.jpeg)
In response to “stewarding knowledge capital”, I was recently asked about Donald Rumsfeld’s “Knowns and Unknowns”, formatted in a paradigm somewhat akin in orientation to Johari’s Window.
While the paradigm is helpful, we must nonetheless humbly recognize that the taxonomy of KNOWING is far more complex in the real world of learning and discovery.
The whole point is to be a lifelong learner, which involves discovery, learning, and growth in community.
Let’s begin with something simple and familiar. There are four basic quadrants of KNOWING -
What I know I know.
What I know I don’t know.
What I don’t know I know.
What I don’t know I don’t know.
But the taxonomy of KNOWING is complex. At least, it’s not as simple as we think!
For KNOWING is not a solitary act. It’s a communal, interactive discovery.
So, we have to move from the individualistic cognition (the “I know” and the “I don’t know”) to add another marker towards a communal cognition (the “you know” and the “you don’t know”).
And with this, the communal experience of you and I KNOWING gets interesting (and mind-blogging!)
Consider this. There are some things I know that I know. And if you know me, you’ll probably know that I know (and that I know that I know).
Likewise, there are some things that you know you know; and if I know you, I would also know that you know (and that you know that you know).
But it doesn’t stop there!
In many other things, I know I don’t know, and you know that I don’t know (and that I know that I don’t know). And likewise, there are some things you know that you don’t know, and I would know that you don’t know (and that you know that you don’t know).
But it gets a little more complicated - when I don’t know that I don’t know, and you know that I don’t know that I don’t know. Or, in reverse, you don’t know that you don’t know; and I know that you don’t know that you don’t know.
Or, it might be another aspect of cognitive dissonance where I don’t know that I know, and you know that I don’t know that I know. Or maybe, it’s the other way around. You don’t know that you know, and I know that you don’t know that you know.
Or, the case might be that I know I know, but you don’t know that I know; or conversely, you know you know, but I don’t know you know.
Add another permutation. I know I don’t know, but you don’t know that I don’t know (or that I know that I don’t know). Or conversely, you know that you don’t know, but I don’t know that you don’t know (or that you know that you don’t know)!
Now it also gets complicated when I don’t know I know, and you don’t know that I don’t know I know. Or perhaps the case might be that you don’t know that you know, and I don’t know that you don’t know that you know, right?
Then again, it might be that I don’t know that I don’t know, and you don’t know that I don’t know that I don’t know. Or conversely, you don’t know that you don’t know, and I don’t know that you don’t know that you don’t know!!!
But hey, there’s MORE!
Till now, these mind-stretching permutations revolves only around “you” and “I” - it would become even more challenging when we include a ‘THEY’!
For what’s more complex is when I don’t know I don’t know that I don’t know, and you don’t know that I don’t even know that I don’t know that I don’t know; and you likewise don’t know that you don’t know you don’t know, and I don’t know that you don’t know that you don’t know - but THEY KNOW that WE DON’T KNOW!!!
Put simply, I don’t know, and you also don’t know, that WE don’t know we don’t know that we don’t know - but THEY KNOW!
*BUT what if THEY don’t know, YOU KNOW??!!!*
Hey, I better stop here. Who knows WHO knows?!! Except GOD KNOWS!
If you don’t get the above, it’s alright. Get this. My fundamental view is that the taxonomy of KNOWING is complex. And so, we ought to be life-long learners in a community of life-long learners. To keep on learning, discovering and growing!
Have a blessed pilgrimage ahead!
