Be The Dumbest Guy In The Room

Most people are under the impression that they've arrived once they are looked at as the "expert" in the room. They think that once they've reached a certain level that they've "made it" and that the journey is over. The work is done. Well, I'm here today to tell you that you should strive to be the dumbest person in the room.

Why you might ask?

Remember when you used to have that one girl(yes, it was almost always a girl) who seemed to ask endless questions in class? It seemed as if no matter what the teacher said she was curious about something. We got mad at her in high school when she kept us 2 minutes past the bell in chemistry, right?! The thing is, she wasn't even usually the smartest person in the class. She was usually a high-C student who got A/B's BECAUSE she asked questions. I mean let's be honest here. The people who got the best grades consistently in high school weren't the ones asking the questions. They were usually hanging out in the back of the class with their feet kicked up and their headphones in. But what happened to some of them in college? In the real world?

My point is that if you are consistently the smartest person in the room than you will eventually become very dumb.

What?! Connor, how is being smart actually dumb?

Because smart people don't get smart and then stop learning. Well, yes, the dumb ones do. And they don't stay smart for very long. You see, if you're the dumbest person in the room then you always have new opportunities to learn from smarter people. That means you are always learning, therefore, you're getting smarter and growing in your craft as a result. This gets harder and harder as you progress and learn more. As you get better at things it becomes harder to learn because eventually, you become classified by others as an expert in whatever it is you are doing. Then, you have to find new people who are smarter or better than you, and on and on and on it goes. Each time you level up it gets a little harder to learn and improve and that's where people usually plateau and start falling off the path. They start to think that they're "good enough".

It feels good to be told you're smart or that you're strong or that you are the best at building houses. But if you start to actually believe that and let it get in your head you're going to get comfortable. You're going to slow down and somebody else is eventually going to catch up and then beat you. It's as simple as that. You stop learning, you let yourself believe that you've arrived, you fail. You become dumb. The smartest people in the world are life-long learners. They read, they think, they seek out others who are better than them or have more knowledge in a particular subject.

Don't ever let anyone tell you that you've arrived. We never arrive. This journey has no port. It's an endless expedition that ends the day you get complacent and start thinking you know it all. Don't let it happen. Keep learning and being the best that you can possibly be every day. Then, watch as that slowly evolves and gets better over time.

Attack each day with the purpose of getting better and learning more. Put yourself in situations and social circles that make you feel dumb. Then, become a sponge and soak it all in. Rinse, wash, repeat for the rest of your life. Don't ever slow down and don't even think about stopping.

Get After It.