It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows – Epictetus
Life is a constant learning and updating of ideas. To think otherwise is foolish but as Epictetus said, it is idiotic for me to try to convince you otherwise.
The Cox Man
Professor Brian Cox, not to be confused with the Scottish Actor of the same name, Succession is awesome by the way. The professor version is an English physicist who has appeared on many TV shows speaking passionately about physics and astronomy.
He has a child-like enthusiasm for the subject matter and communicates complex ideas simply.
He was on a podcast with two white guys recently, I am surprised I haven’t started a podcast yet. The hosts asked what his three non-negotiable behaviours are.
Behave Yourself
Professor Cox referenced Professor Richard Feynman, “Doubt is not to be feared, but welcomed”
He thought “Humility in your general life, but also in the face of nature.”
The most profound one and example that feels most aligned with who he is as a person and a teacher is to “be absolutely delighted when you find out that you are wrong”
These are three wonderful lessons to apply to how you lead your team.
Doubt
If you have no doubt you are a fool. If you have too much doubt you will be paralysed. Doubt is just a message that some area needs to be understood better or explored more.
Will we ever have all the information to make a perfect decision? No, absolutely not. Will we have some information to make a decision in the generally right direction, maybe?
This is where doubt creeps its naughty little head into our lives. Making us worried we could be wrong. News flash, you will be. You will never be perfect and that is ok. You still need to make a decision.
To ignore doubt would be perilous. If you forge on with absolute certainty you will be doubly screwed. You will not learn anything if you are right or wrong.
If you get it right, how do you repeat your process to get a good outcome in the future? Is it just to swing for the fences? Good luck with that, see how long that lasts.
If you get it wrong then why? Which part of your assumptions were wrong that you could change and retest? You will never know.
Humility
To understand that you have doubt means you accept that you don’t know everything.
This is not just a good thing, it is a great thing. It opens you up to the opportunity for learning and growth.
When Professor Cox references nature, this can be the projects and environment you are working in. You don’t control them, you are just guiding them and you must listen to what they are telling you.
Delightedly Wrong
This is my favourite part of the discussion. The absolute delight when finding out you are wrong. You can say that in a different way. The joy you feel when you learn something.
Learning something doesn’t just have to be a new piece of information. It could updating your understanding about information you are already aware of.
It is a challenge for people because saying you learnt something is recognition that you didn’t know something or were wrong in the past. The ego can a nightmare when it sees learning as a negative.
We all know people who double down on a point when they are clearly wrong because they can’t handle that ego hit.
But if you flip it around and see being wrong as a process in learning you will continuously improve your performance.
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Luke McMeeken-Ruscoe 