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> What you know is less important than your ability to figure things out. The sooner you realize that this is true of every single human endeavour, the better
by stonogo 10y ago
> What you know is less important than your ability to figure things out.
The sooner you realize that this is true of every single human endeavour, the better off you'll be.
- vkou 10y agoWhen my sink leaks, I'd rather hire a plumber that has done a standard job ten thousand times, than a bright guy with a pipe wrench, a bag of PVC, and an exacto knife, who can 'figure things out'.
- stonogo 10y agoThis is how competent managers regard programmers, just so you know. But that ten-thousandth time, when the standard job goes awry -- that's what makes the difference between a dude showing up to work and a tradesman. The ability to react quickly and appropriately when faced with a brand-new problem is valuable in any role. Pretending otherwise is hubristic at best and kind of gross in general.
- GrumpyYoungMan 10y agoThat's the point. Google and the rest of the big 4 don't need ordinary plumbers, they need process engineers (the engineers who design the piping at oil refineries and chemical plants) because they are tackling problems that nobody has done ten times, let alone "ten thousand times".
- skybrian 10y agoDoes not apply to live performance, aviation, or surgery. Also, even when you have time to figure things out as you go, knowing stuff makes you more efficient at it.
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- raverbashing 10y agoAnd that's why: 1) you train a lot before doing any of those alone 2) they change very slowly and every change is carefully evaluated (aviation/surgery) 3) aviation do have a lot of aids that are not memorized (SID/STAR, ATC information exchange, checklists, etc)