the most important thing I've learned in grad school...

Up to this point, I've learned a lot of things. But one of the most significant things is that I'm not stupid. For instance, back in the day, whenever I would read an article that made no sense to me, or someone would say something that went completely over my head, I would just accept that I just couldn't understand it--it was beyond my cognitive capacities. And, sometimes it was/is. But I've now realized that sometimes, the article/speaker is just confused or doesn't actually make any sense. It's not me, it's them.

Part of it is that I no longer completely skip the stats/methods sections of articles, cutting straight to the discussion. I usually actually get what's going on now, and can pick up on problems.

Non sequitur: I was reading this article for social psych, and I kept thinking that I had read it before. Then it hit me and the memory was extraordinarily clear. It was one of the coolest classes in undergrad (by which I mean the actual class period, not the class itself, which was rather repetitive of other courses I'd had). It was in the spring of my junior year, and it was beautiful outside. So, we decided to have class outside, sitting under a tree. You know, the classic college stereotype. Anyway, that class was typically very quiet and conversations consisted of the professor trying to get one word answers out of us. But something about the reading and the environment led to a really awesome discussion. That was a fun memory. Now back to reading.