Not sure what age each of us learn the three dumbest words ever uttered. For some it might be four years old while it strikes another at age six.
Regardless of when you start using these words, the effect is the same. Your mind freezes. You go numb. You stop learning. You even stop searching for answers.
“What are the three dumbest words ever uttered?” you ask.
“I don’t know,” I reply.
“Huh? I thought you said you knew the three dumbest words. Do you or don’t you?”
“I do.”
“Okay, what are they then?”
“I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know? Stop playing games with me.”
“I’m not playing games. I’m telling you the truth.”
“Okay, great. So what are they then?”
“I don’t know.”
“Uggh. Enough of you. I got better things to do with my time.”
Alright, a tiny spin-off of “”Who’s on First?” by Abbot and Costello – and not nearly as good, I might add, but I think you get the point.
Play a little game with yourself to really feel how true the above is.
Read the following questions along with the dumbest of answers:
Who’s the first president of the United States?
I don’t know.
Okay, what type of grass is that you have surrounding your
home?
I don’t know.
Alrighty then, what type of car is that you’re driving?
I don’t know.
How much do you weigh?
I don’t know.
How tall are you?
I don’t know.
Are you stupid?
I don’t know.
Sadly, this is what a lot of people have reduced themselves to in the Zombie whilrd surrounding us.
“I don’t know” means “I don’t care” and “I don’t want to learn.”
Now, I realize there are probably only a few people on this planet who never use the words “I don’t know” – and I’m NOT one of them – yet.
I catch myself using these words far too often – but as soon as I do, a switch gets flipped and I begin to ask questions. Or I follow the three words with – “but I’ll find out.”
“I don’t know – but I’ll find out.”
One of the reminders I’d like to give you about the power of your brain is as follows:
In your forebrain, you have a reticular activating device that Dr. Maltz called your servo-mechanism. This servo-mechanism automatically guides you toward the goals you have in mind – and/or to answers for the questions you are asking.
And so, if your stock answer to questions is “I don’t know” – your servo-mechanism pursues the goal of “shutdown” or idiocy instead of knowledge.
On the other hand, let’s say you refuse to say “I don’t know” – or you do but you quickly add, “but I’ll find out.”
Guess what happens?
Your servo-mechanism sends out energetic missiles designed to bring you some really good answers.
If you’re a writer, let’s say you’re facing a blank page. That ever happened to you? Um, everyday, right?
Okay, if you begin your day with, “I don’t know what to write” your goal-seeking mechanism searches for something called “not knowing what to write.” And this leads to something called “writer’s block.” In reality it’s writer’s wrong thinking.
How would I counter the words, “I don’t know what to write?”
How about the following:
“I don’t know what to write – but it’s coming to me.”
“I don’t know what to write – until I start writing.”
“I don’t know what to write – but if I just start typing a bunch of B.S. onto the page it’ll come to me and I’ll be fine.”
I’d like to challenge you to go beyond the words “I don’t know.”
I know. It can be hard, especially when you want to take a brain break.
So start with one area, one thing and one question.
What can I do today to achieve my goal?
I don’t know – oops. Caught myself.
I don’t know but I’m going to find out – right now – and when I do it’s going to be AWESOME.
Give it a whirl my friend.
Best,
Matt Furey
author of the Nightingale-Conant audio/DVD program,
Theatre of the Mind
