As others have said, the problem is when people refuse to acknowledge new information or admit imperfection.
You don’t even need to fully admit fault in the moment. If someone provides some contradictory information, you can go “Oh, that’s new to me. I’ll have to read about it.”
But the problem is people (all of us, to some extent) are emotionally invested in this. Admitting being wrong or imperfect feels like an attack on our security. You have to let that go. No one’s going to hurt you if you admit you forgot the capital of NJ. You don’t have to fight and try to change the argument to “well it should be Princeton” so you can avoid feeling wrong.
As others have said, the problem is when people refuse to acknowledge new information or admit imperfection.
You don’t even need to fully admit fault in the moment. If someone provides some contradictory information, you can go “Oh, that’s new to me. I’ll have to read about it.”
But the problem is people (all of us, to some extent) are emotionally invested in this. Admitting being wrong or imperfect feels like an attack on our security. You have to let that go. No one’s going to hurt you if you admit you forgot the capital of NJ. You don’t have to fight and try to change the argument to “well it should be Princeton” so you can avoid feeling wrong.
I take pride in admitting when I realize I’m wrong, and I respect people who you can show proof and flip on the spot