The White Belt

In this week’s blog post, I will be discussing the “The White Belt” pattern discussed in chapter 2 of “Apprenticeship Patterns: Guidance for the Aspiring Software Craftsman” by Dave Hoover and Adewale Oshineye. This week, I chose this topic for my blog post because I think being able to set aside what you have learned in order to learn more is a difficult but important skill.

A quote early into this section that I can personally relate to discusses how your confidence in what you have already learned can cause you to have a harder time learning more. “You are struggling to learn new things, and it seems somehow harder than it was before to acquire new skills. The pace of your self-education seems to be slowing down despite your best efforts. You fear that your personal development may have stalled.” I have been in this position myself more than once. One approach the chapter mentions is called the not knowing stance.

The not-knowing stance, as mentioned in the chapter, is an approach to understanding that you do not and can not currently understand the entirety of what you are trying to accomplish. “Part of the approach Dave took as a family therapist included maintaining a not-knowing stance. Families in difficult circumstances were experiencing a unique reality that, despite his training, Dave knew he could not fully appreciate. While he acknowledged his skills at facilitating constructive questions and conversations, Dave was taught to refrain from believing that he had any expert knowledge into the realities that these families experienced. While this may seem counterintuitive, in reality, it fosters an attitude of respect and curiosity that opens up unforeseen possibilities and solutions. Rather than pushing solutions down on the family, Dave’s not knowing stance helped him to collaborate with the family to find solutions as a team.” As shown in this quote, embracing the not-knowing stance, can help you have a more open mind in trying to solve problems, or learn new things in different ways. Embracing the not-knowing stance is not only incredibly helpful in being able to learn new things, but can also help interpersonally, as shown by the quote.