What is your definition of wisdom? How do you define this life’s goal we are all seeking?
A trait I have developed with a bit of my wisdom gained from experience is that I have a sharp crap detector! I seem to have a knack for detecting and questioning these rules and absolutes that we’re automatically supposed to accept. And when we examine them closely, we realize that they might have been true at one time in the past, but they’re not true at all now!
I am a researcher and in preparing for writing a chapter for Words of Wisdom, (co-authored by Dr. John Gray, Brian Tracy, myself and others) I reached out to CDA clients and friends for their definitions of wisdom. Here are the definitions so willing shared:
“Interesting question and one that I have pondered for a long time. I have studied the words and journey of Soloman in the Bible who was the wisest man mentioned in the Bible. I too have prayed for wisdom. It seems to me that wisdom and experience are linked together. To become wise means to have lots of different experiences in order to see things from different points of view. How can you truly understand something if you haven’t experienced it? As people get to know me, many have commented that I have done a lot. I want to be like the hospice patients I used to sit with. I want to live a full life and in order to do that you must get out there and risk. I have gone through many dirk nights and rough times, which once again, I am shaking off. The latest time has been several years long, but I am feeling better than ever and looking forward to my next growth time.
For those who are younger and less experienced, I would suggest finding mentors to guide them. I think our society does a really poor job of mentoring people these days. It is even harder for those who come from fractured families. When I speak of mentors, I am thinking of people who really know you and want to help you become your best, not those with a particular agenda of their own.
~ Deanna Schroeder
“In yoga philosophy there is a notion that we are creations of different energy bodies and that the inner most “light” of the ‘true self’ is converted by sheaths or ‘subtle bodies’. The Sanskirt word for them is Koshas. The 5 bodies are Physical, Energetic, Mental, Wisdom and Bliss Body. These bodies penetrate and make up a sense of ourselves. We often identify with our bodies, but don’t always ‘feel’ like it. Noticing the movement of the organs, the touch, sight, smell and taste of it. We recognize pain and comfort in a physical way. The energetic body hold the vitality of ourselves, when we are tired, excited, feel expansive or withdrawn and ‘invisible’ …empty. The mental body is where out ‘Samskaras’ or patterns lie. We hold close to the ideas, beliefs and thoughts that we have had that kept us alive so far.
The Wisdom Body is one of Awareness. It is an amalgam of information coming from intuition which intermixes visceral awareness with knowledge – like ‘grocking’. From Wikipedia : Grok means to understand so thoroughly that the observer becomes part of the observed – to merge, blend, intermarry, lose identity in group experience. In a ideological context, a grokked concept become part of the person who contributes to its evolution by improving the doctrine, perpetuating the myth, espousing the belief, adding detail to the social plan, refining the idea or proving the theory. It is the closest to the bliss body, and when quieting the mental body of thoughts, the inner voice can be heard.
The Bliss Body is the closest to the ‘divine’ consciousness of the universe. Here, joy, ecstasy, dynamism and goodness.”
~ Anonymous
“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is the noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest. Confucius
Wisdom, if it comes at all, comes with age, and, as Confucius says, we gain it in a number of ways. To me, wisdom is the accumulation of our life experiences, our knowledge and insights attained. It is a combination of philosophical thought with practical knowledge: valuable to pass along – but not often or always listened to – by those who might best benefit from it.”
~ Jane Bennett
“The unconscious connection to the infantile intelligence that allows us to get out of our own way and allow the non-ego mind to act in the best interest of the ego itself.”
~ Anonymous
“Philosophy has defines wisdom as “The best use of knowledge”
Positive Psychology has defined wisdom as “The coordination of knowledge and experience” and states that “A wise person has self-knowledge.”
Although knowledge and experience inevitable come with age, developing self-knowledge; and therefore acquiring wisdom; can be cultivated at a young age.
Identifying, recognizing and developing my core strengths, which is part of the process of self-knowledge, enables me to pursue a career that is tailored to my personality and natural aptitudes.
