Just because you feel average (or a little less than average sometimes) doesn’t mean everyone else has to know your secret. Here's how to look like the office Einstein when attending a meeting.
Meetings can be very boring. Sitting on uncomfortable chairs in a stuffy room with a group of people who intimidate the confidence out of you, can be quite painful. But you really don’t have to feel that way.
Even though you may believe you’re the dumbest person in the room compared to your esteemed colleagues, if you do a few of these things below, they’ll never suspect your secret.
Have them all believing you’re very smart by employing these tactics:
Take a pen and paper with you
Smart people are constantly taking notes. So even if you scribble and doodle, other meeting attendees will be impressed at your apparent attentiveness. Have you ever actually paid attention to what people are really writing down in meetings? No, of course not.
Oh, and don’t ever touch your smartphone, and don’t you dare look at the time - smart people love meetings and are always engaged and never distracted during meetings. Obvs.
Read: Make the next meeting more efficient
Go prepared
Smart people are organised and know exactly what their role will be in every meeting they attend. It’s not that hard to do the same. Print enough copies of the agenda for everyone, or at least be the one that hands every person the agenda (or any relevant piece of paper, actually) as they enter the room. And yes, this means you should always be the first one to arrive.
Have ideas and/or questions
Every smart person has valuable input. Even if you only speak up once, it may be all you need to impress your colleagues. If perhaps a few strange abbreviations get tossed around, ask what they mean. Contrary to popular belief, it is people who ask when they don’t understand who appear smarter and gain more respect than those who constantly claim to know everything. No really, it’s like a proven psychology theory or something (we’ll find that research paper on it soon, for reals).
Hold your pose
Smart people are always attentive. This means you shouldn’t fidget (leave that to kids in classrooms) and you should listen. Give a few nods and say “Yes, of course” or “Aah, that’s right” a few times. You may end up really listening and actually learn a real thing or two (then you’ll really be smart!).
For more ‘expert’ advice like this, read How to appear more intelligent at your desk and How to Look Smarter during your Lunch Break.
