(Asking for EVERYONE’S one on the Internet. Hello? It’s me. I’m calling from the other side… Knock knock. So sorry to disturb, but have you heard…)
Years ago, when I first began writing a blog, 2017, to be exact, I was woken up at 3am by a question that hit like a taser through gym sweats: “What is the difference between an opinion and a credible opinion?” It was a chilling hour for philosophy, but I couldn’t shake it. What I came to realise is this: the dividing line is verifiable, substantiated, well-documented evidence. In other words, wisdom wears receipts.
Let’s take a look at that.
These days, having a credible opinion is like owning a Behemoth, everyone talks about it, but nowadays, no one has actually seen one in person. Opinions are handed out like free samples at a mall kiosk, and somehow, everyone’s an expert.
Epidemiologist?
YouTube video.
Economist?
A meme.
Constitutional lawyer?
Unaccepted thesis.
“I saw a TikTok once…”
In the age of (mis) information, where a person can get offended before hearing what you said, one can’t help but, exasperatedly, ask: what actually makes an opinion credible?
And is it rude to say, “Your opinion is invalid,” or is it just responsible civic hygiene?
Sure. Everyone also has a right to sing in the shower, it doesn’t mean they should enter ‘The Voice’. Not all opinions are created equal. Some are cooked. Others are raw. And a worrying number are expired and still being served with confidence.¹ Like the myth of shaving a childs hair to grow thick; that is determined by genetics. And no, coconut oil only adds shine to hair, attracts dust, and doesn’t fix damage in the cortex.
A wise man once said: “We’re blind to our blindness.”² He wasn’t alone. A Greek guy in sandals called Socrates once said, “I know that I know nothing.”³ Imagine tweeting that today. Someone would correct him and misquote Einstein in the process.
Let’s get real: credibility isn’t just about talking, it’s about what your life shows.⁴
If the fruit is rotten, the tree probably isn’t doing well.⁵ You don’t prove credibility by yelling louder, you prove it with the long game: integrity, impact, and consistency.
Anyone can go viral.
Not everyone bears good fruit.
One African proverb puts it this way: “Wisdom is like a baobab tree; no one individual can embrace it.”⁶
Translation?
If you’re the only person who agrees with your take, maybe it’s not revolutionary. Maybe it’s just you.
Meanwhile, Desmond Tutu offered this gem: “Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument.”⁷ You don’t win credibility with heat, but with light. Some people talk so much, they forget to listen, and the more words, the more room for regret.⁸
Having strong opinions is fine. Having strong opinions and no humility is a public health risk. Ask anyone who’s ever had to sit through a dinner party with someone who just discovered crypto. It’s better to pause, consider, and then speak slowly than to rant with precision about things you don’t understand.⁹
Let’s try a few metrics:
Has it been tested, or just retweeted? There’s a difference between echo and evidence.
Is it open to correction, or surgically attached to ego? The wisest people keep their opinions under review.¹⁰
“Being wrong” is not a disease.
But never learning?
Now that’s contagious.
Is it grounded in something ancient, or just a hot take served on Instagram Stories?
Some truths have stood the test of time. Others, not even the test of X.
Is it delivered with humility?
Loudness isn’t proof.
Neither is confidence.
Even flat-earthers are confident.
The real ones test everything, hold on to what is good, and throw out what’s fake.¹¹
As one Confucian scholar said: “Real knowledge is to know the extent of one’s ignorance.”¹² Hopefully printed above every influencer’s ring light.
Some opinions don’t just make people cringe, they make people vote, or ignore science, or fall for charismatic frauds who sell hope at R9, 99 in a faux-plastic bottle.
False confidence is dangerous. Not everyone who sounds convincing is telling the truth.¹³
You can wrap foolishness in a TED Talk and still get nowhere.
Credibility matters because ideas shape culture. And unchecked ignorance dressed as conviction is like giving a toddler scissors: someone’s going to get hurt. A trustworthy voice builds up, clarifies, heals; it doesn’t deceive or inflate itself.¹⁴
People who pause before talking tend to say smarter things.
Coincidence?
The real thinkers doubt their own logic first, then they fact-check yours. A fool takes pleasure in airing his own opinions, but the wise hold their words.¹⁵
Read people older than you, wiser than you, and including the dead. The past has survived for a reason. Not everything ancient is outdated. Opinions, like shoes, should be tried on, but not superglued to your feet.¹⁶
What if your deepest conviction, the one you believe you crafted all by yourself, was actually said, more elegantly, in 30AD?
What if the real genius behind your “hot take” is… Scripture?
Who knew that the wisdom in this post can be traced to the Holy Bible?¹⁷
References:
- Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011).
- Socrates, Apology, trans. Benjamin Jowett.
- Proverbs 18:17 (ESV). “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.”
- Matthew 7:16 (ESV). “You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?”
- Zulu Proverb, Oral Tradition.
- Desmond Tutu, The Rainbow People of God (London: Doubleday, 1994).
- Proverbs 10:19 (ESV). “When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.”
- Proverbs 18:13 (ESV). “If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.”
- Proverbs 12:15 (ESV). “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:21 (ESV). “But test everything; hold fast what is good.”
- Confucius, Analects, Book 2.
- Matthew 24:24 (ESV). “For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”
- Proverbs 15:2 (ESV). “The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouths of fools pour out folly.”
- Proverbs 18:2 (ESV). “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.”
- Romans 12:3 (ESV). “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.”
- Psalm 111:10 (ESV). “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!”
#Hayibo 