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30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
CuriositiesJUL 24, 2024

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online

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Not being afraid of saying “I don’t know”, asking really good questions, being able to admit mistakes—these are just a few examples of what people think is characteristic of an intelligent person. And while signs that indicate that someone is highly intelligent might differ from person to person, you’ll know one when you meet them by the way they carry themselves.
Members of the ‘Ask Reddit’ community have recently discussed such signs after the user ‘Occyz’ started a thread about it. If you’re curious about what kind of person might make you feel like Pinky next to The Brain, scroll down to find the redditors' thoughts on the list below and feel free to upvote the signs you believe are indicative of intelligence as well.

#1

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
I have met several off the charts intelligent people. One thing I noticed that they have in common was low self esteem. They had an actual low self esteem club at the science fiction club I belonged to. The guy who did a lot of the calculations that allowed the Voyager probes to make the Grand Tour of our solar system was a member of the club. All he could think about were what he didn’t know or what he physically couldn’t do. The common issue I observed from these bright folks was relentless school bullying. We lose so many of these geniuses to depression, suicide, self medication, or just flat out self inflicted mediocrity—society in the US does a s****y job of nurturing intelligence, it makes me incredibly angry how many of these people’s potential were wasted. (I don’t include myself in that club—My intelligence is dead average.) Frank Zappa said it best when he said that intelligence is treated like a hideous deformity by American society.
178points

#2

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
Someone who can understand someone’s opposing view without having to agree with it or get angry over it.
164points

#3

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They struggle with imposter syndrome. Dumb people always think they’re the tits.
158points

Discussing the signs that indicate that a person is of high intelligence, Dr. Robert J. Sternberg noted that for him, intelligence is not about people’s score on a test or how much they impress others with their erudition. “It is about what you do in your life that makes a positive difference to the world at some level.”

#4

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
How often they are confident in saying "I don't know".
139points

#5

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
I consider someone intelligent if they're able to explain something incredibly complicated in simpler and more readily understood terms.
126points

In an interview with Bored Panda, Prof. Sternberg emphasized that “Intelligent people don’t have to talk about how smart they are, or try to use subtle signs to broadcast their superiority. Rather, they are out there making life better not just for themselves, but for others as well.”

#6

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
Choosing not to argue with someone who's wrong and choosing their own peace of mind over being right.
122points

#7

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They mispronounce less common words.

It means they probably haven’t heard those words spoken much, and they learned the words by reading. They’re curious and self-educated.
114points

#8

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
When being taught to do something new, they care just as much, if not more, about why it should be done a certain way as they do about what needs to be done.
110points

“There are a lot of high-IQ people whose main claim to fame is their high IQ or their impressive educational credentials, but they do little with their IQ,” Dr. Sternberg said. “High-IQ societies compete with each other to be more selective in allowing in people whose claim to membership is spending a lot of time solving meaningless puzzles irrelevant to real-world adaptation. It can become a test of narcissism, not intelligence – for bragging rights rather than the ability to adapt.”

#9

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They ask really good questions and listen more than they talk.
108points

#10

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
My freshman college roommate was a mechanical engineer. One of the first nights we were in the dorms, we had pizza delivered. We didn't eat it all, but the pizza box didn't fit inside the dorm fridge. He went all out origami and transformed the box into a smaller, perfectly square box that did fit inside the fridge...in about 12 seconds.

I'm pretty good at math, but not necessarily geometry. My mind was blown.

I spent 35 years in academia between my student/teacher years and he's still one of the three smartest people I've ever met. His ability to "just do it" is dumbfounding to me. His retirement project is transforming his father's 1963 Mercedes convertible into a "hybrid" that has a small diesel engine that runs on vegetable oil along with a totaled Tesla Model S battery pack.
104points

#11

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They don't continually need to tell people how intelligent they are.
104points

The expert continued to point out that our society’s notion of intelligence seems to be somewhat twisted. “Just look at the stupidities uttered by some of our leaders who have degrees from the most prestigious universities in the world and choose to use their intelligence to show they are bozos, pretending to serve others while caring only about how their position leads them to power, resources, fame, or infamy. Unfortunately, many people fall for the show.”

#12

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They can adapt their communication style — vocabulary, tone, content, etc — to fit the situation and people they’re talking to, and it seems completely natural.
103points

#13

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They're very good at problem solving. Even if it's something they have no experience with they always approach the problem from the right angle.
96points

#14

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
Dry humor. Pulling it off requires an observant, quick wit with a nonchalant delivery that almost downplays its own cleverness.

Like it means their immediate passing thoughts are often profound enough to be very funny without any real effort.
96points

It seems that people say that actions speak louder than words for a reason, and this list is great proof of that. But the same seems to be true of people who, contrary to the ones described here, don’t possess the qualities characteristic of bright minds. For proof of that, move on to browse the times people at work showed just how stupid some individuals can be or check out the dumbest things these netizens have posted online next.

#15

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
Understanding/appreciating nuance.
92points

#16

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
When someone can admit a mistake and they know they don’t know everything.
92points

#17

Curiosity.
83points

#18

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They’re very observant, sometimes reserved.
80points

#19

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They are ok with being perceived as "stupid" by asking questions - if we hold back in fear, we'll never truly learn. Plus it's a good way to show others it's ok to question things if you don't understand - better off if we're on the same page instead of hoping things work out without being informed.
78points

#20

30 Subtle Signs Of Incredible Intelligence, As Shared By People Online
They feel challenged rather than threatened by new things, problems, ideas...
77points
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