Just dumb enough

People who meet me often have the impression that they’ve met someone who’s smart.
I try not to argue with them, in the same way I try not to argue with an audience applauding me for a performance that I know for a fact I missed the mark on. Why rob people of their happy experience?

The thing is, I actually don’t self-identify as smart.
I think of myself as “just dumb enough”.

Because I’m just dumb enough to ask the stupid questions that no one else is asking.
And I’m just dumb enough to think things through for myself, as if principles and logic would lead me to the same conclusions as those before me.
And I’m just dumb enough to roll up my sleeves and get to work on the things everyone else is avoiding doing because it looks so daunting.
And I’m just dumb enough to believe that when we work together we can change things.

That’s me. I’ve got a decent head on my shoulders, but I’m probably not the smartest one in the room.
I’m just the person dumb enough to be willing to work harder than most anyone else in the room, and I’m almost always the one willing to look more stupid than anyone else is along the way.

If something is worth doing, I’m just dumb enough to do it all the way.