We must guard against feeling superior about knowledge.
Just about everything that seems obvious to us was mysterious a minute before the first time we understood it. That’s important to remember before we criticize or demean others for their shortcomings in comprehension or for their inabilities to perform common tasks.
This is why you shouldn’t belittle poker opponents for their bad decisions. They’ll probably improve, but when they do, that will mean less profit for you. Meanwhile, what’s the purpose in making an opponent uncomfortable about helping you win money through poor choices? Doing that doesn’t make sense, does it?
Always discovering
And in real life, the same concept is true. People are always discovering stuff you already know. But once upon a time, you were discovering stuff others already knew. That’s how it works. If you’re successful in life, you’ll do some things better and understand some things more fully than most other people.
Good. Good for you. Good.
But why spoil it by making others feel inferior or stupid because they don’t know and can’t do the same things? Aren’t you glad they can’t? Otherwise, what would be special about you? How would you excel? How would you succeed?
Remember: We once had to learn even the most apparent truths that some people fail to grasp. One moment before we learned them, they weren’t apparent to us, either.— MC
