Decades ago I had an employee whose response to everything was “Got it!” As soon as he uttered those words I was assured that a major screw-up was imminent. If he had said, and more importantly actually thought to himself, “I think I understand… (but I’ll keep attempting to interpret and be open to all the ways and scenarios in which this might apply… and when it might not)”, he might not have had to spend so much time each week apologizing to clients and peers for his actions, inappropriateness , etc. He was the proverbial “great guy… such a big heart”, but that should never be our justification for dismissing one’s repeated missteps (although it was his “great guy-ness” that fooled me into keeping him employed… obviously, I’m a slow learner!)

Afterward he always exclaimed, “…but I apologized!” almost as if it justified the situation. And I would respond, “Yes, and it was very sincere, but I don’t want you to every apologize again! …To anyone! Not because you shouldn’t, but because you shouldn’t be in a position to HAVE to!! …Not for something we’ve discussed either directly or indirectly and you should’ve learned by now!”

This applies to knowledge as well. One of my favorite quotes “without wisdom, knowledge is more stupid than ignorance.” -anonymous

In my experiences on my both sides of the podium, overconfidence is the enemy of both education and personal growth!