When I Outsmarted My Boss at a Meeting, Oops?

Anonymous Cheeky Scoundrel #323 · General

So here's the thing. I'm in my mid-20s and work as an assistant to one of those bosses who loves to make everyone feel incompetent, just so they can lord it over us with their 'wisdom.' Anyway, last week we had this big meeting where our entire department was brought together to brainstorm ideas for a new project. It's not my usual type of stuff, but I couldn't resist the challenge when he asked for input on a budget analysis that really wasn’t anyone else's expertise area except mine. You see, while everyone else was busy nodding and agreeing with his every word, because it’s him and you don’t want to be seen as disagreeing in front of all these people, I decided to take the risk and speak up. I pointed out a few flaws in his plan that could really impact our project's success, suggesting alternative approaches we hadn't considered yet. He just stared at me for what felt like an eternity before he tried to downplay my suggestion by saying it was a 'fun' idea but not practical. I stuck to my guns and backed up everything I said with solid numbers and projections. By the end of it, even some of his cronies were nodding in agreement. But here’s where things got interesting, when we all broke for lunch, several coworkers approached me to thank me for speaking up. And guess what? My boss didn't speak to me directly until a week later during another meeting, but instead had one of my colleagues ask about the 'outlandish' suggestions I’d made at the last meeting (saying it was just to clarify), and did so in front of everyone else. I don’t know if he was trying to make a point or what, because honestly, his reaction felt like a mix between being impressed but also threatened. Either way, I walked away from that situation feeling pretty damn proud of myself for sticking my neck out. But it’s left me wondering if maybe I overstepped somehow. Did I do the right thing? Or did I just make more waves than was necessary?