I think my boss is a VP with 5 people, including myself, under him. I do covet his role. I'm not sure what the "something different" you are referring to might

I think my boss is a VP with 5 people, including myself, under him. I do covet his role. I'm not sure what the "something different" you are referring to might be, but I'm going to assume it's his role. To answer the top-line question: my boss is one of the smartest people I know. I disagree with some of his decisions. He's made some mistakes, including what I think was a huge one today. But he's super super smart. Your title question and the question in your description are conflating intelligence with title. You don't need a super intelligent person to be VP. You just need someone with, to quote Liam Neeson, a particular set of skills. You can be the smartest person in the world, but with no experience, you probably won't be a good VP. There's a set of skills good VPs have that aren't borne of intellect but of experience and the passage of time. Is my boss smarter than I? I'm not sure. I'd probably say yes; he'd probably disagree. Do I think I can do my boss's job? Absolutely. I can certainly take his job, and if something were to happen to him, I'm certain I'd be a top contender for his position. But even as I think my boss and I are probably on an even playing field when it comes to intelligence, he has experience and time on his side... so while I could certainly see myself doing his job, it would be quite some time before I'd be able to do it as well as he.