Wisdom

Wisdom is not wisdom when it is derived from books alone.
Horace

We know how important it is to read. Books are invaluable. They present us with all the knowledge of those people who have gone before us, and those who have dealt with things that we have not experienced yet. They tell us about other people's mistakes so that we don't have to make them ourselves, and they can often give us ideas about different ways to deal with a situation similar to the one we are going through now or might go through in the future. Of course these days "reading" would include media such as computers, and television, which Horace didn't have.

But reading is not enough. Knowing what to do isn't enough. We could have all the information in the world but unless we go out and take action, unless we apply it, it is useless to us. Many of us are addicted to reading, to finding out more and more information; to the point that it gets overwhelming and we don't know what to do first. That doesn't serve us very well. Wisdom is not wisdom when it is derived from books alone.

The only way to gain true wisdom is to actually go out in the real world and do something. Test out your hypotheses. See for yourself what really happens when you take a certain action in certain circumstances. No two lives are exactly the same because our circumstances are always a little different. Experiment with doing different things in different ways at different times and see what kinds of results you get. It is only when you understand what is likely to happen when you take a certain action at a certain time that you can learn how to do it more effectively and/ or at a better time.