Now that I was a Principal, I realized very quickly that people would listen to what I said like it was the gospel. I got in the habit of speaking last during a meeting, as to not shut down opinions of more junior engineers that could be intimidated by the level. Great Amazon senior leaders always spoke last for that reason. This may be counter-intuitive, but the more senior you are, the less you speak and the more you listen. I’ve been in a number of meetings with Andy Jassy (Amazon’s CEO) and he is quiet for the majority of the meeting, thoughtfully listening, asks a few questions here and there, and only states an opinion after everybody else has spoken.

To combat the curse of the level, one of my favorite Principals perfectioned the art of asking questions instead of stating opinions. The questions he asked were clearly aimed at helping you reach a conclusion he had reached a long time ago, but rather than telling you that conclusion, he always asked the right question so that you could get there yourself. Instead of being told what to do, you reasoned through it.

With seniority comes this nugget of wisdom: More listening, less speaking. If you must speak, more questions, less opinions.