When I worked at a startup and we were on the verge of being acquired by a very large company, I remember meeting one of the reports-to-C-level executives overs

When I worked at a startup and we were on the verge of being acquired by a very large company, I remember meeting one of the reports-to-C-level executives overseeing the whole thing. He had no problem pausing for 15-30+ seconds to digest what was just told to him and would respond when he understood it and/or needed clarification. It built a huge amount of respect vs. just nodding and agreeing, even when he didn't get it, but also not asking the first question to pop into his head when a moment's thought would provide the answer.