You don’t have to be the expert

We all feel a sense of relief when we hear 'you don't have to have all the answers'.

Emphasising co-creation and not having to 'be the expert' is something I encouraged the group of managers I was working with this week to think about, as they prepared to teach a coaching skills workshop to their colleagues and be change-makers in creating a coaching culture in their organisation.

In a world where 'expert', 'qualified' and what you 'know' is celebrated, we don't leave much space for the gems that come from not knowing, for the insights (and the questions) that arise from asking ourselves 'what do we not know about this?'.

No one has all the answers, and anyone that says they do is leaving little room for the infinite possibilities that come from exploring the unknown or someone else's view or experience.

I was sent this great quote recently:

“the uncomfortable but necessary skill that Keats famously termed “negative capability” — the capacity to rest in the unknown and the unresolved, using it as raw material for creative work”

How comfortable are you with not knowing?