The Curse of Knowledge is a cognitive bias where people who know a lot about something assume others know the same as them. For PMs, this can lead to communication issues, assumptions, bias and, ultimately, worse products.
But it can also impact you in a different way 👇
But it can also impact you in a different way 👇
A common thing I hear, and something I've suffered from myself, is when people are put in a position where they have to demonstrate the knowledge they have. Maybe it's a talk, maybe it's a job interview or some other situation where you implicitly have to justify yourself.
Imposter syndrome can kick in here, because why would anyone listen to you? And the reason you think that is because you're turning the Curse of Knowledge inwards on yourself. Everything you say is, by definition, something you know. So you assume everyone else already knows it.
This makes you walk away from a job interview feeling like crap because you think you gave the most vanilla answers, obvious stuff anyone would have said. You can really beat yourself up. It can impact your confidence, reduce your performance, and make you not want to try again.
Time and time again I've interviewed for a job, spoken to a team, or given a talk & thought "Meh, it'd be a miracle if anyone thought I was any good after that". But, time & time again the feedback has been great. Sometimes, people seem legitimately in awe of something you said.
Key takeaway? Don't undervalue what you know. You're the only person with your precise experiences. You're the only person that knows exactly what you know. Remember that the Curse of Knowledge will make you feel like you're not saying anything great, then go out and own it.
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