I used to think that saying "I don't know" meant I was stupid. One day when speaking with a talented tech leader, seemingly at the top of his game, I asked him if he knew about something I did (I forgot what that was now.)
He said, "hmm, I don't know about that".
It was a revelation. What? He didn't know? And most amazingly to me, he admitted it and was quite calm and ok with it!
This presented a new possibility to me. It was ok for smart people to say they didn't know things! It was ok to be smart and not know things!
These days, saying "I don't know" is a relief. Being ok with me where I'm at.
Yeah, I don't know!!
And I'm happy to genuinely learn about it if it's of interest to me.
Do you acknowledge where you are? How does it feel when you do? How does it feel when you don't?