There is a mental state far more important than “getting it”….it’s getting what you don’t get.

Over the years, it has been my great pleasure as well as privilege to associate with dozens of men and women who possess superior intelligence. However different they may be in most other respects, all of them “get it” almost immediately when introduced to the fundamentals of a previously unfamiliar subject.

Lots of people with lesser intelligence also “get it.”

What separates those of superior intelligence from them and everyone else is their ability to “get what they don’t get.”

CliffsNotes offers a full-range of booklets about various subjects (for a cost of $9.99 each) that provide basic information. You can also purchase the PDF online for $6.99. Presumably because its coverage is somewhat more comprehensive, Principles of Management costs $11.99; PDF for $7.99.

I guess if you read all of these CliffsNotes booklets, there’s no need to read the best (not necessarily the most popular) business books and take business courses, much less earn an MBA. Better yet, you can “fool” people into thinking that you really did read some books, take the courses and earned the degree.

Is “getting it” enough for most people? Is the illusion of knowledge more important than the reality of understanding?

So it would seem.