A person who can truly get to know themselves from a young age will be able to make the best use of that knowledge by coordinating it with a personalized career. The result is a person who will acquire experience in an informed way. That is a wise person!”
~ Sandra Manfredi
“Wisdom is applying knowledge learned from multiple sources and multiple experiences over time to address life’s changes and opportunities with a much deeper level of insight. It is applying understanding and context to solve problems and maximize opportunities in a just manner for all concerned.
I believe that in order for young people to gain wisdom ‘faster’ it should be through more structured mentoring. Our culture also needs to focus more on the societal benefits wisdom brings which would hopefully turn us away from greed and self-centeredness that permeates our culture now.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is the ability to balance or delicately combine factual knowledge and instinct, garnered over time, to provide insight to guide another or one’s self through life.”
~ Patrick Glynn
- “The cumulative acquisition of wisdom simplifies the difficult decisions the need to be made in the present.
- I don’t believe there is any correlation between wisdom and formal education. Wisdom pertains more to life than experience. A farmer with no education can acquire wisdom about his farming methodology over the years.
- I do believe there is likely a correlation between wisdom and intelligence. You must have the capacity to glean from the lessons learned in the past and be able to apply that knowledge to the present situation.
- Wisdom may have a synonym: The “school of hard knocks.” Unfortunately, wisdom is not gained form things going smoothly in life. Painful experiences are more likely to add to our reservoir of wisdom.
- It takes a lot of events before the lessons learned can be compiled as wisdom. That is why a society’s elders are perceived as keepers of the wisdom.
- Wisdom is exceptionally cumulative. The more wisdom you have, the more you are able to draw (and benefit) from that source.
- Wisdom may well be the personal philosophy we develop with passage of time, based on our own, unique life experiences.”
~ Anonymous
“The vision to see and the courage to speak the truth.”
~ Keith Nave
“Anyone who is wise listens. In order to make wise choices or take wise actions or contribute wisely to another person then one must listen. We must listen to the person in front of us, not the conversations in our head about the person in front of us or the assessment we automatically make about what they are saying. In that moment when we are judging, assessing and evaluating, and think we know what we should tell them to do or what our opinion is, what there really is to do it stop listening to the conversation in our head, stop talking to the person in front of us and listen. Listening powerfully will generate wise actions, choices and recommendations on our part and people will say, “that person is wise,” they won’t know exactly why they think we are wise, and they will recognize wisdom. Listening is an art, practicing listening is wise. Listening grants wisdom.”
~ Vicki Taliaferro
“Wisdom and age can be correlated, but all too often are not. In order to gain wisdom, you must constantly learn lessons that change you in a positive way. You must gain power but not abuse it. You must break bad habits. You must understand your own mortality and grow humble from that understanding. You must learn how bad experiences can be greater learning experiences than positive feedback. You can tell a child not to touch the stove, but they won’t believe you. Once they burn their finger, the lesson is learned.”
~ Michael Fanning
“Wisdom is know when, where and how to strategically use all of an individual’s collective knowledge that has been acquired from every knowledge resource in one’s life. This includes but not limited to life experiences, formal and informal education and perceptions. Wisdom without use is not more valuable than a closed book!”
~ Anonymous
“My definition of wisdom, especially in a professional setting, is recognizing my mistakes (maybe even before someone points them out) and working to correct them (instead of defending them).”
~ Rob Durant
“Wisdom:
- Knowing when and how to pick your battles
- Knowing what you don’t know
- Knowing when to seek “external” advice and being humble enough to ask for it
- Knowing your weaknesses, and “shoring them up” when possible/indicated
- Being completely honest with yourself
- Understanding the “big picture,” whether in a particular situation or in life in general.
Wisdom, triggered by your use of “chaotic” below: Remaining keenly attuned to one’s overall environment and rapid changes therein, and having the capacity to separate the wheat from the chaff (i.e., spot trends, figure out what’s important and what’s not, etc.). And of course, not sweating the small stuff, which a lot of life is.
