Be a Fool
Or else you become the real fool
The fool is the precursor to the savior.
— Carl Jung
The paradox
At first glance, it seems counterintuitive or even paradoxical that refusing to be a fool actually makes you one and vice versa. However, understanding this paradox is absolutely necessary for personal growth and wisdom.
The Fear of Being a Fool
All of us strive to avoid looking foolish at all costs. This is natural because acting foolish in front of people follows with a deep sense of humiliation. It undermines our competence and hurts our ego. It’s like burning parts of you. It’s painful. On the surface, this might seem like a wise approach — after all, who wants to face that pain? By avoiding becoming a fool on the surface, however, we become a true fool without realizing it.
Stagnation
One thing that is guaranteed to happen if you are avoiding being a fool is stagnation. Because of the fear of being a fool, you close the doors of learning opportunities, leaving no room for criticism and feedback. While some level of rigidity is necessary to counter anxiety produced from the instability of your beliefs, when you close all the doors, your thoughts and beliefs become extremely rigid to the extent that your personal and intellectual growth comes to a halt. You become more stubborn to your beliefs, eventually being trapped in the cycle of ignorance.
The True Fool
As the cycle of ignorance continues, the person afraid of appearing foolish becomes too afraid that they refuse to engage in the learning process at all. This person might appear wise and competent on the surface level, but deep down, they are unable to obtain true wisdom and competence as they are paralyzed by fear.
Know that You Know Nothing
One simple way to break out from the cycle of ignorance is to accept our innate limitations. No matter how much you jump, you won’t be able to fly. No matter how much you practice throwing a baseball, you won’t throw it faster than the speed of light. We are bound by limitations, but there’s beauty in imperfections. Once you accept that there are always going to be things that are beyond your knowledge and comprehension, you open the doors to learning again.
Embracing the Paradox
So, if you don’t want to become a fool, you need to become a fool. To break the cycle of true foolishness, we must embrace the paradox. We must accept that by trying to avoid being a fool, we become one. We must accept that by being a fool, we will not become a fool. As much as the initial pain of humiliation of being a fool burns you, you must take a leap of faith and eventually believe you will no longer be a fool by first becoming a fool.
