Yes, this is a famous quote from one of the most beloved and popular TV series, Game of Thrones. But it applies equally well in real life too. In reality, we do know nothing.
Or more aptly in the beginning we know the least.
I got the idea for this post from an article called Let the pedestrians decide the walkways by Derek Sivers in his book Hell Yeah or No. It’s totally free and you must read it. It’s got some insightful perspectives.
Whenever we have to make a decision or decide between a number of options we cannot ever comprehend the eventuality of all those options. We can never be sure what may have happened had we chosen otherwise.
We can only be certain of anything once we go through with it. That’s because then we possess information or data. That data proves our decision right or wrong. If it is wrong then we can course-correct according to the data that we received or If we were right then we can continue forward on that path.
Data is indeed powerful and we have the most data at a later stage, not at the beginning. So we are dumbest at the beginning and as you move on your selected path you get wiser. You get more data which you then use to course-correct yourself.
Let the pedestrians decide the walkways
This concept is discussed by Derek Sivers in his article and in it, he illustrates the concept that humans know the least in the beginning through a real-life example. Here’s that example quote directly from the article:
A new college campus was built, but one thing was still debated:
Where in the grass should we put the paved walkways?
Some people thought the walkways should go around the grass, to leave it green. Some thought the walkways should cut across diagonally.
One professor had the winning idea: Don’t make any walkways this year. At the end of the year, look where the grass has worn away. That shows where the students are walking. Then just pave those paths.
Brilliant.
Apply this in your life.
When you have to make any decision immediately don’t do it, take some time like in the above example a year showed the college administration where exactly they needed to build the walkways.
A year or few months or days even will you a few degrees smarter and make your path a lot clearer.
I write daily here on my blog. There is no limit to the word count. I am not focusing on any topic here. I want to build a daily writing habit. This is Day 11 of the Daily Writing Challenge in 2022.