Tribal Knowledge

Hey all,

I hope you've had a good week. This week, I've been thinking about so-called "tribal knowledge" and how we can better capture it for use in the future.

If you don't know already, "tribal knowledge" is a term used in business to refer to all the unwritten/silent knowledge employees attain while working. This information is all the knowledge that isn't widely known or easily accessible within the company - stuff that isn't written down and that could be easy for the company to "forget" if some employees retired or were fired.

For example, maybe only a small group of employees can handle the quirks of a certain technology that a company uses. Then, if those employees are removed, the company will have a huge problem because it effectively has "forgotten" how to use that software until it spends a lot of time and energy to get employees to learn it again.

Anyway, the point of my bringing up this idea is not to discuss how companies should better retain the specialized knowledge of their employees.

Rather, it is to bring up the fact that we humans do this all the time - forgetting the lessons we've learned in the past, harming our growth in the process.

Luckily, it's quite easy to combat the loss of knowledge. All you must do is figure out:

What knowledge of yours is worth keeping.
How to store that knowledge.
How to engage with that knowledge after it is documented.

Pretty simple. This is one of those problems where acknowledging that you have a problem is most of the battle. Once you realize how fast your values, knowledge, and experiences slip away, it's quite easy to ground yourself, look back, and decide what lessons younger you could teach present you.

Finally, I'd like to acknowledge the importance of filtering what knowledge you've written down. There is a delicate balance between constantly sticking to goals and lessons that aren't relevant versus forgetting about your past entirely. Remember to treat young you like a smart stranger - their technical knowledge might be good and they understand your brain chemistry somewhat, but their goals and viewpoints won't exactly align with yours. The question is always about how valuable your past experiences are in guiding present you.

So, maybe the notes you've taken from readings or class are useful, but you should allow your interpretations to be different especially when your goals have changed.

Anyways, that's all I've got for this week. I hope I taught you something or at least sparked some thoughtful thinking. Otherwise, have a great week!

-Ethan