This week I would like to look at the “Confront Your Ignorance” pattern. I feel like this is always a good one to look at as despite how good of a programmer you might be, there is always something more to learn, and there is always something you don’t know.
This pattern means there are things you still need to learn/know, and some of these things are things that many others may already know, so it is expected of you to also have this knowledge.
I feel like it is always important to confront your ignorance, as there is still much to learn, even when you have seen a lot. This pattern is very similar to the “Expose Your Ignorance” pattern, but this one is about learning in private, so you do not need to hurt your pride by making others aware like in “Expose Your Ignorance”. However, it is still important to know to expose that ignorance as well, since always learning in private can have some negative side effects, like having failure be unacceptable instead of just another step of the learning process. You need to be able to learn and grow in a way that will positively affect you and those around you.
But should you choose to not learn in private, a great way to confront the ignorance is to ask questions, as many people may have already had the problem you are currently facing, and are hopefully happy to help you overcome the issue. A common cause of ignorance is focusing too heavily one one particular skill or context, which causes you to become ignorant of the other skills. One must be able to learn, and identify the areas of ignorance, and actively work towards reducing those areas.
You must also always be able to admit your faults, in this case admit that your knowledge is lacking, as how will anyone know your knowledge is lacking unless you tell them? This way, everyone can work together to achieve better learning. Of course, it may hurt your pride in the short term, but it is always better to be known for your willingness to learn more, than to know a lot about a few things.
From the blog CS@Worcester – Erockwood Blog by erockwood and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.