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submitted 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) by Onionguy@lemm.ee to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

What was it about? Did you admit you were wrong or adamantly insist on your point? How did your interlocutor react? How would you like someone to react if you concede errors?

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[-] Septimaeus@infosec.pub 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Absolutely! And I kid you not, it’s one of my favorite experiences, for a few reasons.

First, there’s an instant feeling of relief. I immediately have the power to conclude the argument (debate, discussion, whatever) with a productive result. There’s no burden of truth or anything that remains. I was just wrong! The only possible thing left to discuss might be why, like if there was a miscommunication or something, but otherwise, poof! Done and dusted.

Second, a bit more selfishly, it’s a chance to demonstrate how OK with being wrong I truly am, which most people simply find it hard to believe until they’ve seen it for themselves. So I’ve learned to jump on these opportunities aggressively, in case I miss the window due an additional thread of conversation I can’t agree with or because for some reason they acknowledge a misunderstanding first, after which my change of mind loses some luster (again, selfish, but I’m being honest here).

Third, sometimes the other person flips to take my original stance, like “not so fast!” and that just makes the original debate more fun, because then we’ve both acknowledged that being right isn’t really that important. They result is a more demonstrably pure discussion with seeking truth as the goal, rather than a zero-sum match of wits with a “winner” and a “loser.”

There are additional reasons and scenarios, depending on the context, but the ones I mention above are pretty consistent. The point is that being wrong is a trophy to add to your collection of all the times you learned something and, by that token, became slightly less wrong than you were before.

Edit: flesh out #2 a bit more, especially with respect to why immediacy might matter to me personally.

this post was submitted on 18 May 2025
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