In society, we often hear the phrase "knowledge" as a social compliment, but if viewed from the perspective of skill development, this is an important strategic communication ability. "Knowledge" is not simply a skillful way of speaking, but also the ability to read and understand the context, identify goals for conversation and choose ways of expressing them so that those goals are achieved effectively.
There are many people who confuse "knowledge" with "wordsmanship". Wordsmanship is knowing how to speak well, speaking to please the listener, but "knowledge" is speaking less, but achieving higher results, because the speaker understands an unpleasant truth: most conflicts do not come from right or wrong, but because that right or wrong is placed at unreasonable times, locations and ways.
The core of "knowledge" is the ability to distinguish and separate three important factors before opening your mouth: Goals, relationships, and context. If the goal is to ask others to act, then the way of speaking needs to lead them to action, not to engage in debate. If the goal is to maintain a long-term relationship, then the "right" at present may not be as important as building a sustainable cooperative relationship in the future. But when the context is tense, no matter how right you say it, it will not help, but only make the situation worse.
Therefore, "knowing things" is actually a skill to control leverage in communication. In some situations, speaking frankly will win the argument, but it loses the job; meanwhile, talking nonsense can be self-deprecating, but it brings results. Adults in communication do not choose to speak emotionally "I have to speak for myself", but choose to speak to achieve the goal I want from the conversation.
In a family, "knowledge" is expressed in very small actions. Instead of throwing conclusions in each other's faces, we can switch to asking questions so that the other person gets into the problem themselves. Not because we "refuse", but because we understand that when others are judged on their behalf, they will automatically resist; but when they discover it themselves, they will easily accept and change. With the same problem, different approaches will determine whether the conversation goes in a cooperative direction or leads to a cold war.
In work, "knowledge" is distinguishing professional debate from position assessment. Many times, bosses or colleagues do not react because they do not understand the problem, but because they are protecting their role and face. If we say "I'm wrong", we will push them into defensive positions; but if we say "I see two risks, which option should I choose to avoid?", we will put them in a leadership position. Communication skills are not about being flowery, but about knowing how to put the person opposite in a position that is easy to agree with without losing their standards.
There are misunderstandings, equating "knowledge" with "pleasure". But in reality, "knowledge" is not about lowering standards, but about adjusting tactics to convey those standards more effectively. You still maintain your standards, it's just that you choose a less frivolous path to achieve goals. Uninformed people often try to squeeze truth into others, while knowledgeable people make others bring that truth back to themselves.
Knowing how to "know things", you will realize that you have "upgraded" when the conversation ends with the next step instead of arguing, the relationship still maintains a rhythm of cooperation despite disagreements and you talk less but people do more. That is not just a skill, but also culture.
