Is it arrogant to walk into a room, a committee meeting, or
conference room and think; "I am the smartest guy in here," or if it is
an honest assessment, is it even relevant. The reason I ask this is
because I run a think tank and there are some wicked smart SOB's that I
deal with on a regular basis, I mean seriously, it can be a little
intimidating. Still, if one of these folks with a 146 IQ walks into a
room, generally speaking they are the smartest person there,
mathematical probability suggests they'd be right 99.98% of the time.
Would it be arrogant for that individual to think he is the smartest guy
on scene? Think about that for a moment, I'd like to talk a little
social philosophy with you if I might.
Regarding the traps of "thinking you are the smartest in the room" yes, that can get one into trouble like it did Kenneth Lay or the executives at Enron, still, there will be times when you will be the smartest in the room, and the smarter you are, the more often it will happen, so it's best to have a pretty good idea of your personal SWAT - strengths and weaknesses, and if you project your strengths people will want you to take the lead early and often, if you have time and want to, do it, if not find someone else you can help to the position, make them great, they'll take you with them as they move up to better and greater things (advice to the follower).
If you are the smartest in the room, then you should spot BS from wisdom pretty easily and then you can decide how to play that to get the team to still work together without ruffling feathers. It might be deceptive to pretend to be like everyone else, and remain modest, but there can be significant benefits to this, it allows you to ask questions and catch people slinging bull, or help others get your way - AKA; the art of diplomacy.
Remember in every room there is someone who actually is the smartest, it might be you. Depending on the room and your company it may nearly always be you. It's not arrogant to believe this based on mathematical probability, but it will not serve you to announce it, as many people like to think of themselves as highly intelligent, even when they aren't. Try not to be that person. See my point.
Regarding the traps of "thinking you are the smartest in the room" yes, that can get one into trouble like it did Kenneth Lay or the executives at Enron, still, there will be times when you will be the smartest in the room, and the smarter you are, the more often it will happen, so it's best to have a pretty good idea of your personal SWAT - strengths and weaknesses, and if you project your strengths people will want you to take the lead early and often, if you have time and want to, do it, if not find someone else you can help to the position, make them great, they'll take you with them as they move up to better and greater things (advice to the follower).
If you are the smartest in the room, then you should spot BS from wisdom pretty easily and then you can decide how to play that to get the team to still work together without ruffling feathers. It might be deceptive to pretend to be like everyone else, and remain modest, but there can be significant benefits to this, it allows you to ask questions and catch people slinging bull, or help others get your way - AKA; the art of diplomacy.
Remember in every room there is someone who actually is the smartest, it might be you. Depending on the room and your company it may nearly always be you. It's not arrogant to believe this based on mathematical probability, but it will not serve you to announce it, as many people like to think of themselves as highly intelligent, even when they aren't. Try not to be that person. See my point.
Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Future Concepts. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net
By Lance Winslow
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