The well lived life requires wisdom

The well lived life requires wisdom

Tim Connor

Many people today believe that a mind full of information or even knowledge is all it takes to succeed, be happy or feel contented with life.  Sorry to say – they are all wrong.  What is required for sustained success, inner peace and happiness that is not dependant on what you own or your position is wisdom.

Just because you have 300 icons on your computer or I Pad giving you instant access to more information that you can ever assimilate or use will not lead to a life lived with wisdom, common sense or maturity.  What it takes is wisdom and wisdom can only be developed through a combination of information that contributes to knowledge and knowledge that along with experience equals wisdom.

The common myth today is that if you have access to a lot of information or know a lot you are wise – sorry folks.  Mark Twain once said, “We shouldn’t call it common sense because so few people have it – it’s not common.  We need to start calling it uncommon sense.”

Proverbs (if you have never read this book of Scripture) is filled with simple concepts (but not simple to achieve) about the importance of wisdom in a well lived life.

Wisdom - the ability to make sensible decisions and judgments based on personal knowledge and experience. I have to say – this is the first dictionary definition I can totally agree with. Accumulated knowledge of life or of a sphere of activity that has been gained through experience.

So, who doesn’t have wisdom?  Well it depends on the life area.  A lawyer might know the law but to they have life wisdom? A scientist might have scientific knowledge but can they drive responsibly?  Yes, a physician has medical knowledge but do they have common courtesy or people skills?  A math instructor might know formulas and numbers but can they relate to others on a different topic?  

Just because a politician can get elected doesn’t mean they should have been when it comes to common sense, wisdom or even general knowledge.  I could go on with these examples, but let me be perfectly clear, I know many of the above that have both specific knowledge and wisdom but, I have to tell you I have met a lot of people around the world in various professions who thought they knew it all but in reality they were just downright stupid when it came to wisdom.

And before I go on I want to admit that when it comes to information and knowledge I am seriously lacking, which is one of the reasons I read two books a week, but that still doesn’t make me the smartest person in the room if I don’t know how to use what I am learning or when and how to apply it to real life situations.

What prevents us from attaining wisdom?

There are many factors, but the most dominant ones are; ego, arrogance, fear, low self-esteem, self-righteousness, narcissism and insecurity.  All of these can get in the way preventing us from admitting that we don’t know something or we are just stupid and preventing us from acquiring the necessary experience that is blended with knowledge to add to our overall wisdom.  Ever done something stupid?  Did you learn from it or did you make the same mistake again?  I know I have done more stupid things than I care to admit but in the end in most cases (I’m not perfect) I learned the necessary lesson and didn’t make the same mistake again.  Oh sure, I made a similar mistake again, but justified it with the reasons above or different circumstances.  So you might ask, what gives me the right to write this article?  Great question.  I don’t have the right to write it from the perspective of someone who claims to have a great deal of wisdom but someone who wants to share what I have learned.

How do we achieve wisdom?

Well the first thing you need to do is admit to yourself that you don’t know something that you need to know to have a better (more successful, happier or more contented) life.  Once you have done this there are several things you can do;

Read more.

Get a mentor.

Hire a personal, career or business coach.

Start asking yourself better questions.

Start being more honest with yourself about your weaknesses or areas that need to change or improve.

When you experience a negative in life keep asking yourself – why and how – until you get to the truth.

Be willing to ask others for their advice or counsel before making decisions or taking actions – and don’t ask people who you know will agree with you or need your approval.

Start keeping a life journal and record everything – good decisions, bad decisions, good actions, bad actions, outcomes, reasons etc.

What wisdom do we need?

This is an easy one – where are you tending to make the most mistakes, bad decisions or choices or actions in life.  This would be a great place to start.

How can wisdom help you live a better life?

I’m going to let you stew on this one to see if you got any value from this article.  Make a list of where you need more or better wisdom, where you can get it, why you haven’t achieved it yet. . . . keep going with these questions.

Lets’ wrap it up.

The fewer mistakes you make in life will be generally due to increased wisdom but keep in mind – none of us can know it all, learn it all or experience it all so sooner or later we are going to learn wisdom the hard way or we are not going to learn it no matter how hard the lesson was – it’s a choice we all make every day in every circumstance.

“The best part of our knowledge is that which teaches us where knowledge leaves off and ignorance begins. With this understanding we can create wisdom.” 

O.W. Holmes