Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.
Proverbs 17:28
My Mom always taught me, never share more than is necessary. She meant it in a specific context at the time, but I have always applied that advice to my life. Never share more than is necessary or required. As we can see, this is actually a Biblical concept.
You can apply this verse to your life in many different ways, we are not just speaking Biblically here.
Let me share a story with you.
I recall during my early days as a Network Engineer, I was transitioning from a Telecommunications guy at the same company. These industries have similar concepts, but the jobs are completely different.
All the boys on the team I joined were life long Network Engineers, so I had a lot of catchup to do. It took a lot of hard work and dedication, but I think one of the most important things for me while I grew and prospered in that job was my ability to “hold my peace”.
In those early days, there were many times during our weekly Engineering meetings that I honestly had no clue what they were discussing. However, to them it was obvious, and something everyone should know in such a position. They were right, and I was embarrassed.
However, instead of letting everyone know I was a fool, I “held my peace”. I participated in areas I could help with until the meeting concluded. Not a soul knew I was a fool. After the meeting, I went back to my desk, worked through lunch researching the concepts I did not understand, until I had the answers and understood the concepts.
While there is nothing wrong with asking questions. If you ask too many in such an environment, people are not going to respect or trust you. It was just something I knew and could feel.
There were certainly times when I asked questions, of course, that is nature. Yet, I was wise enough to know when to ask, and when not to ask.
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It was through this process that I became the most well rounded Engineer there. I worked on everything, could fix anything, and our CIO knew it.
He called me, “MacGyver”.
- When something broke and there was panic, Brandon could stay cool and fix it.
- When something came without proper instructions, Brandon could build it.
It took time to get to that point, where you became a leader and were confident in what you did. It took patience, but hey, with God all things are possible.
Had I opened my mouth every time I didn’t know the obvious answer, I think it would have been much harder to be trusted by my team members. I would have undermined myself.
Instead, knowing “he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding” was the key to success.
I wanted to share this story and verse with you, so hopefully, you can learn from my experience. Apply this verse to your daily life, you will not only improve yourself, but become more humble as well.
In the end, no one ever has all the answers. I learned that by watching other Engineers ask questions they should have known. Yet, apart of life is learning, so never be afraid to ask a question, but always remember Proverbs 17:28.
As Mom always said,
“Better to be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt”.