~ Susan Abrahamson
“Webster defines wisdom as quick, keen, good judgment and the ability to see promptly what should be done in a difficult situation while exercising practicality and caution – not an easy quality to obtain. It would seem that cultivating the ability to make quick good judgment in any situation is especially important in our present “sound-bite” society. There is very little time allowed for in depth research for factual information when most co-workers expect their query answered in a return text message. And where does one find “factual” information while being bombarded by reality media that is barely related to reality, and everyone’s opinion being posted on-line as if each person is expert in every topic?
Wisdom is required to enable a person to sift through massive amounts of data and come out with the golden nuggets of actual information that pertains to the question at hand. Additionally, one must then use the information to determine the correct action that will answer the issue and move the organization forward. Finally, the person must be able to obtain that real information and apply their judgment quickly enough to contribute to a decision that will be made and acted upon by those in charge. All of this must occur in an economy that is changing everything that has been known in the past.
How does one acquire such wisdom? It seems wisdom is still obtained as it always was – from experience. However, experience is different in the 21st century. At a very young age, everyone is now exposed to events occurring all around the world in every field of expertise. Somehow, a person must tune in to the trends that are propelling businesses and careers forward while still focusing enough in one field to gain expert knowledge on a given subject. No one has the luxury of focusing on only one element to the extent of ignoring other seemingly unrelated trends. As described in chaos theory, the motion of a butterfly’s wings in one quadrant of the world may ultimately create a hurricane in another quadrant. Today’s wisdom is the ability to notice the butterfly’s movement and discern quickly and correctly what the impact will be. Experience, concentration, observation, and focus are required for today’s keen judgment described long ago by Webster. ”
~ Diane DeSimone
“My definition of wisdom is either too far researching or does not extend far enough and I am not wise enough to know the difference. Anyways, try this:
Wisdom – The ability to consider alternatives, eliminating the least functional and to draw conclusions in the form of judgments, opinions and courses of action with experience to the impending question. “
~ Anonymous
“Fundamentally I think wisdom is the ability to listen without judgment, consider ideas/people/situations taking into account the experience one has acquired, and accept things for what they are. I find myself being more and more influenced by Zen teachings lately but I think it’s because most of what we do before we become wise is to try to reshape things that we don’t agree with, or don’t fit our idea of what is right or wrong. Since everyone has s social or cultural bias, there will never be a single definition of right or wrong, so it’s an impossible goal.
If I become wise one day, I think it will be because I have attained a level of peace and tranquility that comes from my openness, wonder and absence of judgment.
Extending this idea of sharing one’s wisdom might consist of enlightening others to help them find a path to these same abilities.
As a counterpoint, from my Montessori observation days, I would also suggest that children are wise, and we educate it out of them. When you look at how children are able to see the world without bias, be marveled by every small thing and take things exactly how they are, I think we seek wisdom as a way of completing the circle back to our original child.
Another point to consider – does wisdom include a spiritual component? I know my spiritual beliefs are what give me the ability to hope and believe that I am evolving and that I have a reason for being here. Do you think it’s possible to be wise without having any spiritual element?
I used to think that it is such a shame that our eldest community members aren’t able to share their stories and wisdom with younger generations. I think that Story Corps, by NPR, is the best example of chronicling this information, although it’s not specifically focused on older participants. In any case, I was thinking – “how can we mine the wisdom that comes from seeing all of this before, and why don’t we learn from history?” …If you aren’t aware of Story Corps, that might give you more food for thought.”
~ Laura Lazarescou
“For me, wisdom is not just knowing intellectually what is good or right or correct, it’s taking action on that knowledge and then being brave enough to continue learning as consequences are encountered. In my career, I finally had courage to act on my wisdom which has led me to move in a new direction at age 50. Although its unsettling at times, I’ve never been more sure of the rightness of my path and I’m happier than I’ve been in many years and I have an energy and vibrancy that’s been lacking in the years I spent “knowing” but not doing. So for me, wisdom is the proper application of knowledge. I suppose to be complete, wisdom would also include knowing when not to take action when acting would be easiest, but not the best course. “
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is not defined by our career age or our career destiny achieved. Career wisdom comes when the individual arrives at a place of surrender and peace within the psyche whereby they let go of the notion that a “perfect job” or “perfect career” is out there waiting for them.
