I do sometimes wish I were an expert on something. Instead my knowledge covers a wide range of issues over which I have rather shallow understanding. I sometimes startle myself at my lack of intellectual or moral rigour.
That's exactly how I feel! I want to know more about just one thing than anybody else.
But I think there's a lot to be said for dilettantism. You get to dip your toes in lots of different areas and get a wider appreciation of everything, rather than being dogmatic. Also I think that it's by gaining breadth that you can ultimately gain depth - you start to see how things fit together and can apply knowledge from one area to another.
And then - is it actually a matter of knowing enough, or just FEELING you know enough? You know you are in fact an expert on an awful lot of stuff - politics, history, literature, The West Wing, 19th century embroidery techniques. You would definitely be my phone a friend.
You should write about the stuff you're interested in - it's a really good way to kind of realise you implicitly know and understand more than you think you do. I always find that when I lose confidence it makes me feel that I never knew all this stuff I actually do.
What makes you think you're not an expert? You've done an Oxford English degree, and I'd say that makes you something of an expert.
You also tend to go deeper into your wide range of issues than most people. For example, in your job, no doubt you'll become an expert on a policy area, and become so very quickly.
At worst, if you aren't an expert, you're expert in potentia, ready and able to learn quickly at the drop of a proposed EU Directive.
(Personally, I don't think your understanding is that shallow, or that you lack rigour. You're being too harsh on yourself. And, speaking as a scientist, you seem better educated than most arts and humanities students! Or at least, able to think logically.)
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But I think there's a lot to be said for dilettantism. You get to dip your toes in lots of different areas and get a wider appreciation of everything, rather than being dogmatic. Also I think that it's by gaining breadth that you can ultimately gain depth - you start to see how things fit together and can apply knowledge from one area to another.
And then - is it actually a matter of knowing enough, or just FEELING you know enough? You know you are in fact an expert on an awful lot of stuff - politics, history, literature, The West Wing, 19th century embroidery techniques. You would definitely be my phone a friend.
You should write about the stuff you're interested in - it's a really good way to kind of realise you implicitly know and understand more than you think you do. I always find that when I lose confidence it makes me feel that I never knew all this stuff I actually do.
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You also tend to go deeper into your wide range of issues than most people. For example, in your job, no doubt you'll become an expert on a policy area, and become so very quickly.
At worst, if you aren't an expert, you're expert in potentia, ready and able to learn quickly at the drop of a proposed EU Directive.
(Personally, I don't think your understanding is that shallow, or that you lack rigour. You're being too harsh on yourself. And, speaking as a scientist, you seem better educated than most arts and humanities students! Or at least, able to think logically.)
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