Learning has a side effect that is rarely discussed: when we understand something, we quickly forget what it was like not to understand it. Knowledge opens a door and then erases part of the path that led to it.This phenomenon is called the curse of knowledge. When we know something, it's hard for us to adopt the perspective of someone who doesn't know it yet. What is evident and clear to us begins to seem to us that it should also be evident to everyone.A doctor explains a diagnosis using everyday words. A professor rushes ahead because the reasoning seems simple to them. A lawyer drafts a clause convinced that its meaning is clear. A manager assigns a task with two instructions and is surprised when the result does not match what they had imagined.This also happens in the personal and family sphere, at home. Someone tells a story omitting half of the background because they have it present. One expects their partner to understand the reason for their anger without needing to explain it. A father helps his son with his homework and ends up saying one of the least useful phrases in the history of teaching: "But why don't you see it?"It is not a matter of impatience. There is a very simple explanation. The expert has organized the information into blocks, connections, and categories. He no longer considers isolated pieces. He sees the whole. The beginner, on the other hand, is still trying to figure out which piece comes first.The curse of knowledge costs money. Many companies describe their products from the inside out. They talk about technology, processes, and features, while the customer tries to decipher instructions that seem like a sudoku. Specialists create incomprehensible presentations. Departments use acronyms that exclude everyone else. The more an organization knows about its activity, the more it may cost to explain it simply.It also affects innovation. Someone who has been working on an idea for months assumes data that the public does not know. Then they interpret the lack of interest as resistance or lack of skill.That's why the best communicators remember the doubts they had and turn them into the very order of their entire explanation. Now that's mastery!But doing so requires a conscious effort. It is necessary to recall the initial questions, eliminate unnecessary vocabulary, and observe at what point the other is lost. Explaining well implies reconstructing a path that we already travel without looking.Knowing a lot helps solve problems. Remembering how we thought before knowing helps explain them.I hope I have explained myself well!