Even IF a person spends endless hours and even years of personal discovery in search of their “perfect job/career” there will always be circumstances that will disrupt their harmonious, perfect job. Not enough customers, too many customers, merger, downsizing, bad boss, bad employees, bed economy, someone coming along who does the job better than you, etc.
When a person lets go of the notion the “perfect job” exists and is a “god given right” will they then achieve career wisdom”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is the capability of making the correct decision regarding one’s path forward when faced with two or more options.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is the governance of impulses. Wisdom is the confluence of common sense with intelligence and the effectual implementation thereof. Wisdom is when your mind and spirit remain quiet amid the chaos.
And one to grow on:
Wisdom is knowing when to say no; knowing when to say yes, and feeling good that you know the difference.”
~ Anonymous
“I love that you actually ask these questions, that is wisdom right there! As I get older, I’ve learned to appreciate definitions of wisdom from my parents. Like my mother-in-law telling me that wisdom comes from experience, most of it bad. Funny, but too often true.
And in the art of business, wisdom is taking the time to really look at what someone else is saying, their point of view, and the commentary. Art speaks to us in a way that allows us to listen, if we apply ourselves and bypass all our defenses and limiting filters for our own development.
I think for me, wisdom is the art of knowing how to use information to improve the quality of someone’s life. We live in data smog, information is everywhere, but using that data to improve the quality of someone’s life, your own or another’s is wisdom.
Not very profound, but then I’m a simple person.”
~ Joyice Gere
“Wisdom is having the awareness, and then the courage to unlearn that which is precluding you from living life to its fullest.”
~ Anonymous
“The definition of wisdom that www.merriam-webster.com uses:
1. a: accumulated philosophic or scientific learning : Knowledge
b: ability to discern inner qualities and relationships : Insight
c: good sense : Judgment
d: generally accepted belief
2. a wise attribute, belief or course of action
Here’s my statement on wisdom in my career:
In making decisions about which path to take in my career: I constantly strive to use good sense to achieve my daily goals: I focus on using generally accepted beliefs to ensure student comprehension and avoid distractions.
In implementing actions in the advancement of my career, I also strive to show a wise and positive attitude and an open belief system and/or course of action.”
~ Scott Hendrie
“I have worked in several major fields: Medical, Travel, Industry and misc including semi-retired. I will define the meaning based on an amalgam from the exposure of these fields of endeavor.
- To know the difference between right and wrong and how it affects my life and others; have integrity.
- To know when to pursuit an issue and when to let it go, some issues are pipe-dreams and not worth following.
- To know what battles are worth fighting. I wish I knew this when I began working. I made my life miserable because I thought there was only one way of doing things right; when I fact there is a myriad of roads leading to Rome and a multitude of ways of getting there. To know that my way is not the only way.
- In the medical field, patient’s well-being and care comes first, as well as empathy and patience to listen to them. It is also important to sublimate one’s own pain. It may take a toll when one does not process the pain one has absorbed. However, the minute one is numb to other people’s pain… -it’s time to leave the field.
- In the travel industry one must remember that traveling is physically exhausting and one must learn compassion to deal with all the issues that come up due to inclement weather, urgency of trip due to illness or death and take care of that customer accordingly.
- In customer service, wisdom is to walk in other people’s shoes and understand other cultures, their customs and social mores.
- In one’s personal life, wisdom is to know ones strengths and ones weaknesses and to respect these.
- Wisdom is to know that life is precious; Life is not a dress rehearsal, and to never, ever give up.
- Know to be responsible for ones actions and know when to delegate.”
~ Anonymous
“I think wisdom is the accumulated corrections to all the stuff you thought you knew when you were 25.”
~ Anonymous
“Here is one of my favorite quotes relating to the definition of wisdom:
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put tomatoes in your fruit salad! – Author Unknown
I LOVE this quote! In a nutshell, this quote about wisdom tells me to listen to my gut. It also speaks about knowing when and where not to follow the rules.
