So I was reading one of my favorite blogs, Coding Horror:

I suppose it’s also an issue of personal style. To me, writing without a strong voice, writing filled with second guessing and disclaimers, is tedious and difficult to slog through. I go out of my way to write in a strong voice because it’s more effective. But whenever I post in a strong voice, it is also an implied invitation to a discussion, a discussion where I often change my opinion and invariably learn a great deal about the topic at hand. I believe in the principle of strong opinions, weakly held.

A couple years ago, I was talking the Institute’s Bob Johansen about wisdom, and he explained that — to deal with an uncertain future and still move forward – they advise people to have “strong opinions, which are weakly held.” They’ve been giving this advice for years, and I understand that it was first developed by Institute Director Paul Saffo. Bob explained that weak opinions are problematic because people aren’t inspired to develop the best arguments possible for them, or to put forth the energy required to test them. Bob explained that it was just as important, however, to not be too attached to what you believe because, otherwise, it undermines your ability to “see” and “hear” evidence that clashes with your opinions. This is what psychologists sometimes call the problem of “confirmation bias.”

Wow, nested quotes. Anyway, That made perfect sense to me. I try to assume I’m right about everything – if I didn’t, I don’t think I would have the confidence to make tough decisions. Of course, that sort of thinking could lead to some really bad decisions, so I always make sure that I reach an opinion through serious consideration – awareness of the facts, and not only my own conclusions about it, but people I respect as well. And even once I’ve formed an opinion, it’s not imutable – in fact, I love it when people can convince me that I’m wrong, because it makes me that much better off in the long run.

Yeah. Strong opinions, weakly held. Dig it.