Epictetus, an ancient Roman philosopher, said "If you wish to improve, be content to appear clueless or stupid."
Over the course of my education and early career, I have found this idea to be true. In a sense, it speaks to the idea of getting out of your own way. And if you distill it down further, beyond, say, an attention grabbing opening line, you can see it's truth beyond philosophy. A physicist might phrase it as "two pieces of matter cannot exist in the same point in space." I like to think of it as the idea that you cannot learn if your mind is full of what you already know. You have to make room for it. Then you have to seek out those learning opportunities. And that will often lead you to feeling or even appearing to be clueless.
As attorneys, or even as law students, the idea of purposefully seeking out opportunities to appear "clueless or stupid" may seem counter-intuitive. After all, are we not supposed to be the expert when it comes to our profession? But often this ego of ours gets in the way of our growth and, ironically, limits what we are open to learning. We believe we already know the answer, or that our existing knowledge can get us by. Which may be true depending on what stage of your path you are on. But getting by isn't what drives us to learn and grow.
There are those of us who may be comfortable to sit back and work with the knowledge and expertise that we already have. Maybe it's enough to lean on 30 years of experience and a robust client list. That could provide a comfortable life in many circumstances.
But what if there is more? More to learn, to gain, to experience, or to give? What opportunities could we discover by embracing our ignorance? What if we were content to appear clueless or stupid so that we might actually learn and grow? That is where we have an opportunity to grab hold of innovations and new technology to improve ourselves and our profession. To do that, though, we have to allow ourselves to approach this opportunity with some degree of cluelessness.
Like many people who go on to law school and become attorneys, I graduated high school with a 4.0 GPA and did well in college for the most part. So there has always been a significant piece of my identity wrapped up in the persona of being "smart." It has never been comfortable for me to admit my ignorance, but I have always found that doing so always opens me up to learning new ideas and methods.
I am a firm believer in the idea that you cannot learn what you think you already know. Not coincidentally, I also credit this approach to my success in law school, studying the bar, and expanding my knowledge as an in-house attorney. What I had to learn, over time, though, was that curiosity and accepting cluelessness doesn't make me less smart, but it opens me up to greater learning.
I entered law school with little understanding of what a lawyer even did every day, much less a deep understanding of the law. I studied Political Science as an undergrad, and, sure, I understood checks and balances, police powers, legislative processes, etc. But I never really understood how interpreting the law worked within the legal profession or how attorneys could bill so much for their services. I didn't even know how a lawyer made a living. But I learned, in part, because my self admitted utter lack of knowledge freed me to start as a novice. I could play the part of the clueless idiot, because, well, I was.
I was fortunate, also, to attend law school at The University of Oklahoma College of Law. For those of you who don't know, OU Law offers an impressive combination of both a traditional legal education and additional exposure to made to practice technology and innovation through its Digital Initiative. Being the uninitiated and clueless student I was, I dove deep into these offerings to answer one question: What does a lawyer actually do?
Turns out, lawyers do a lot. We read and apply the law, argue in front of judges, conduct discovery expeditions, negotiate, mediate, arbitrate, and all the typical "lawyer" stuff. But I was surprised by how much lawyers do outside of the law. To be a good attorney, you have to know the law, how to bill, how to collect on those bills, how to track and manage time, how to keep your wits about you, and how to maintain a healthy life outside of your practice. I don't know about you, but I can't claim to be an expert in any of those areas.
Combine that with the fact that we work in a space crowded with new technology and ideas. AI, new payment platforms, new billing models, changing laws, and more just make practicing law hard sometimes. It’s okay to not know everything. You shouldn’t. But you can approach new challenges with the humility of a beginner and give yourself the chance to learn and grow. It is good to be skeptical of some change, but that skepticism should be checked by a willingness to see what that change can offer us. We can recognize opportunities to innovate and adapt without biting on every trending new idea on LinkedIn or the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Innovation doesn't have to be big sweeping changes, either. It can be one new technology or process that saves you minutes during your day. For me, that is the appeal of innovation. New ideas and technology that can make my work better and more efficient excites me. Because those minutes I save are minutes I get back to spend with my family and friends. Our time is precious, and should be spent carefully, especially when our work demands so much of us.
In writing this, I am willing to admit that I feel pretty clueless. You may believe that I have no idea what I am talking about. And maybe I don't. Hopefully though, if you have made it this far, you have been open to the thoughts and experiences I have shared. Or you skipped to the end to see what point I was getting at. Either way, I will leave you with one final thought: To embrace innovation is to accept that there are ideas and processes that you haven't fully experienced. And to embrace that change requires us to let go of pride and ego, and let our clueless (and curious) self lead the way.
Cole Reynolds is an in-house attorney at Paycom, who works on the product and legal compliance team advising the business on new software development and client service. His experience with legal technology, innovation, and the application of software solutions began at OU Law, where he served as the President of the Technology and Legal Innovation Society (TALIS) and hosted TALIcast, a podcast dedicated to discussing legal tech and innovation from a law student's perspective. After graduating in 2021, he was barred to practice in Oklahoma where he lives with his wife and son. Outside of work, Cole enjoys cooking, reading, writing, exploring Oklahoma City, and spending time with his family.