I have a theory about why people say stupid things in meetings. Having said a few stupid things in my own career, I went searching for an answer that didn’t malign overall intelligence. So my theory is that most of the time when people say something dumb they’re doing it out of courage. They believe whatever they have to say has to be said.

Of course it is important to encourage people to speak freely. If the CEO has nothing but sycophants in the management ranks, he or she will never hear what’s wrong and the organization will fail. However, there is a difference between speaking courageously and going on a mission that is doomed to fail because you lack perspective.

Stop right here - and let me explain, please. I’m not talking about the bravery of whistle blowers who speak up about illegal acts; I’m not talking about those folks on the front line that walk into the boss’s office and tell them something to save the company from doing harm to itself. I’m talking about leaders who are on the fast track but get themselves into hot water because they aren’t thinking and speaking like leaders. They are clinging to the view from their own perches and failing to look at it from the top down.

If you come in guns blazing, complaining about issues that the CEO and senior leaders already know, and worse, if you are convinced that the people at the top don’t know or care, you are doomed to take a trip around the proverbial corporate game board and you’ll be rolling the dice many times before you obtain that get out of jail card.

Of course, your top management can be insulated. They may need a bucket of cold water dumped on the conversation from time to time. However, one thing I’ve learned working with CEOs and senior leaders is that they sure as hell aren’t clueless. They love their companies and most of the time they’ve already walked more than a mile in your shoes. If you go into a meeting without appreciating that, then you’re not going to think clearly or have the impact you intend.

Please, please, please don’t think I’m suggesting that you should be overly measured or soft pedal your important observations. When something really needs to be said, say it. When people need to be informed, inform them. But before you decide to toss out a bomb you’d better be talking about the right problem, you’d better have your facts lined up and you’d better know what your senior leaders already know.

As you know, Kamikazes were suicide attacks by Japanese military aviators against Allied naval vessels in in in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign in WW II. Their intent was to cripple as many ships as possible by crashing a plane laden with explosives. There’s no doubt that they believed in the mission; it was the ultimate act of courage. Unfortunately they didn’t have the global perspective.

To demonstrate leadership you need to understand all aspects of the business. You are expected to use critical thinking to help solve the problem, and in order to do that you need to analyze it from all business perspectives. The fastest way to get promoted to a top job and get a seat at the big table is to analyze more than what’s going on in your own silo. Gather information from all the people who have skin in the game, become a student of the business and people start to think of you as a leader.