Working Within Your Competence

Operate wisely within and beyond your circle:

• Define your circle honestly — list the domains where you have genuine, tested expertise. Everything else is outside
• Expand deliberately — you can grow your circle through study and practice, but it takes time and humility
• Defer to experts outside your circle — ask questions, listen, and resist the urge to opine from adjacent expertise
• Mind the boundary — partial knowledge is more dangerous than none, because it carries unwarranted confidence
• Value "I don't know" — the three most powerful words for anyone working outside their competence