Answer the question that you know

- Here's something really ironic.…Sometimes intelligent people make themselves look odd…or even unintelligent…by trying to address things…outside of their main area of expertise.…And by trying too hard…they fail to receive the respect…they otherwise might have received.…I don't want this to happen to you.…Let me share with you…one of my favorite ideas.…It occurred to me many years…while speaking with a student.…She asked me how long I went to college…and I told her 10 years:…four for undergraduate, two for a Master's Degree,…and four for a PhD.…

She smiled and said, "Well, that's a lot of learning.…"So tell me what's the greatest thing you ever learned?"…It was a great question,…one I had never thought about.…Finally it hit me…and I said, "The greatest thing I've learned…"is how little I know."…Embracing that idea makes you learning-oriented.…It makes you comfortable with the fact that…you can know a lot,…but you still don't know much.…That way you can avoid…one of the most common mistakes…intelligent people make…which is acting like a know-it-all.…