[This is an unfinished blog post from years back that I'm publishing now as part of a housecleaning on the off chance that someone might find it useful.]
In my dialog with others, particular those in the agile community, I frequently encounter those with a belief system that runs along the following lines:
* As a human, I'm not like a machine or an animal
* As a knowledge worker, I'm not like a physical worker
* As a software professional, I'm not like other professionals
* As someone working today, I'm not like those who have worked in the past
* As a unique individual, I'm not like others
I think these beliefs are in turn linked to the following perspectives:
* I don't do repetitive things, my work is unique
* I don't do physical work, I use my brain
* The problems I deal with in software are different and more complex than problems dealt with by other professionals
* The knowledge and wisdom of today far exceeds that of yesterday
* What others have learned does not apply to me
I think this in turn leads to the following action strategies:
* I shouldn't spend a lot of time really listening to others
* I shouldn't spend a lot of time studying what others do, particularly in other fields
* I shouldn't copy what others do
* I should figure things out for myself
Except that:
* We have much in common with those that are different from us
* So we have much to learn from those that are different from us
* The brain is an organ that is subject to fatigue, change, etc., like other human organs
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