run with the big dogs. Be comfortable competing and working with those at the top of the power or social hierarchy. Synonyms: move in the fast lane, rub shoulders with the movers and shakers, hang with the top dogs. Note that this is not exactly the same as being one of the big dogs.

Venture capitalist Ann Winblad recalls an extension of the metaphor in discussing one of her first pitches as a woman in her 20s to a room full of men in their 50s. The CEO of her firm at the time said, “Ann...after the break you gotta jazz it up a little bit. If you're gonna run with the big dogs, you gotta learn how to lift your leg.” She goes on to report that this “really empowered me to ask for that $10,000.” Winblad was certainly not a big dog at the time. Indeed, it is tempting to read between the lines of his advice that he was suggesting that she needed to act like a pointer not a setter.