Know-It-Alls January 9, 2014
Posted by nrhatch in Books & Movies, Humor, Joke, People, Poetry.trackback
Books, authors, words ~ how
vast the stacks. No know-it-all
ever knows it all.
And you can tell him I said so.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Do you know any know-it-alls?
Do you view them as a ready reference and reliable resource obviating the need for further research on your part?
Related posts: Empty Your Cup * The Urge to Pontificate (Candid Impressions)
Comments
Sorry comments are closed for this entry
Spirit Lights The Way 
I don’t mind if others think they ‘know it all’. It only bothers me when they expect me to believe everything they say!
Yes, their view of the world is Black and White, overlooking all the lovely shades of gray. Don’s post (link above) has some interesting thoughts on “pontificators” who lecture AT us.
I think I tend to avoid them.
Maybe you’ve moved past the point of attracting them.
I read somewhere that people who annoy us are our “teachers” and that, as we progress on the path, people who can upset us become harder and harder to find.
No know-it-all ever knows it all. -truer words never spoken…we are all works in progress, glad I enjoy learning.
Me too! One of my favorite scenes from A Christmas Carol is when Ebenezer is bouncing around on Christmas Morning singing, “I don’t know. But now I know that I don’t know.”
That state of “not knowing” is a prerequisite to learning ~ as in the Zen parable when the cup overflows:
https://nrhatch.wordpress.com/2011/12/06/empty-your-cup/
Know-it-alls like to blather on about things. It’s not long before you find out they don’t know it all. That’s when you hit them with a roundhouse right and knock them out. Of course, I’m speaking metaphorically.
Or am I?
😉
Yes! They do like to blather on about this, that, and the other thing. Blather ~> what a great sudsy word!
Hey, wait! Bloggers like to blather. I’m a blogger. Ergo, I’m a blatherer. But I view myself more as a know-it-some-of-the-time.
You keep your blather under 500 words most of the time, which lightens the calorie count considerably!
It does! And how kind of you to notice my slimmer trimmer posts.
Actually, I have found a couple of know-it-alls who have steered me in the right direction. While they are not “popular” and can be pompous and annoying, they are worth listening to IF they actually do know what they’re talking about. It doesn’t take me long to figure out the ones who do know and the ones who only think they know! There’s a big difference between the two.
Yes, quite a difference and not always capable of immediate discernment . . . but time tends to reveal the truth. Thanks for weighing in on this, I am J.
When in the presence of a “know it all” who is instructing me in how to do it, how to feel, how to be, and how to live, I look for the meat and spit out the bone.
That is BRILLIANT! Someone sent me a funny quote the other day along the same lines, with a bit more SNARK:
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that you were an expert on my life and how I should live it. Please continue while I take notes.”
I love the comeback and hope I can remember it when I need it.
I can think of a time or two when it would have been the perfect quick quip.
I described someone recently as a person who devours dictionaries for breakfast. If he can say something in a thousand (extra long) words, no way will he say it in ten simple ones! Have a conversation with him and most of what he says are direct quotes. You never really get to know what he really thinks.
I love quotes, aphorisms, and other digestible phrases ~ as long as they’re pertinent, pithy, and to the point.
When someone is inclined to recite a lengthy soliloquy, I find myself looking for a “Fast Forward” button.
I do like quotes, but in the appropriate place, as you use them. Certainly not as a means to boast of how well read a person is.
Exactly my view too, GM. When someone tries to impress me, I am generally not impressed. 😉
We all know someone like that!
Wait . . . you’re not talking about me, are you??? 😛
Nancy, you speak of the state of “not knowing.” I have found the older I get the less I profess to know and live more and more in that state of not knowing. I think Buddhists call it Beginners Mind. Appreciate your link and mention of the post.
Your post came just as I was contemplating the vast stack of knowledge out there to be digested.
Yes, that state of “not knowing” is synonymous with Beginner’s Mind which allows us to see things again . . . for the first time.
Yes I know a few know-it-alls. When forced to listen to their know-it-all conversation I just go somewhere else in my mind and think happy thoughts and smile and nod.. 😀
Yes! Another time when it pays to just “smile and nod.” 😀
I’ve met plenty of know-it-alls in my life. What used to aggravate me more were the people who assumed I didn’t know anything. I’ve outgrown getting upset about that one, but it took some time and work on my part.
Really? I loved it when opposing attorneys underestimated me, especially in the courtroom. I immediately set to work on a Surprise Ambush.
Didn’t work the same way in accounting.
I find it’s mostly the younger generation that think they know it all. As we grow older, we realise that in life, one never stops learning. 🙂
One of the best things about growing older is being able to say, “I don’t know” without feeling the fool. So much easier than going out on a limb or retreating from an unsupportable opinion.
So true. 🙂
My late husband wasn’t a know-it-all, but he knew a lot. I guess I relied on his knowledge and didn’t bother to learn the things he already knew. My know-it-all husband was always there to answer questions about China or engineering or the Second World War. And then he wasn’t. I wish I’d written down some of his stories. I thought I could always ask him to tell them again. My mother died two years ago, and my sister and I are realizing how much we depended on her knowledge about family lore.
I’m sure you miss having your husband around.
And I know what you mean about “family lore” ~ I have questions but there is NO ONE left who can answer them.
Oh yes, I do know a few know-it-alls! So funny! I find that sometimes I hold back on sharing simply because I know a lecture is just waiting for me. 🙂 I am kind of an information junkie, and so I think I could lapse into being a bit of a know-it-all, too, but in the past few years when I feel that I’m in danger of lecturing, I’ll often suggest a google search if I think there’s genuine interest. I don’t want to be the resident expert in anything. LOL!
Hey, why not? Instead of going to a lecture at the library, you can have a front road seat to soak up their knowledge!
I enjoy listening to people who have a wealth of information at their fingertips. You spring to mind. As does Kate.
The know-it-alls I aim to avoid are those who purport an expansive comprehension of a topic and/or situation when, in reality, their comprehension is inaccurate, limited, or suspect.
In his later years, when my father and I didn’t see eye-to-eye on a topic or subject, he’d signal the end the conversation with an abrupt, “Well . . . I don’t need a lecture.”
I know a know-it-all. Unfortunately, I can’t always avoid this person so I’m learning to just turn my hearing off so I don’t get annoyed. No use arguing because it’s a discussion I couldn’t possibly win 🙂
On first read, I thought, “Wow, I didn’t know that Janna had a hearing aid.” Then I realized you just exercised “selective hearing” as an aid. Good for you.
My uncle has a hearing aid. I see him reach up and turn down the volume when he’s lost interest in the conversation. One of the perks of age. 😉
Most know-it-alls tend to be no-wit-at-alls.
Of course, there is nothing more infuriating than a pompous know-it-all who actually does.
Haha! “No Wit Alls” is a perfect descriptor, Col ~ especially for those who spew esoteric knowledge about without a sense of humor about the absurdity of certainty:
“Absolute certainty is a privilege of uneducated minds and fanatics.” ~ C.J. Keyser
Neither of which is known for their wit.
Fanatics are particularly good at believing the impossible. They are able to short-circuit their logic wiring at will.
Allah be praised! 😉