What's the best way to deal with oversmart people | Hacker News Reader

What's the best way to deal with oversmart people

14 pointssameer_hacker20 comments

I really have a hard time dealing with oversmart people who think they know everything while in reality they just don't have enough experience. I have come across such people in both work and personal life. While in personal life it's easier to avoid them, it becomes very difficult to avoid someone at work.

Any suggestions on ways to deal with such people and not loose your cool would be appreciated!

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My humble opinion. First, I would make sure that they are actually doing something bad, since you do not describe their behaviour but your feelings about them. It is possible that a person is genuinely trying to explain something, and they are not good communicators, or they are massive experts and come off as arrogant. Sometimes we expect people to address us in a certain way, based on hierarchy at a company/age/job title. Some people do not care much for such things, and with a certain combination, misunderstandings can arise, where no harm is intended.

Assuming the behaviour is bad, it probably steams from insecurity. Some people see life as a competition, or getting a best score as an objective, or is the main way they have learned to get appreciation (from parents, teachers, bosses). Think Lisa, from the Simpsons.

I would also avoid framing everything in terms of "have you done this before", like other commenters are recommending. It is more important if someone can back their words on the present, that an appeal to authority. (have you used Angular 3.1.2.3 before?, have you studied economics?, etc.). Arguments should be evaluated on their own, even if for practical reasons in real life we use heuristics based on experience.

Finally, I do not think the right term for this is being (over)smart. Depending on the behaviour it could be lacking social skills, being arrogant, condescending, etc.

When you say oversmart are you taking about people who believe they are very smart or people who are actually very smart?

Your ‘no experience’ comment makes it seem like the former. And if they are not actually smart, you can probably demonstrate their ineptitude through simple dialog and insightful problem-solving, assuming you are smarter than them.

Also I’m not sure I see a huge distinction between intelligence and experience in this industry. People who are ‘smart’ but don’t have experience tend to do really stupid things like trying to reinvent things that already exist in a better form, or design and code whole products built around a bad design, thus burying their teams in technical debt. And that’s not very smart - that’s stupid on a lot of different levels.

You can unload task and work on them. When I have to deal with a smart talker I usually try to use the opportunity to pass the Sharon paddle. It shuts them up most of the time and they then avoid me. If I fiddle with a device, just moving away and let them do it, usually ends it very quickly. Put them on the spot. In meeting it is much better, but it is delicate art of baiting people and anticipating them. Unload unfavourable task to them and grab something fun on the way.

You be surprised, sometimes those smart talkers produce some interesting result when triggered correctly. Some get overwhelmed and might break, so be careful with this.

What's a "Sharon paddle"?

A very bad translation for "ferrymans oar".

Now I'm just feeling more stupid! What's a "ferryman's oar"? (Assuming it isn't literally an oar used by a ferryman).

It's a story, the ferryman has the oar, he stops being the ferryman without it, the next guy having it is the new ferryman. So you just pass it on. It's a task you can never finish but only pass on.

Thank you so much!

Maybe ask them to show you how to do what they are talking about.

I know for some people, I fall into the "oversmart" category. (Obviously, with others this is not the case) There are some of my teammates that choose some of the manipulations suggested herein who get no benefit of my ability to see solutions I've never tried before, because they have shut the door.

Other teammates engage me often to their benefit.

The difference IMO, the teammates that come to me, they have no ego about working with someone else to make a solution.

The boss just observes and keeps kicking me raises.

I suggest always being open-minded. Even when the crazy mf is talking again.

The lack of experience should be easy to exploit. Ask them if they've ever done or experienced whatever it is they claim superior knowledge of. Conclude with "oh, so you've never actually done that before", "ah, so you've never implemented this in practice", etc. Do it in front of other people, especially superiors, to force accountability.

Remind them that while whatever they just said is nice, you're here to solve problem <X> by date <Y>. And then remind yourself that (from the very fact of their arrogance and attitude), at the end of the day they just aren't that smart.

You nerd snipe them and move on with your day. Don’t take it personally if someone has their whole identity wrapped up in how they are the smartest. Don’t feel responsible for fixing them.

Any specific situation? If that oversmart person thinks their solution for a problem is the best, but you think that’s far from true, then just provide a better solution?

Preaching to the choir here: work is work. Work in IT incorporates a LOT of planning ahead and questioning decisions. But this only helps when it is not for the sake of impressing or avoiding work.

Being smart means to improve dysfunctional processes.

Being oversmart amounts to complaining.

Similar to politics, the line becomes harder to draw if current processes/ideas/workflows really are dysfunctional.

As long as money is made; presumably there is work to do

Can you tell more? A solution depends a lot on your two's relationship, are they your superior? inferior? same station?

Can you give a brief example? That would help generalize. This question is a bit abstract.

Just follow them ! You're lucky to have smart people to learn from.

Usually by responding with why or how is enough. If they can reason from the bottom up, vs just saying stuff they read online, they might just be smart.

> people who think they know everything

How do you know they think that? Are you a mind reader?

Recruit other people to help manage them as much as you can.

use their logic against them politely by walking through their decision making with them.

the polite part is the important part and is the part that i fail at the most.

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