11 Phrases Brilliant People Use To ‘Go Off On Someone’ Without Ever Having To Raise Their Voice
Raising your voice won't usually get you far, but effective language will.
Karkhut / Shutterstock When we picture ourselves going off on someone, we envision a lot of screaming and finger pointing. However, it doesn’t always have to be this way. There are a variety of phrases brilliant people use to ‘go off on someone’ without ever having to raise their voice. They don’t need to rely on hollering to get their point across.
Instead, brilliant people opt for cutting language that is precise and devastatingly effective without ever losing their cool. Brilliant people are very much aware that the volume of their voice has absolutely no effect on their ability to deliver mic-drop worthy comebacks that will leave those who are insulting them shaking in their boots.
Here are 11 phrases brilliant people use to ‘go off on someone’ without ever having to raise their voice
1. ‘Let me stop you before you embarrass yourself.’
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Brilliant people will not hesitate to call others out on their embarrassing behavior. This phrase is sharp and humiliating without ever having to be yelled at anyone. Sometimes all you have to do to stop people in their tracks is make them pause and second-guess their behavior. If you point out the fact that they are acting in a way that will only humiliate themselves, they will likely clam up and take a step back.
Brilliant people are also aware of the fact that people who strive to humiliate and belittle others are often grappling with their own self-hatred. “The danger is that someone who humiliates others in order to make themselves feel powerful is very likely to turn even nastier and strike back,” F. Diane Barth, a psychotherapist and psychoanalyst explained.
A more subtle comeback rather than raising your voice at someone and humiliating them even more is the sensible route to take. “Let me stop you before you embarrass yourself” is the perfect way to disguise savagery with genuine concern.
2. ‘If this is your best, I’m concerned.’
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Brilliant people know how to cloak their brute comebacks in a layer of what appears to be concern for the other people. This phrase suggests that the person who they are going off on has far more to offer than what they are letting on. In a way, it can even be perceived as a complement (when it is anything but).
However, it is really just a highly professional way of expressing deep disappointment without them having to resort to raising their voice. When a brilliant person says this, they are really saying, “This is all you can do to degrade me? Bring it on.”
3. ‘You seem committed to misunderstanding me.’
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This is a way for brilliant people to passive-aggressively yet calmly point out someone’s willful ignorance. They know that those who are constantly trying to undermine them will act as if they don’t understand them, making them feel as if they are the problem.
However, they are able to spot this behavior fairly quickly and use it as an opportunity to trigger their self-consciousness right back at them. Brilliant people aren’t afraid to call people out on their lack of empathy and ignorance, and the best part is they don’t even have to yell to do it.
“Never waste your time trying to explain who you are to people who are committed to misunderstanding you. If someone doesn’t get you, don’t hang around waiting until they do,” psychiatrist Abigail Brenner shared.
Or better yet, call out their misunderstanding of you in a seemingly polite, yet brilliantly cutting way.
4. ‘That’s a bold assumption.’
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Even though it sounds neutral, brilliant people use this phrase to prompt others to reflect on if their assumptions are really valid, especially if they are harmful and belittling. When someone is put on the spot and challenged to back up their claims, they may realize how ridiculous they sound.
It is a more gentle way than yelling at someone or blatantly telling them that they’re wrong. It also refrains from attacking the person’s credibility or intelligence. It just focuses on the controversial assumption itself.
5. ‘Speaking to me is a privilege you don’t have.’
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Brilliant people know their worth, and they make sure others know it too. They don’t waste time with those who have no issue speaking to them disrespectfully. The second they do, they remind them that being able to speak to them is a privilege that can easily be swiped away. In order for others to respect us, we need to have it for ourselves.
“Self-respect requires people to have the fortitude to establish limits and fight for them when they are threatened,” noted Judith Zackson, Ph.D. “Respecting oneself enough to stand up for one’s beliefs and boundaries also helps command the respect of others.”
Brilliant people have enough respect for themselves to know that being able to speak with them is a privilege. Cross the line and you’ll (respectfully) get called out.
6. ‘Did you mean to say that out loud?’
