What a silly and simple topic to learn about, right? Well, as humans have the aptitude and capacity to grow limitlessly, we usually take this concept of learning for granted and limit ourselves from our true potential...
A theory by the name of the Dunning-Kruger effect brought the human behavior of learning, thinking, and humans' process in life...
The catalyst to this discovery was thanks to the infamous McArthur Wheeler in 1995. He walked into a bank in Pittsburg with no mask or a sense of disguise and proceeded to rob the bank. He smiled at the security camera on the way out and went on to rob another bank. Unsurprisingly, he was caught that night by the police officers and was in complete shock. He was astonished by the fact that he was caught and screamed, "I WORE THE JUICE!" Wheeler truly believed that rubbing lemon juice on your skin would make you invisible.
This is COGNITIVE BIAS (Believing you know something that you don't)
EXPERIMENT
David Dunning and Justin Kruger conducted a study that consisted of under-grad students and had them take a standardized test that tested Math, Grammar, and English. They asked the students how they felt and think they did. They found that the students who scored a low score believed they performed above average or very well. On the contrary, the students who performed well/scored high on the test thought that they scored average or below & thought it was the same for everyone. Now how does this link to the process of learning? You see how the students who scored low overestimated their skills and the students who scored high underestimated. This is because the students who scored high are more skilled and knowledgable in the area they were tested in, and think there is so much more to learn.
Let's take a photographer who has been working on his craft for five months. His perceived knowledge of photography is minimal, but the amount of gray area or knowledge he doesn't know is also small... Thus he believes that he knows 80% of photography in his perceived 100% of photography. On the other hand, a photographer who has been working on his craft for seven years thinks he knows 60% of his perceived 100% of photography. The catch is, there is no 100% of learning your craft. The more knowledge and experiences an individual goes through, the more they realize that the field is as big as they make it.
Source: Henri's Notebook
OXYMORON: So the more you know, the less you knew...
SOLUTION
If you can come in with the idea that you know nothing and you clear your brain... You will pick things up and see results much quicker...
Zen story: A Japanese Zen master received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen during the Meiji era. The Zen master served tea and poured his visitor's cup full and then kept on pouring. The professor watched the overflow until he could no longer restrain himself. "It is full. No more will go in!" Like this cup, the Zen master said, you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?
EMPTY YOUR CUP...
TED-Ed "Why incompetent people think they're amazing - David Dunning"
Learn more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOLmD_WVY-E