How much do you know about everything?

OK, how much do you know about a few things?

Stop and ponder what you know vs. what you don't. Then consider how you'd get along if you needed good information on topics outside your comfort zone.

As President Woodrow Wilson once said, "I not only use all the brains I have but all that I can borrow."

I would add, "And all that I can buy, if necessary."

I preach the importance of building a network of experts before you need one so that they are there when you do. Whether it's a surgeon, Realtor, auto mechanic or a master salesperson, I want the best. And I will return the favor whenever I can, whether it's business advice, a reference or tickets to an event.

But let me make this very clear: I also rely on my instincts, because, eventually, it all comes back to me. I weigh the information I receive from others and make the best judgment I can. I try to retain as much information from my experts as I can. You never know when it will come in handy.

Carl Ally, founder of Ally & Gargano, one of the 20th century's most successful advertising agencies, said: "The creative person wants to be a know-it-all. He wants to know about all kinds of things: ancient history, 19th-century mathematics, current manufacturing techniques, flower arranging and hog futures. Because he never knows when these ideas might come together to form a new idea."

You can take some basic steps to improve your knowledge:

• Read. Choose books, newspapers, websites, encyclopedias, anything that teaches you something you didn't already know. Play Trivial Pursuit, or watch "Jeopardy." Learn something new every day. If it's part of our world, it's worth knowing. Embrace lifelong learning.

• Listen. Sounds simple, but it's easy to be distracted. Focus on the speaker. If you don't hear it the first time, ask the person to repeat it. Make sure that you understand. You will be surprised what you can learn.

• Pay attention to what's happening around you. Mensa, the organization for people with high IQs, says current research shows that at least 52 percent of our intelligence is based on our environment.

• Exercise and eat healthy. What's good for the body is also good for the brain.

• Sleep. Our country is chronically sleep-deprived, which negatively affects our thought processes.

You'll learn that you are capable of more than you imagined. You'll also learn to recognize your limitations. If you don't know something, or don't know how to find out, ask for help. Tap into all the brains you need -- they just might not all be housed in your head.

Mackay's Moral: Sometimes being smart means recognizing when you're not.