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This is the perfect way brilliant people use to call someone out after they make the most ludicrous comment without having to raise their voice in the slightest. It calls attention to someone’s words, prompting them to reconsider what they are about to let exit their lips.
People who are called out by their brilliant peers need to engage in some serious self-reflection on their word choices that may make them sound foolish and inappropriate. Hopefully, they will be able to catch themselves in the future before making ignorant remarks around others.
7. ‘I’m not your enemy. I’m your mirror.’
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One of the best ways to call out someone’s poor behavior is allowing them the chance to really see them for who they are. Brilliant people know that another person’s hostility, belittlement or judgment toward them is not really about them at all. It is about their own insecurities that they are projecting onto the brilliant person.
“Projection can result from experiencing thoughts, feelings, emotions, or impulses that are difficult to acknowledge and manage. We may uncover something about ourselves that makes us uncomfortable and struggle to accept or deal with it,” explained mental health counselor Geralyn Dexter. “Instead of addressing it head-on, we may cope by projecting feelings onto others. This keeps us from having to recognize them as our own and deal with them directly, which can serve to maintain our sense of self.”
When a person who is insecure is interacting with someone who they perceive as brilliant, they may project everything about themselves they are avoiding onto them. What this actually does is give them a reflection of themselves like a mirror would, forcing them to deal with who they really are.
8. ‘You’re not worth sacrificing my peace for.’
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Brilliant people know that someone else’s belittlement of them is not worth losing sleep over. No cruel comment or passive-aggressive joke will ever cost them their inner peace. Brilliant people will actively protect their peace by going after those who may degrade them effectively and quietly, with a phrase that may sound like this.
According to mental health counselor Robin D. Stone, when people protect their peace, it means setting healthy boundaries to prevent others from disrespecting them. “They’re able to say, ‘This doesn’t feel good to me,’ to walk away, and to make a change in order to preserve their mental wellness,” she explained.
Brilliant people know who is and who is not worth grappling with their inner peace over, and they will make it known to them.
9. ‘I don’t respond to this kind of behavior.’
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The only thing better than not raising your voice to go off on someone is by not responding to them at all. People who are actively insulting and belittling us are most likely trying to stir a strong reaction out of us. That way, they can turn around to everyone else and say, “See! I told you that they’re crazy!”
Brilliant people don’t fall for their traps. Instead, they simply tell them that they do not respond to irrational behavior and walk away before things even have the chance to escalate. While it may be tempting to let their self-control slip from their grasp in a moment of tension, they do not want to give the satisfaction of hurting themselves to the people who may have hurt them.
“But what happens if you get caught up in reactions and go overboard? (Which is different from keeping your cool, seeing the big picture and acting wisely – which we’ll explore below.) There’s usually a release and satisfaction, and thinking you’re justified. It feels good. For a little while…,” says psychologist Rick Hansen. “But bad things usually follow. The other person overreacts, too, in a vicious cycle. Other people – relatives, friends, co-workers – get involved and muddy the water. You don’t look very good when you act out of upset, and others remember.”
Even if someone’s words may hurt and they are egging you on for a reaction, brilliant people don’t give it to them. They don’t deserve it.
10. ‘I’ll let your words speak for themselves.’
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Brilliant people don’t see the need to raise their voices at those who are already doing a fine job at digging their own grave with their words. They don’t debate or argue with others, they just shed light on their ridiculous remarks without ever having to debate with them.
Instead of subjecting themselves to a useless argument, brilliant people put a hard stop to a conversation that will allow one’s ludicrous words, whatever they may be, hanging in the air for everyone else’s criticisms.
11. ‘Now, please act accordingly.’
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This plea for change does not require brilliant people to even raise their voice, and it is the perfect conversation closer. Even though it may sound professional, it personally burns someone and forces them to take some responsibility in a calm and direct manner.
It calls out their behavior and highlights how it hasn’t been up to appropriate standards. Brilliant people don’t feel the need to argue or negotiate with people who have already disrespected them. They just state the appropriate behavior they want and give them the choice of acting right or proving who they really are.
Megan Quinn is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in English and a minor in Creative Writing. She covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on justice in the workplace, personal relationships, parenting debates, and the human experience.
