It is definitely out of doubt that ignorance is not one of the best things to be associated with anyone. It is said to be no defense and it has a cost that is far much more than that of acquiring education and knowledge at large. In a bid to circumvent ignorance, most of us have enrolled on a knowledge-seeking spree. We want to know as much as possible about as much as possible, and it is commendable. Keep it up!
I do not intend to dwell much on the seeking of knowledge per se, but the dangers of inaction as a result of seeking for ‘enough’ knowledge. The greatest paradox in the art of knowledge acquisition is the fact that the more we know, the more we realize how much we do not know. As interesting as this sounds, it might as well be the number one root cause of your stagnation or worse still, deterioration, in various aspects of your life. The monster behind failure, whichever way you define it, is ‘inaction’ which in turn is caused by a number of factors, key among them, inadequate knowledge on the subject matter.
I have come across people who are yet to buy the car they have been planning to buy for over a year, not due to financial constraints, but because they are researching on the best car. They are lost in automobile reviews, consumer reports, safety studies and resale value analyses. They want to have as much knowledge as possible on the vehicle they purchase. As a result, their children continue to admire their friends’ cars and long for the day their own fathers will bring home the ‘beasts’. Sometimes it even gets hilarious; you are spending days on end analyzing the resale value of a car you haven’t bought, you have no intentions of becoming a motor vendor and you haven’t decided when you intend to sell off the yet-to-be-acquired car. You are busy seeking knowledge on how the car compares with the Lamborghini in speed yet your DNA has no trace of racing components. Do you even know how the Lambo looks like?
I have seen people stuck in their academic progress on the premise of searching for the best degree program and the best university. They are spending time unlimited utilizing internet bundles to research on every university and the intended program. They are even seeking knowledge on whether any of the staff of these universities has gotten involved in any scandal…..they are seeking for knowledge but dancing within the walls of inaction.
The most interesting group I encounter is that comprising of ‘to-be’ business men and women. They are forever on the queue of becoming business leaders. Reason? They are gathering enough information on the potential businesses before they launch. They have been gathering that knowledge for far too long, each time discovering something new they never knew about the business. This makes them feel that they are still ill equipped to launch. While hiding in the seemingly genuine guise of preparation and fact finding missions, they have managed to postpone their lives for ages while missing out on crucial opportunities. The world has been waiting on them to launch solutions but the search for more information seems to frustrate these expectations.
Are you one of those who are stuck with indecision simply because you are gathering enough knowledge to enable you take off? Do you realize it has been long since you began preparing and researching? For how long are you going to remain in your current state while trying to get ready? How many more degrees do you intend to get before applying for your first job? How many more books do you still have to read on entrepreneurship before launching that business? How much more knowledge do you still need about your ‘future’ spouse before deciding to settle down with him/her?
Whereas it is true that action may not always bring happiness, it is also true that happiness never comes without action. The baby eagle learns how to fly while headed for the hard rocks below and not while seated on the edge of the nest studying the environment. You will never know all there is to be known about something or someone. Knowledge becomes enough the moment you decide to take action. Business leaders learn more while making mistakes in hiring, marketing, branding and even distribution than while reading text books. Do not be a victim of analysis and knowledge paralysis. Chances are high that you have gathered enough to begin taking action. Get down to implementing your plan and discover a new way of gathering practical knowledge as you fix challenges through experience because YOU CAN DO BETTER!
Roy Okonji,
Motivational Speaker and Author
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