The Smartest Guy In The Room?

Everybody hates that guy... the one who can't stop showing off how much he knows about everything. All the time. Other people are really only there as topic springboards - as soon as they bring up a subject, he's all over it

I hate that guy. Sometimes I've been that guy. I hate that too...

If a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, then a lot of knowledge can be an absolute disaster. Nobody wants to know what you know. No one wants their ignorance rubbed in their face by someone who positions himself as their superior. They don't want to hear about it even if you're not being officious & demeaning. Even if your intentions are simply to spread a little information around, to address common mistakes or misconceptions. To help... You're the Know-All, the Grammar Nazi, the Nerd, the Snob. They'll call you Doctor or Professor... but it won't be a compliment

It has come to my attention that at least one of my former employers probably thought I was smarter than them & disliked me for it... which has led, in the past, to unpleasant encounters ranging from stand-offs that were a hair's breadth from being violent; being used as an unwitting & unwilling example in Team Meetings; or simply being the one they get rid of when costs need to be cut. I never thought I flaunted my intelligence at people - especially not my employers... how stupid can a smart guy be?? But sometimes it can just be the way you speak - the 'accent', the vocabulary... the use of words like 'vocabulary'. I always thought if I had to correct someone's words, I did it privately & tried my damnedest to not act like an English Teacher, but... the road to Hell is paved with good intentions & I've walked a fair piece of it feeling like an over-educated idiot

I used to be grateful for the education I was afforded, the thirst for additional knowledge it fuelled. Now it seems that ignorance really is bliss & nobody wants their bliss dissed

Especially not by you... Professor