What it's like to be like us.

Photo by Adi Goldstein on Unsplash

Since you're reading this blog, you're almost certainly a lot like me.

And like me, you do not suffer from false humility.

Like me, you are rightly and appropriately pleased with your talents and your accomplishments.

Like me, you do not boast.

Like me, you are intelligent, sensitive, and articulate.

That’s part of what it’s like to be people like us.

Inconsistent and incorrect beliefs

People like us have consistent beliefs. None of our beliefs contradicts another.

People like us have no incorrect beliefs. But, of course, when we say “no incorrect beliefs,” we don’t mean that everything we believe is absolutely true. That would be arrogant, and people like us are not arrogant. “No incorrect beliefs” means that everything we believe is fully supported by the evidence we have.

Most people are not like us. Not only do they have beliefs that are not supported by the evidence they have, but they also hang onto their beliefs long after the evidence that they are wrong is overwhelming.

Not us.

As soon as we learn something new, we adjust what we believe.

Ensuring that our beliefs are correct and consistent is even more challenging because fools and liars surround us. The fools will confidently tell us things that are not true; because they know no better. The liars will tell us things that are not true because—that’s what liars do.

Of course, you, I, and other readers of this blog have gaps in our knowledge, We’re knowledgeable, but we’re not omniscient. However, to say so would be arrogant, and—once again—people like us are not arrogant.

We have gaps, but given the world's knowledge, the relative value of different kinds of knowledge, and the time required to acquire knowledge, the gaps in our knowledge are appropriate. We have not learned too much about anything—which would mean we had wasted time—nor too little—which would suggest we were stupid.

Like everyone, we’re subject to cognitive biases. But people like us are aware of our biases and the degree to which we are biased. With this insight, people like us adjust our evidence-gathering and reasoning processes to offset our biases. Thus, even though we’re natively biased, we end up unbiased.

People like us are rare, and we are fortunate to have one another.

You are fortunate to have me writing this.

I am fortunate to have you to inspire me.

If only there were more people like us, the world would be a better place.

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