I’m not a fan of the word “expert,” not because there aren’t experts, but rather because too many who are not believe themselves to be experts. This is the opposite of imposter syndrome, where one doubts their own expertise and is worried about being outed as a fraud.

I have plenty of problems, but I don’t suffer from either condition. Despite having spent the last 25+ years documenting how Windows works and opining on the strategy decisions Microsoft has made along the way, I still have so much to learn. And because I don’t position myself---or think of myself as---an expert, there are no worries about fraud. I try to communicate what I know with certainty and what I’m unsure about with that caveat.