the pool of wisdom, maybe even a whole leg in there from time to time, but rarely does anyone gets there. Knowing that fact, we can truly remain students of the journey.
The algorithm cannot be cheated or "short-coursed".
There are no short cuts.

May your clinical "humblings" this week be gentle on your ego, as I hope mine are.
The journey continues its beatings and humbling, but that is why we play the game, in the hopes of reaching the next stage of enlightenment, in the hopes of helping one more person truly in need.
So let the beatings continue.
Have a great week gang.
Shawn

Data = Noise

Data + Context = Information

Experimentation + Error = Experience

Information + Experience = Knowledge

Knowledge + Humility = Wisdom

-Fergus Connolly