For example, I once coached a young man looking to leave his job as an accountant for a local radio station to find a better paying job doing the same work but in a different industry. Needless to say, the radio industry is notorious for paying low wages. He was making $25K and according to our research, the average salary for his experience level at the time was $45K. My advice to him regarding both salary and why he was looking for another job totally went against what we typically coach our clients to say (NEVER EVER give your current salary – the first person to give a number will lose in the game of negotiations). I told him to come right out and say, “I love my job, my co-workers, my boss, etc; however, because I am doing this work for a radio station, I am only making $25K and I know that with my experience, I should be making in the mid $40K rage. My goal is to take my time in finding the right opportunity that can afford me what I’m worth.” Yes, there were a couple of companies that tried to get him to come work for $35K thinking he would take the $10K increase in salary; but at the end of the day, he held out and less than six weeks later, he accepted a job for $45K with an IT consulting company as their accounting manager. The young man interviewed well because potential employers could see that he had a reasonable answer for looking for another position and that he was sharp enough to know his worth in the marketplace. “
~ Loraine Grubbs
“Wisdom is the ability to admit when you’ve made a mistake, understand what part you played in it and commit not to repeat the same behavior.”
~ Anonymous
“My definition if wisdom is taking into consideration all the information I have available, seeking additional information, listening to my “gut” to help me make the best decision. Wisdom involves listening with all my senses. Knowing when to speak and when to be quiet. It also involves paying attention to the words I use. Words can heal, help or hurt. This has served me well and helped me to be a “trailblazer” in my career.
~ Anonymous
“I don’t know that I have a complete definition of wisdom, but some thoughts come to mind:
- Love is the answer. Reverend Kay Hunter reminds me of this
- Don’t judge others based on solely their worst moments
- Forgive – others and self
- Be ready to learn
- Cultivate an attitude of gratitude
- Use the power of positive thinking
- Stay active – physically and mentally
- If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom – SHARED intelligence gained from experience!”
~ Vince Bove
“Thoughtful, Broad perspective”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom. To see the world detached of emotion, at peace with what is occurring in front of oneself and at peace with oneself. Life is but a dream; enjoy the dream!”
~ Anonymous
“My current definition of wisdom: Knowing what to make happen and what to let happen – and living your life accordingly.”
~ Anonymous
“I think that one very important aspect of wisdom is learning to control response in a crisis. Every professional will encounter tense moments and unexpected challenges, when it is critical to just get the job done and to maintain discipline over temper, tongue and pen. Certainly, there is a time to speak up and be heard, but it is almost never when emotions are riding high. The person who rises to challenges with grace will be listened to with respect afterwards.”
~ Anonymous
“Learning from lessons learned.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom – Gleaming lessons learned from hundreds if not thousands of experiences, both good and bad. It’s being able to call to mind multiple approaches to solving a problem, knowing intuitively which will yield the better result. Time is a critical aspect of learning to be wise; only over time do we have the variety of experiences and circumstances that enable us to see more clearly what is happening in any given situation, because we can view the situation from many perspectives. And only over time do we realize using our hindsight how and where our past decisions have led us. Critical to a definition of wisdom is also the willingness to relieve some experiences, bringing them forward in our mind to extract benefits, ideas, thoughts and ways to reuse the lesions taught in those experiences.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom: The ability to use knowledge and information to best serve the common good. More simply, knowing how to use your knowledge to do good. It goes beyond, but is not necessary opposed to pragmatism.”
~ Anonymous
“My Definition: Wisdom is knowledge gained from experiences, observations and education that is applied in a series of appropriate actions taken at an appropriate time. It required the combined factors of intellectual and emotional aptitudes so that the situations can be weighed regarding factual and emotional outcomes.
