Shared vs. Personal Knowledge

Our actions are based on an account with three critical originators: emotion, desire, and most notable of all knowledge. As we state matters of fact we say whichever “I” or “we” know; referring respectively to an individual or a group. For day-to-day difficulties, one must take action based on his or her shared and personal knowledge; both types are equally imperative for us. Personal and shared knowledge complement one another. Most of human’s personal knowledge arises from shared knowledge, and shared knowledge is formed from individual experiences put together.

One should keep in mind that the total shared knowledge in the world is vaster than the inclusive individual knowledge. One can gain knowledge through several ways. As for personal knowledge, one can gain it through personal experience, observation, and/or advice. On the other hand, shared knowledge is formed and gained when individuals who have prior personal knowledge share their experiences, observations, and advice.

Shared knowledge accordingly progresses and widens over time.

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“If you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail”. This quote by Abraham Maslow can serve as an example and can emphasize the complementary property of shared and personal knowledge. Every person tries to see the problem from an angle where he or she can use the prior personal knowledge one has got to solve this problem; regardless if the strategy being used is right or wrong or effective or ineffective. As when different points of view are put together, the outcome is a wiser choice or pick.

In conclusion, shared knowledge is a composite accommodating collection of individual hard work. Both types are present in our real life. For instance, for one to assemble a house of Lego he or she has personal knowledge that attaching the pieces in a certain pattern/order builds up, and this is gained by experience.

But, if one has to build a whole village for a project in university (he or she might be a civil engineer), he or she has to know the dimensions needed for a stable model. To get this, one must collect data from more experienced people’s efforts. Shared knowledge is transferred in several ways to us even if we never came in contact with the objects or ideas we are learning about. As an example, can’t we know about the historical sites in a country without visiting it? We definitely can; maybe through the internet, books, or by talking with people who have been there already. Individual talents lay under personal knowledge, too. As such, a girl who plays the guitar can teach her friends how to play this musical instrument.

Personal knowledge (her talent and ability to play the guitar) is converted to shared knowledge (she shares what she knows with her friends).To sum up the above, there are three main components of personal knowledge: what you gain through practice, what you’ve been taught in school, and what you research independently via other sources. To gain maximum knowledge, we must keep a balance between shared and personal knowledge. We surely grant a greater portion for shared knowledge; as it doesn’t only be of assistance to us but also to other individual learners in our society specifically and in the world in general.