Knowledge is power

"Knowledge is power," right? Not always. I was discussing "self help" with some friends recently, and we talked about the common problem of people who read or go to therapy but continue doing the "wrong thing." This seems to be an issue of plenty of "know what" but not enough "know how."

In organizations, we can see the same kinds of things. Classically, the big collection of knowledge in a central repository or the best practices database is the classic self-help book. There is plenty of knowledge in there, but the organizations don't know how to apply it.

Now, put that information into the heads of the people and give them the means to talk and discuss and percolate and try out their ideas. Give them not only the know what but also the know how, and you might just get somewhere.

Just like with people - if you give them the power to make a change, even the worst cases can change.