Knowledge is experience...a HR message

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The people in most corporate used to debate and argue on the subject of ‘knowledge’ versus ‘experience’.   The people from premier business schools will argue that knowledge is the ultimate and those who remain in the organization for many decades, sitting in the same chair, doing the same job, with the same salary and in the same designation, will claim and argue that not the knowledge, only the ‘experience’ is ultimate. 

 

The unfortunate aspect of such discussion is that the people in most corporate define the experience to be different from knowledge.

 

‘Knowledge’ in action is called ‘experience’ and ‘experience’ in a state of rest is called ‘knowledge’.   The knowledge is hence cannot be separated from experience and vice versa. 

 

Look at the beauty of nature, especially with reference to the relationship between the prey and the predator.   Prey knows itself and about its predator and so are the predators.   But still some prey animals become easy victim to predators.  Similarly, despite the predators being strong and smart, in most occasions, fail to catch a prey and the hunt success is only one in every ten attempts. 

 

The prey animals that integrate its knowledge in its action or the most experienced animal alone could easily outsmart the predator.  The animal that fails to admix its knowledge in its action (inexperienced) become an easy victim to the predator.  The above fact is true for all predatory animals also. 

 

The sub adult lions, for example, while learning hunting, undergo series of learning or gaining experience.  In the beginning, they miss the hunt because before even they reach close to the prey, they will be seen by them (the prey animals) or the lion would unwisely make attempts to chase them from a distance.   Unless the prey is close, lion cannot catch as the lions cannot run for long.  Through several trial and error, loosing and from many losses, lions learns and perfect the art of hunting. 

 

The important knowledge required for the hunt success is that they should completely hide their identity until they reach close to the prey.  During hunting they must integrate such knowledge (the past knowledge from failure and success) to find success.  The message is that the ‘knowledge is experience’ and the ‘experience’ is in now way different from knowledge. 

 

In simple sense, the ‘experienced’ people are supposed to be highly knowledgeable people.  But unfortunately most experienced people in corporate are neither knowledgeable nor do they think so.  Quite contrary to that, they are very rustic towards the highly qualified people and people from premier institutions.   Reason for the above contradiction is only due to the lack of clarity and understanding about ‘knowledge’ and ‘experience’. 

 

Only in the premise of the memory or remembrance of the past learning (knowledge), one can really ‘experience the experience’.   When the knowledge comes in action becomes experience.  This is what the corporate employees have to learn about experience and knowledge.

 

Remember, knowledge is power and knowledge is experience.  That is how all animals and plants live but why the corporate man alone differs?

 

Dr S Ranganathan, ClinRise Derma Pvt., Ltd., Chennai 

 

 

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