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This happens more than we like in the workplace: you ask a question, and a co-worker waxes eloquently about the problem, and brainstorms solutions. As your mind begins to wander, you know you should stop the idle chatter but are not quite sure how. You need a way to stop the conversation without creating or escalating into a conflict.

The mental checklist I use is:

• “Has this person solved this or similar problem before?”
• “Has this person seen someone else solve this or similar problem before?”
• “Has this person read about or researched best practices relating to this or similar problems?”

If the answer is “no” I usually ask, “Are you offering me your opinion, or facts?” Of course, the situation tells me how to phrase the question in a polite way. This usually works to halt the flow of pointless ideas. If it does not, and the speaker wishes their opinions to be heard, I suggest we set up a different time to deep dive into the speaker’s perspectives. If it turns out they are sharing facts, I shed my defenses and listen attentively.

The last thing we need in most workplaces is more intellectual horsepower. There are already a lot of bright, creative people, who can see multiple angles of a problem in the blink of an eye. What we need is more people who have experience with the subject matter, in addition to the intellectual horsepower to analyze patterns, and the communication skills to explain what they know.

It is not a problem if the body of knowledge to solve the problem is considered “experimental” or “early maturity” or “hypothesis driven.” In fact, it makes it fun and enjoyable to solve a problem that has not been solved. Pretending to be knowledgeable or an expert is the waste of time we need to find and squash.