The ‘Five Orders of Ignorance’ from Phillip G. Armour

0th Order Ignorance (0OI)—Lack of Ignorance.
You know, you have the answer

1st Order Ignorance (1OI)—Lack of Knowledge.
You know what you don't know, you have the question

2nd Order Ignorance (2OI)—Lack of Awareness.
You don't know what you don't know.

3rd Order Ignorance (3OI)—Lack of Process.
You have no means, or process, for resolving your lack of knowledge

4th Order Ignorance (4OI)—Meta Ignorance.
Not aware of these 5 levels

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0) "0OI" is what you know that you know. As an entrepreneur it’s OK to be arrogant about what you know that you know, that’s what drives you forward against all the odds and the naysayers.

1) "1OI" is what you know that you don’t know. You must adopt humility in equal measure to your arrogance about what you know you don’t know. Solicit advice from experts and listen carefully. Hire people smarter than you with the skills that complement yours.

2) "2OI" is what you don’t know that you know. This is about trust of your gut instincts. Don’t hire people who don’t feel right and don’t do deals with people you don’t feel good about. Believe in your values and principals.

3) "3OI" is what you don’t know that you don’t know. This is something to fear in yourself and others. Avoid the fakers and the liars. If they can’t be moved to Ignorance Order Two then you don’t want to be dealing with them.

4) "4OI" is not knowing about the Orders of Ignorance. Congratulations dear reader as you are no longer classified by this order