Confident Ignorance: The Power of Admitting That You Don’t Know.7 min read

The whole of humanity is mostly ignorant of the marvellous reality we find ourselves in. From the very functioning of our staggeringly complex brains to the existence of our incomprehensibly large universe, all we have are mostly clever, yet very broad assumptions of how things are and function. Assumptions that if you poke hard enough pop to reveal even far more bewildering ignorance. 

In fact, the more we know, the more we realise how little we knew. What was before the big bang? What does the future hold? The answers elude us. All we do have is ignorance…“We do not know”.

Yet this seemingly bottomless nature of ignorance isn’t limited to the physical world. We are also vastly ignorant of our internal world and pretty much how to do anything in particular. If we had a complete understanding of our thoughts, we would not be plagued by so many biases and impulses. And, if we knew everything there was to know about any particular thing, then there would be no such thing as improvements, yet every day there seems to be a new breakthrough or innovation.

Just like numbers are bounded by infinity, so also our knowledge are bounded by ignorance. There will always be far more things we don’t know than we do know, and every individual is going to learn only those things they have encountered. With infinity being the scope, everyone is bound to be ignorant of something.

Sadly, many people still associate a lot of shame and fear with not knowing. So much so that it begins to hurt their competence, progress, and relationships.

If you’re one of them, don’t feel bad. In this piece, I will introduce you to the concept of Confident Ignorance and hope that it helps you break free from ego and fear so you live a freer and more productive life. 

What Is Confident Ignorance?

Confident Ignorance is admitting what you don’t know, and seeking answers without hesitation. It’s trusting in your skill and ability to learn and be a little less ignorant. It is a focus on progress rather than perfection. It is making peace with ignorance.

Confident ignorance is a sort of antidote to two psychological phenomenons that hunt and dismantle many people. First, there’s the Dunning-Kruger effect that fools people into overestimating their abilities (because of their ignorance of their ignorance or incompetence). And on the flip side, Imposter Syndrome is where capable people doubt (or are ignorant of) their abilities. 

Confident ignorance cures both problems by removing ego and fear from the equation.

People who are confidently ignorant know they know a bit about a given topic but not everything and are not afraid to attempt, fail, and learn because they trust their ability to learn and adapt. 

And, even in circumstances where they know ignorance may never be overcome, they make peace with it just like mathematicians make peace with infinities, knowing they are essential to progress yet forever beyond full comprehension.

“The more I learn, the more I realise how much I don’t know” – Albert Einstein

Why Is Confident Ignorance Powerful

Confident ignorance is invaluable because it helps us to humbly explore the world with a sense of excitement and optimism with others.

Almost every kid comes to the world with confident ignorance. A kid might walk up to you and ask why the sky is blue. Sadly, even though most people are as ignorant as the kid, they would rather brush the question off, or tell the kid they ask too many questions. Some adults may reluctantly admit they have no clue. But, adults who have confident ignorance will not just admit their ignorance, but also invite the kid to join them on an adventure to figure out the answer. 

This could result in asking someone else who they think has the answer, or simply turning to Google, or AI as the case may be.

Needless to say, the result of this demonstration of confident ignorance is that not only does the kid retain their curiosity and feel even closer to the adult, but both parties get to learn something new and move on from that with a sense of greater awe about the very nature of the universe.

Even in situations where the power structure is different, confident ignorance is still important. A CEO can ask questions and learn from an employee. Rather than reducing respect, such admission of ignorance can humanise the leader and make the follower feel seen and important. 

With confident ignorance, there is no fear of being “found out” or seen as “inadequate” because you forthrightly admitted not knowing and seeking to learn. 

When you accept that it’s okay not to know everything, you stop feeling like a fraud. You shift from being scared of what you don’t know to being excited about what you can learn.

And, once you’ve learned that 1 extra thing, you gleefully add it to the 99 you already know.

In all these cases, Confident Ignorance doesn’t just help you grow, it generates respect and builds trust with others. You’re not pretending, and people appreciate that. 

While I am aware that there might be a real risk of getting punished for not knowing – say in an examination or an interview – I believe that the more you can pride yourself in your ability to learn rather than in your knowledge itself, the more you can live a richer, and far more authentic life.

From romance to work, I’ve had several instances where pausing and admitting, “I have no clue what I am doing” has helped me “perform better”…

Conclusion: Knowledge is not what makes you wise

Following a chain of reasoning, Socrates, the great Greek philosopher concluded that the only reason he might have been seen as the wisest person in Athens was “for I was conscious that I knew practically nothing…”.

He didn’t say that to appear humble or to sound smart. He said it because he was aware that there was so much that he was completely ignorant of. On another occasion, he highlighted that most of his peers, because they were so good in their craft, thought they knew everything, and that it was in fact only his realisation that he knew nothing that made him a little bit wiser than them.

“A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.” – William Shakespeare

***

I still recall how I sat beside her almost freaking out about how I was completely clueless about what to do.

She listened silently.

And, when I was done venting.

She smiled and said, “I trust you, David, you always figure things out”.

At that moment I realised, she wasn’t beside me because I knew everything, but because she trusted my judgement.

Immediately I stopped panicking. 

***

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