Never call yourself wise, or talk much about your principles to civilians. Act on your principles instead. At a party, for example, don’t blather about how people should behave; just behave as you should.

Socrates made no show of his wisdom. People came to him and asked to be introduced to philosophers. He took them to philosophers, and didn’t mind being overlooked.

There’s danger in regurgitating what you’ve only partly digested. And if someone tells you that you don’t know anything, and you aren’t bothered, then you’ve made a beginning at wisdom. Sheep don’t throw up their grass to show the shepherd how much they’ve eaten; they digest it internally, and then produce milk and wool externally. So don’t show off your thoughts to the ignorant, but show them the actions your thoughts produce after they’ve been digested.