Tacit knowledgetacit knowledge

Tacit knowledge is the intuitive knowledge a person holds but cannot easily put into writing or words. The chemist and philosopher Michael Polanyi defined it with the phrase 'we know more than we can tell'; the skill in a craftsman's hands or an experienced person's reading of a situation is of this kind. This knowledge is passed on not through books but often by watching closely and working alongside. The most valuable part of mentoring is often precisely this knowledge that resists words. The mentor can truly pass on their tacit knowledge only when the mentee experiences it at their side.