Starting today’s post with a quick reminder that tomorrow, Thursday, August 15, Dave Travis and I will be hosting a 30 minute session entitled The DIY Assumptions that will lead to Succession Failure. We will walk through 10 assumptions, many of which may be informed by the curse of knowledge and why they often come back to bite you.
It is tomorrow (or today depending on when you open this), Thursday, August 15, NOON ET, 11 CT, and so on.
I was first exposed to the concept of the curse of knowledge years ago through the work of Chip and Dan Heath in their book Made to Stick which was inspired by Malcolm Gladwell’s classic, The Tipping Point.
The curse of knowledge is a cognitive bias that occurs when an individual, who is communicating with others, assumes that others have information that is only available to themselves, assuming they all share a background and understanding.
For example, in a classroom setting, teachers may have difficulty if they cannot put themselves in the position of the student. A knowledgeable professor might no longer remember the difficulties that a young student encounters when learning a new subject for the first time.
The curse of knowledge is not limited to the classroom; it also plays a significant role in business and everyday communication. In professional settings, experts often communicate with clients, colleagues, or stakeholders who do not share their level of expertise. When these experts fail to adjust their communication to match the knowledge level of their audience, the result can be confusion, misalignment, and even costly mistakes.
We have all been on the receiving end of that experience right? You said what? And I’m guessing that our congregations may have been there as well. Ok, ok … no more meddling, back to the article.
This bias is also called by some authors the curse of expertise. I see this a lot in my work with effective senior pastors. They lead well and have thriving, flourishing churches. They have a way of doing things base on their knowledge and expertise. I also experience it with my own day-to-day operations. Some of the work I do, I’ve been doing for 30 plus years. Not bragging, but it’s good and it works. But I am always thankful when I have the opportunity to be exposed to a new tool, a new way of thinking, a new perspective, a new person that breaks through my curse of knowledge or expertise to a fresh new innovation. When that happens for me and the leaders I serve, it’s always better. Often, times, it’s easier. It typically has greater impact. And it usually keeps us from paying some dumb tax that someone else already paid.
What does this have to do with how old I should be when I retire? Good question!
If you were to ask random people on the street what is the right age to retire, what is the typical response you would receive? In most cases - 65. Why? Because of a common understanding and knowledge base (at least in the U.S.), driven by Social Security access and other social expectations. It is driven by a “chronological” bias understanding of time. So in the church senior pastors have largely thought about retirement from a chronos perspective - when I reach 65, when I have been at my church of 25 or 30 or some other milestone number of years or when the church itself meets a similar milestone. Or it may simply be financial - when I hit the “number” in my retirement account that affords me the opportunity to not draw a paycheck
We believe that this is often one of the DIY succession mistakes that pastors and churches make that causes a pastor to stay too long or leave too soon. The other Greek word for time is kairos which translates “at the the right time”. At the right time for the leader, for the church and for the congregation. In God’s time.
Again … don’t forget to join us Thursday, August 15 for a 30 minute session entitled The DIY Assumptions that will lead to Succession Failure. We will walk through 10 assumptions, many of which may be informed by the curse of knowledge and why they
Thursday, August 15, NOON ET, 11 CT, and so on.
Hope to see you there.
Are you seeking a community of peers to navigate church leadership and life with? Consider applying for one of my Leadwell Cohorts. We offer specialized groups for Next Gen Senior Pastors, Executive Pastors, and Senior Pastors Finishing Well. While our spring groups are full, fall cohorts are now forming and filling fast.
Note: Cohorts are by invitation only. If you're interested, contact me ASAP at greg@ligongroup.com or schedule a call here.