Learning demands effort and practice
⏬ Knowledge and education have been available for centuries to some minorities. But slowly, their reach has extended to the broader population. Still, many domains were only accessible in universities or schools, and not all people could access or reach them.
But the internet allowed a constant stream of new tools and systems, and lately, platforms made Knowledge and education accessible for most at a reasonable cost, if not for free.
Nowadays, anyone can research and find lots of Knowledge and information or material about whatever topic, from trivial useless Knowledge to scientific studies or papers. That´s probably one of the most critical aspects of technology, its impact on education and access to Knowledge.
But can you expect to become an expert in any domain simply on your own or by scrolling papers and researching on the internet?
It is possible, but is it likely? No, not that much.
Even when sparked by any particular topic of interest, most people don´t spend enough time on proper research. Their minds are craving for the following news or buzz. So, most of the time, people tend to read headlines or just a few lines of any subject or paper, and they believe they know as much as the one who has studied for hours, days, months, or years and managed to distill part of his knowledge on a paper or a study.
Therefore, we need to differentiate Knowledge from notions or awareness of a topic.
✅ Watching a YouTube video or listening to a so-called expert doesn´t make you knowledgeable on any topic. At max, it can make you aware of some perspective or have some notions of it, but that’s nothing else than scrapping the surface
✅ Reading a book, even if it´s called a masterpiece and regardless of how good it is or that it has been written by someone who´s a proven authority on the field, won´t make you a master in the domain.
✅ Depending on the subject or topic, it may take dozens of hours of dedication to become knowledgeable. And if any expert, with their experience, can distill their knowledge in short sessions, it doesn´t mean the topic is easy or that by appropriating yourself of their shared Knowledge, you know as much as he does. You don´t, and you wouldn´t have the background and the foundations of such a compilation of Knowledge.
⏩ Stop reading headlines or short articles and feel ready to discuss a topic. By all means, discuss with an open mind and the humbleness of someone who doesn´t know it all. Don´t lock yourself in on your position because you heard a speech of someone and you appropriate of their position and narrative. That´s not Knowledge; that´s copycat. That´s blindness.
