How we just talk out of our asses all the time

One of the biggest mysteries my mind has tried to crack since I got out of the stroller and into school is the question of whether everyone else is really as smart as they appear to be. I am still waiting for that day when everyone just admits that they don't really understand what an isotope is either, and that they're don't quite sure how stock market exchanges work. I spent my first year at uni secretly terrified that someone would find out I wasn't smart, and learnt to hide my secret by talking out of my ass all the time. And then it hit me. What if that's what everyone does? Maybe everyone else just seems informed about every angle of everything, but really they're just taking making an educated guess, wrapping it in beautiful and long words, and sound believable. Few people I know hesitate and say that they don't know or aren't sure, most people just talk out of their ass.

I was told in middle school by my home room teacher that I was too modest about what I knew and was capable of, and wonder sometimes if I still underestimate myself a little bit. My reality, though, is that I am quite convinced of the opposite: I definitely overestimate my own abilities. Whether we're talking driving, applying for jobs or playing sports, deep inside I actually think I'm a little bit better than I am.

Now a quick word on opinions, seeing as election day is approaching and I've had to cast my vote two weeks in advance. I've never not had opinions (to no one's surprise), but I've generally always showed a great deal of respect for the opinions of people I find generally intelligent and thought-through. It's not because I am not confident in my opinions, it's rather that I have quite a strong belief in other people and realize that they - just as I and those that think like me - have reflected, and gone over, and concluded. I thus find it perplexing to reconcile the two ideas: opinions that I don't agree with, with intelligent and likeable people that I respect. It's a lot easier for the mind if bad people disagree with you, and good people think what you think.

On the other hand, it is incredibly valuable to exchange opinions and viewpoints; it's really a win-win situation. If you end up changing your opinions, having been enlightened, then you've won. If you end up having refuted the opposing opinions with even more vigor than before, then you've reinforced your beliefs, put your ideas to the test, and you've won. I've spent the last few weeks surrounded mostly by very wise people, and that's pretty much what I've learnt.