Feel insecure about lack of general knowledge

[Icantgiveupcarbs]

I was at a pub quiz yesterday and didn't know the answer to the majority of the questions.
To be fair some were fairly tricky, like who won the Challenge Cup against Wigan in 1997, something you wouldn't really know unless you were an avid fan.
However I just didn't know many at all, and we only got a good score because of our team.
I like to read articles and non fiction but not a lot of novels to be honest, I find it hard to stick to a book, but I think this is something else that makes me feel insecure as it's seen as attractive to be well-read.
I like to read more about the world and how different cultures are, and I can speak other languages, have a Degree and a Masters, but feel I'm lacking something.
I just find it hard to stick with lengthy books.
I remember at school I had a crush on someone considered very smart and who ended up going to Harvard, but I once asked him out and he rejected me saying, "What ever would we talk about? The weather?"
I know he was just a prick but I've always felt a bit inferior.
Should I try to start reading more novels/literature? Try to gain more general knowledge or just accept who I am?

You don't need to read lengthy books. Start with reading a newspaper every day. You'll gain a lot of general knowledge that way.

I don’t understand why you think reading novels will improve your general knowledge? Surely general knowledge is gained reading/following the news, reading silly threads on here about how pineapples grow etc?

You’re fine as you are.

I don’t have much general knowledge; I know a lot about certain specialised areas relating to my work but general knowledge doenst stick in my head. My family is very good at general knowledge but it really doesn’t impact my day to day knowledge

read newspapers
listen to the news
are you in UK?
Ros Atkins does some great short explainer videos

I think deliberately reading anything whatsoever purely to become better at a general knowledge quiz, or to impress someone, is a complete waste of your valuable time. (unless perhaps you are training to be on university challenge)

Consume media that you are interested in, and if that means you don't contribute to a pub quiz - sounds line a reasonable trade off to me

Given someone wrote the books you are reading one can assume there is at least one other person with similar interests

It doesn't even sound like you are struggling for content! Culture, world, geography, language - all fascinating stuff, I salute your passion

Wikipedia is a good resource I can easily read something on there and end up down the rabbit hole for hours
they do a on this day which ends up reading millions of other links
its not the best resource but it’s a good place to start reading about stuff you normally wouldn’t and go on and read other sites

General knowledge can feel hard to acquire if it doesn't happen as you're just going along. I think a lot of mine has come from being generally curious... if I see something that I enjoy or that fascinates me on TV, I tend to then go and watch other related things, and then read around it. For example I loved the West Wing a few years ago, and it got me interested in American politics and how it all works over there, and I ended up then reading about a lot of Presidents, including biography and autobiography. That lead me to learn their perspective on a number of events in history, e.g. the Cold War, the space race etc. Then I wanted another perspective on the same events. So I suppose for me it starts with being a bit fascinated in something then I end up down a range of different paths of research etc. But it all feels like leisure, not 'learning' in a worklike sense!

Listening to radio 4 can be a good source of general knowledge

You can pick up some stuff from watching quiz shows like the Chase, or Tipping Point. Often the same questions crop up.
other than that pick a topic, say The Planets and research some basic info… largest/smallest.. order.. moons..
Look at coins/notes sizes/shapes, pictures on the notes
shapes of road signs…
Just keep really looking and listening and you will pick things up.

I agree with watching quiz shows but don't worry too much because I go to pub quizzes and there's always someone who says they don't have much general knowledge but they'll occasionally get that one answer that no one else knows.

my specialist subject was always song titles, beat the clock etc;, and simply because i enjoy listening to music
whatever your enjoyment/interest lies

I'm always rubbish at pub quizzes but have fairly good general knowledge.

I am the same and have accepted I am no good at general knowledge. I tend to receive the lowest score in quizes and previously worried my colleagues would view me as insular and unworldly. This is not the case, I take an interest in people. Whilst curious, I do not absorb information as others do.

Pub quizzes are based on trivia.The point is that it’s trivial. Most of the knowledge is of absolutely no use other than during the quiz itself.

“However I just didn't know many at all, and we only got a good score because of our team.”

That’s how pub quizzes work though, I know a few historical things like Henry the eighths wives and also animals, my sister is ok at geography, my DP is ok at sports... and if we’re up to date with the news then we do ok as a pub quiz team.

Alone, we’d be awful.

If you have a masters and can speak other languages then you know how to learn. Reading novels will only teach you random facts about novels. Read non fiction about the topics you feel you want to explore. I read mostly history these days.

How about a trivia type app game? Unless you think it will depress you even more! I play one and it covers everything from UK brands, Disney movies, biology, travel, world capitals, golf.... I don't know a thing about golf so I never choose that category but I have learnt a few things and reckon these are just the type of questions that come up on pub quizzes.

A lot of general knowledge comes with age. You just kind of absorb stuff along the way and it sticks (sometimes) I mostly only half watch the national news on TV, and always have from young age and its surprising sometimes that I can pull out an answer to something I thought I didn't know 😀
I watch Tipping point and the Chase most days and also listen to Popmaster on radio 2
All.good ways of absorbing a bit of general knowledge 😀

I once won my team a charity pub quiz by being able to name all of the women's names in mambo number five, in order, in under a minute. Pub quizzes are not an indicator of intelligence or useful knowledge!
Read more because you want to not for quiz purposes, I also agree with a PP I learn a lot from radio 4, just having it on in the kitchen when cooking, doing laundry, driving etc, because you listen to topics on paper you wouldn't choose to, but most of the time it's actually very interesting.

Well, some novels will certainly inform you about different cultures, historical events, and give you imaginative insight into different lives, time periods etc, but it seems as though you (a) are conflating reading novels with obtaining general knowledge and (b) don’t in fact enjoy fiction in any case? I mean, if you want to know basic facts about the Luddites and industrial unrest in the early 19thc north of England, you don’t need to read Charlotte Bronte’s Shirley…

I'm mediocre at quizzes but I do think a base level knowledge of history and geopolitics should be a reasonable aim. Maybe I'm only saying that because I'm more interested in those spheres than others but I think if you're worried about being 'found out' it's more likely to be on that stuff than, say, science or the literary canon.

Unless your pub rivals University Challenge then I wouldnt worry about it.Our quiz team is made up of a Teacher ,Optician , Chemist and all have degrees .Normally 2nd as a lot is football (none of us good) celebrities (ditto) and random bits and pieces!

Watching quiz shows can help.

I get most of my general knowledge from watching TV, listening to radio 4 and podcasts.

I never read heavy, intellectual novels or hard to read non fiction.

Sports is the black hole in my knowledge. I know very little and care even less. But I don't do pub quizzes either, so my general knowledge is largely useless to me. Curiosity about the world is a good thing, in my opinion.

I think it's almost impossible to retain general knowledge about things you're not interested in. My dad's probably told me a thousand 'interesting' facts about classic cars, but not one of them has stuck because I don't care.

However, I'm very good at music rounds, history and politics/news, because they're my interests. A good pub quiz team has a wide mix of knowledge, no-one knows everything. And that guy you asked out was a dick.