That idea that there are the Real Guys who know what they're doing is horribly pernicious in my mind. I have had the experience of being in a room where someone said, "fortunately we have an expert to help us resolve this" and thinking "oh thank fuck", then realising they were referring to me.

On the flip side of that, some of the more productive conversations I've had are when I got open and technical with someone who would count as several rungs higher up because I simply had no idea who they were - social obliviousness can be a boon!