I also love the definition from Wikipedia:
Wisdom is a deep understanding and realization of people, things, events or situations resulting in the ability to apply perceptions, judgments and actions in keeping with this understanding. It often requires control of one’s emotional reactions (the “passions”) so that universal principles, reason and knowledge prevail to determine one’s actions. Wisdom is also the comprehension of what is true or right couples with optimum judgment as to actions. Synonyms include: sagacity, discernment or insight.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom in dealing with most life situations is listening to your body and your gut instinct even when you aren’t sure you can logically explain your conclusion.
Science is shown that two halves of a woman’s brain has more connections than a man’s. As a result, women often “intuit” conclusion they cannot logically explain because of how they think. Moreover, I am the one living in my body and living this life. Much of the pertinent information demanding a certain decision or some kind of action only I posses. As a result, you must acknowledge that experts may help inform a decision, but only you can make it.
This “wisdom” has enabled me to survive a pulmonary embolism (a condition that is over 90% of the time diagnosed after death). It is the decisions I made where I ignored my gut instincts that I look back in and wish I could go back and change.”
~ Jan Hacke
“Let’s call this an informal definition of wisdom. As soon as I read your request, the chorus from “The Gambler” came into my mind, “Know when to hold ‘em. Know when to fold ‘em. Know when to walk away. Know when to run…”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is the ability to apply ones knowledge, acquires through education and experie4nce, to discover insights and to discern what is true, right or lasting. A person may know lots of things; but if they are not able to discern and make good decisions, the knowledge provides no value. Yet, one who knows less but is able to identify insights and make good decisions will be recognized as one who is wise beyond their years.”
~ Anonymous
“My simple definition of wisdom: Insight from experience; insight gained through experience; Insight learned from experience.
I think the current, chaotic, rapidly changing workplace (and aging workforce = lots of experience) is the exact reason we should have a lot of wisdom in the current workforce. If we are not absorbing the wisdom it’s because we do not focus long enough to reveal the lesions learned and think things through.”
~ Anonymous
“My definition of wisdom:
Wisdom is embracing the concept that learning has no bounds.
Wise quote:
Knowledge from books, wisdom from life. – Saying (Jewish)
~ Sharon Parisi
“This saying comes to mind: Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put one in a fruit salad.”
~ Patty DeLarios
“Wisdom comes to me while moving forward on the great journey of life. ‘Listening’ and trusting that what I need to know will be revealed to me at the right time.
I have found by experience that fear and self-doubt negates wisdom. Maintaining a loving relationship with a divine presence has been key to having wisdom especially as a recruiter.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom: learning from your mistakes and those of others and putting your lesions learned into practice. You learn from what you see, hear, touch and smell; not from what emanates from your mouth. There is a reason you have two eyes, 20 fingers and toes and only one mouth . . . use them proportionately.”
~ Anonymous
“I don’t have a definition but. . .
The fear of the lord is its beginning. He promises in James to give it to anyone who asks.
One has to go beyond ego and bias to find it.”
~ Anonymous
“Information sometimes produces knowledge, and knowledge sometimes produces wisdom, but not very often.”
~ Anthony Robinson
“There are many aspects of wisdom but the one I have struggled with the most is the ability to step back from the moment and give the situation I’m confronted with the consideration it deserves. At its most basic, try counting backwards from 5 before reacting. That’s harder than it sounds for most of us. On a deeper level, it involves recognizing that at a certain point in life; you have faced most of what life has to throw at you. What seemed impossible, intolerable or unbearable at the time had a solution, or at least an acceptable resolution.
Not all words or actions can be taken back. Think (and remember) before you act. “
~ Anonymous
“For me I believe that wisdom comes from God (James 1:5) and it also comes from how much we learn from life experiences. That’s why people that are older seem to have more wisdom because they have learned from more life experiences. Wisdom comes from learning, curiosity and questioning heart that says, “Why did this happen this way and what do I do differently next time to change it for the better?”
~ Anonymous
“Here is my very informal definition of wisdom as I have learned to understand it:
Wisdom is a personal “bank” of common sense and good judgment that guides one through everyday life. The common sense is in one’s “seed stock” and the good judgment comes from years of hard earned knowledge. Knowledge is NOT “information.” Information is cheap and plentiful. Knowledge, on the pother hand, comes only from years of intentional practice; be it in one’s trade, or in one’s relationship, or in one’s art and it is called upon to make WISE decision and judgment calls.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is the expression of compassion in all situations, the presence of mind and courage to act on that expression and the knowledge that all is changeable in every way at any moment.”
