One of the great things about being a journalist is you can admit ignorance.

Well, maybe not ignorance, but it is OK to not know things. You can ask questions without feeling dumb.

People expect it of you and make allowances – although constant questioning may explain why surveys show journalists are unpopular.

What's so great about admitting ignorance?

Society is intolerant of people not knowing things.

Consequently too many adults are reluctant to admit to knowledge gaps. We feel the need to disguise our ignorance. And that's bad.

Needing to disguise ignorance is a particular problem for knowledge workers. Employers hire us for our expertise and insight. They may feel cheated when told: "I don't know" or "I'll find out".

Yet no-one can know everything – even in a narrow subject area.

Admitting you don't know is liberating. Being able to ask questions is liberating.

Asking people to explain what they mean when they say something strange or incomprehensible is liberating.

On the other hand, pretending to understand when you don't is stifling. And it's hard to learn new information when you are busy trying to hide your ignorance.

I make a point of asking questions even when I suspect I know the answer. It's the best way of learning new knowledge, even if it makes me sound like an inquisitive child.

And I never worry about appearing ignorant.

The increase of knowledge -- from Billing Knowledge

Does it Pay Off to Invest in Knowledge during Non-Billable Time? gets right to the heart of a problem faced by many freelance or consultant knowledge workers. That is, whether or not customers should pay for the training or learning required to do the job they hired you for. And, if they don't pay for training, how much needs to be loaded on the fee to take the learning part into account?

These are difficult questions for anyone who bills by the hour and remind me James Whistler the painter.

Whistler created some paintings in a day or two, but charged his usual hefty fee. When questioned about the morality of asking for what amounted to a huge hour rate he replied he wasn't charging for the hours worked, but for a "lifetime of experience".