What if you're wrong.

The Possibility of Being Wrong
There is a quiet but unsettling truth about human thought: we might be wrong. In fact, it’s not just possible—it’s almost inevitable that, at some point, the things we hold to be true will reveal themselves as illusions, half-truths, or outright lies.
We like to believe we are rational beings, capable of separating fact from fiction with clear-eyed certainty. Yet, our minds are not neutral machines. They are coloured by emotion, memory, upbringing, bias, and the simple desire to be right. We rarely notice how these filters bend reality, shaping it into something that feels true, even if it isn’t.
History provides humbling examples. People once knew the Earth was flat. They once knew disease came from evil spirits. They once knew the sun revolved around us. These beliefs were not idle superstitions at the time—they were accepted truths, backed by learned men, holy books, and the authority of the day. Yet they were wrong. Today, we congratulate ourselves for being more enlightened, but in a few centuries, future generations may pity our own certainties with the same condescending smile.
The danger lies in confusing belief with truth. Just because something feels right, aligns with our experience, or is endorsed by those we trust, does not make it objectively true. The reverse is also worth remembering: what feels wrong, alien, or offensive may still be fact. This is a deeply uncomfortable thought, because it demands humility. It means accepting that the map of the world in our minds is provisional—a draft that must always be open to revision.
To entertain the notion that we might be wrong is to open the door to growth. It allows us to listen, to test our assumptions, and to see from another’s perspective. It does not mean we must abandon all convictions, floating in a fog of endless doubt. Rather, it means holding our convictions with a gentle grip, ready to release them if the evidence changes.
In the end, the most dangerous belief is not a false one—it is the belief that we could not possibly be mistaken. For when we shut the door on doubt, we also shut the door on truth.