https://seekingalpha.com/article/4536831-stop-trying-to-answ…
Thoughtful piece with WEB like wisdom imo. Excerpt:
“Answering a question with the words “I don’t know” sounds weak and “wishy washy” like a failure to come up with an answer on a test. Don’t they tell you on multiple choice tests like the SAT to eliminate one absurd answer and guess? At age 22 I enjoyed winging it and thought it was necessary to have a position on every question. Now that I’m almost 78 I have ended up looking like an idiot enough times that I am more willing to resist the impulse. Manufacturing a plausible-sounding answer can not only lead to big mistakes but it can stop you from making progress in finding the right question.
Starting with an admission that you don’t know the answer can be downright empowering. Just remember that “I don’t know” isn’t a final answer. It’s a starting point. The real question is how we make the initial “I don’t know” speak to us in a productive way. My first thought after realizing I don’t know the answer is to ask what I would do differently if I did know the answer…”