“Oh, get real,” you say, “that would never happen.”

Don’t be so sure.

Brigadier Gen. Billy Mitchell served as chief of the nation’s air service during World War I. When it came to understanding air combat, Billy Mitchell had the golden touch. And in 1925 the war hero and air-combat guru repeatedly warned the War Department that the United States could not expect to achieve future military success without a combat-ready air force. He predicted that other nations—Germany, Italy, Japan—would build air arsenals that would make America’s mighty naval vessels sitting ducks.

Despite Mitchell’s expertise and supporting data, no one listened.

Not only did Mitchell’s superiors ignore his warnings, but when he tried to win public support for his positions by taking them to the American people, they charged him with insubordination. Later dramatized by Hollywood, the court-martial of Billy Mitchell ended in a guilty verdict. Mitchell was suspended from rank, command, and duty, and was ordered to forfeit all pay and allowances for five years. President Calvin Coolidge upheld the suspension but restored his allowances and half-pay. Mitchell resigned from the military and died in 1936—just five years before his predictions came true with the Japanese aerial attack on Pearl Harbor.

To take advantage of the gurus in your life, remember these listening tips:

• Shhhhhh! Part I. Quiet your mouth. You cannot successfully engage your ears and your mouth at the same time. So the only way you can hear what the gurus in your life are saying is to stop talking. At minimum, let speakers finish their sentences before you start spitting out your rebuttals.

• Shhhhhh Part II. Quiet your mind. This is even tougher than quieting your mouth. Often we’re so busy thinking about what we want to say next that we barely take in what’s being said to us. That’s especially true when we disagree—or think we’re going to disagree—with what we’re hearing. Try to focus on what the speaker is saying instead of what you think about what the speaker is saying. When the time comes to offer a reply, instead of shooting down the idea, ask a question. Try to clarify the information or to gain a better understanding of what’s being proposed.

• Accept. Are you less likely to listen to some potential gurus because of their gender, their age, their ethnicity or national origin, or their economic or educational background? If you can’t be honest about and come to terms with your biases, you may tune out a lot of wisdom. Try to think less about who’s doing the talking and more about the merits in what they’re saying.

• Stop. Are you giving speakers your full attention? Or are you shuffling papers, rushing to a meeting, composing a text message, or eavesdropping on another conversation? If you’re only half hearing what’s being said, you increase the chance that you’ll miss something important. No, it probably won’t be something as crucial as the need to build an air force to protect the nation’s naval fleet. But let’s say you’re only half listening when someone tells you about a road being closed on your commute home. When you wind up needlessly stuck in traffic for an extra hour, you’ll probably wish you’d paid closer attention.