The Cone of Silence, Chaos, and the Smartest Person in the Room

(Reprinted from November 2008)

In the 1960’s television series, “Get Smart”, a play on words in and of itself, Agent Maxwell Smart considered himself to be cunning, knowledgeable, and very….Smart. In fact, he was a bumbling, funny, idiot, who despite his obvious shortcomings, always captured the agent from the evil enemy organization, known as Kaos (Chaos). Despite his strong beliefs to the contrary, Agent Smart was rarely, if ever, the smartest person in the room. Inevitably, he was assisted, and often unknowingly led, by his partner, Agent 99…a person with a whole lot more smarts than Agent Smart.


When you attend meetings with colleagues, prospects, or clients, do you feel like you’re the smartest person in the room? Do others think you are? Do you think someone else is the smartest person in the room? If you think that you are the smartest person in the room, then you may be overlooking a real opportunity!


Some people have told me that I’m pretty bright. While such compliments feel really great, they’re also dangerous, because if I’m not careful, after a while I could start to believe that they’re true. And, that could spell the beginning of chaos and lost opportunities!


How about you? Have others told you how smart you are? Yeah, yeah, yeah, you’re no slouch but, the world is full of very intelligent people…those who know a lot more than you and me…people who have received more and better training, have achieved higher levels of learning, have more degrees and more pertinent experience, those who understand what you and I don’t, and those with deeper expertise than you or me.


That’s right, you actually may not be the smartest person in the room, and I’m pretty darned sure that, neither am I. Now we’re talking! In the realization that you are not the smartest person in the room lays opportunity! In most cases, the people who are smarter than you want to share their ideas and thoughts with you. After all, why have all those smarts if not to demonstrate that they exist, right?!


The lady standing next to you in the room probably knows something you don’t. The guy across the table knows something you haven’t considered. The woman sitting next to him knows something he hasn’t heard before. They may not all be university graduates or senior executives but, they all know something. And, that something may be just what you need, like an idea; a bit of historical data; a theory; a new approach; a twist on an old concept; a seemingly crazy, far-out, or wild idea….something that you haven’t yet considered or maybe what you’ve already forgotten. But, it’s there for you to tap into.


That knowledge, that wisdom, those smarts that are better or broader than those you possess are within your reach and available to accelerate you further than you could go without them. You see, when a person believes that they are the smartest person in the room, that belief, that one seemingly small error, in and of itself, suggests that that person isn’t…..the smartest person in the room. What’s more, such a mistake can cause you to miss a very important opportunity…the opportunity to acquire knowledge from others, to capitalize on what other people know, to build on their experiences, to learn more, to become better at whatever you do….to better serve others and to become an even greater success!


Ask yourself: “Do I know EVERYTHING?” That’s an easy one. Then, as you begin to feel a bit humbled, ask yourself “Do I know everything I need to know to accomplish all of my objectives?” If you answer “Yes”, try again, and remind yourself that someone somewhere knows something you don’t. And, that something could be the key ingredient in accomplishing your mission, for yourself and for others.


The most successful leaders I’ve met have been some incredibly quick-minded and intelligent people. Among the most common traits they all possess was the realization that their knowledge and experience created greater results when augmented by what other smarter people knew. They knew that if they actually were the smartest person in the room, their accomplishments and their ultimate success would be limited by what they did not know. And, in order to achieve more, they typically sought out others with more experience, more knowledge, more expertise….more smarts.


So, what’s your best move? Accept that, while you may be pretty intelligent, you are not likely the smartest person in the room, or at least you shouldn’t be. If you really are the smartest one there, then go to another room, or find people who truly are smarter than you and who can help you accomplish more with what they know. If that means you must find your own Agent 99 then, so be it!


Your best bet will be to ditch the Cone of Silence, get dumb, then Get Smart, and excell further than your own smarts alone can take you!