~ Kittie Beletic
“Wisdom is knowing when to keep your mouth shut!”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom is the ability to keep your mouth shut and listen, then and only then speak when you have something relevant to say.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom for me is the development of a concept of what is important to me. Not what the world tells me is important. Each person is an individual creation and has to find their own path. What would be wise for one person may not be wise for another. We could say that attending college would be a wise decision, but it is not wise for everyone. When we try to put everyone in the same box, we violate the unique character of the individual. Often it takes time to go thought experiences to learn what is important to us.
As a Christian, I choose to seek wisdom from the Bible and through prayer. It is also interesting to have a familiar Bible passage reveal new truths in reading it. We get to make many choices in life each day. What we learn from those choices can make all the difference. Once I know what is important to me, decisions are a lot easier and hopefully they are wise decisions.”
~ Anonymous
“I do not have a “definition” of wisdom. I do know that I have more than when I was younger. I know enough and know when to ask for assistance when I don’t know. I know the world is more complex than I could imagine and I know that what counts is less complex then I thought. Kindness and listening aren’t difficult and they mean so much to so many.”
~ Anonymous
“Wisdom: Understanding of what is true, right or lasting. Good judgment, common sense. Learning: erudition – Deep, extensive learning. – Webster’s.
I am no longer working, but I like the definition that includes “understanding while lasting.” I think wisdom can come with age because age helps to give us a perspective of what is lasting. Wisdom and perspective can be learned by finding a good mentor.”
~ Anonymous
“There are two components of wisdom: substance and timing. The substance derives from cumulating and synthesizing knowledge and experience gained over a significant time period. The substance, however, is meaningless if one reacts too emotionally or too suddenly to apply the substance. Therefore, the second component of wisdom is learning to take enough time to respond to any given situation so that you can apply the substance.
How does this impact the workplace? My observation is that many young people today measure intelligence and ability by the quickness of the response. Also, since younger people have grown up with technology, they view people who have less comfort with rapidly changing technology as somewhat lacking in ability. The overall result is that many benefits of our “wiser” workforce are lost or diminished. In my own career, I feel that it takes longer to establish my credibility with younger people. Rightly or wrongly, I feel that in the past, years of experience were more likely to garner respect than an assumption of obsoleteness.”
~ Anonymous
“The Greek work sophos, or Sophia, has had the meaning “wise” or “wisdom” since the time of the poet Homer and originally was used to describe anyone with expertise in a specific domain of knowledge or craft. For example, a charioteer, a sculptor or a warrior could be described as sophoi in the occupations.
I think we have lost the art of wisdom in many of the crafts that used to hold significant value to most of our society. The blacksmith, the farmer, the dairyman, woodworker, etc. all were wise in their fields.
We have a lot of “wiseacres” now who are sharp tongued and vitriolic, but that is no substitute for true wisdom.
… both Socrates and Plato were opposed to the Sophists, viewing Sophists – in the worst sense (my notation) – as morally empty teachers who instructed young men to argue only for victory and sought money, rather than wisdom and truth, as the end for their techne (art of teaching rhetoric).”
~ Dave Leonnig
“Wisdom is trusting yourself. To no longer be concerned what other think you are, can be or should do. Wisdom is like an internal GPS system that is always being updated with new information, new paths and new ways to go. Wisdom affords us a wonderful, rich experience called life.”
~ Debbie Mrazek
“I think wisdom is the proper application of knowledge, with the combined fear of God because you never know when the act of the Devil will derail your plans. I’ve been reading the book, “When Bad Things Happen to Good People” and it translates acts of the Devil like broken down cars and the bad actions attributed to God letting them happen. Wisdom is acting the best way I can and praying to God that the fine line between good and bad results end up in my favor. Or maybe just my family’s favor.”
~ Anonymous