Talking to Someone Who's Smarter Than Yourself

More often than not these days, I am meeting and greeting folks whose lights are shining much more brightly than yours truly. While not necessarily dimwitted at this point in time, I am lacking knowledge in a surprisingly diverse number of areas. Thankfully, these apparent shortcomings have not hindered me terribly. (Although, admittedly, I'm fearful that the knowledge police will soon identify and imprisoned me with the other dolts that masquerade on the Internet as authoritative bloggers.)

In this regard, I have an upcoming meeting with one of the country's most esteemed member of the medical profession, whose most pleasing and understated demeanor nonetheless belies an intellect that dwarfs us commoners. This introductory meeting was facilitated by a New York childhood physician friend. This esteemed medical professional and I share common roots, albeit separated by a decade in age. Selfishly, I enjoy meeting human beings who are highly accomplished in their chosen fields. In this case, in connection with one of my latest ventures, I need support from medical professionals, preferably those with great credentials and a dynamic presence. After a fair amount of searching my network, I managed to identify three such individuals, but getting them to visit with me to hear my pitch is no picnic in the park, that's for sure.

So, as I prepare for this meeting, I find myself ill at ease in attempting to express why I need this type support in connection with my healthcare venture. While money is always nice, I'm not really interested in raising capital at this point. I'm actually looking for verification of the idea that better health care awareness is a necessity for the public consumers' good. I'm no expert in health care or in medicine (although I do make sure I have my annual physical). The following question is somewhat rhetorical, but: "How do you engage someone in a topic that you are clearly inadequate to speak about when conversing with an expert?" I should add, to do so without looking like an imbecile.

Any suggestions or approaches would be welcomed.