What makes someone intelligent? It may sound like an easy question, but people always seem to give different answers about what could be considered signs of genius. Is it the ability to solve complex problems quickly? Knowing tons of facts about various topics? Being among those high-IQ people who supposedly have what it takes to change the world? Or maybe it’s having a strong work ethic and excellent communication skills? These are all things that can influence how successful someone will be in their career or personal life, but they aren’t necessarily what makes an individual objectively smart.
First of all, what does “intelligent” mean? The Cambridge Dictionary, among other sources, defines an intelligent person as someone who is able to learn and understand things easily. As soon as we read this, a picture of Albert Einstein’s face inevitably popped into our minds. One of the most brilliant people to ever walk this planet was a late talker and couldn’t form full sentences until he was 5 years old. Does this mean the one and only Albert Einstein, who struggled to learn how to talk correctly, could be considered unintelligent? Honestly, we don’t have the skills and knowledge to answer this question. The only sure thing is that we love looking for people’s opinions about different topics and sharing them to spark meaningful and thought-provoking conversations.
That’s what we did today. We recently found an AskReddit thread where people posted which, in their own personal opinion, are the subtle signs that someone is intelligent. Some of the results are things you might have expected, but others honestly surprised us! So if you’ve ever wondered, “Am I smart?”, this might be the moment of truth. Check out what people consider signs of intelligence and find out if you have a chance to be the smart person in your group of friends!
#41
"I was struggling to explain 3D printing to my elderly neighbor without visual aids. My younger friend pipes up, 'Pretend you're sculpting a castle out of hot glue, think of how you'd do it, layer by layer.' I was so awed at her ability to pull a simple analogy that would work for the old woman. But my friend is a polyglot, a translator by trade, so I shouldn't have been surprised I suppose."
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13points
#42
"Dynamism and creativity. I really don't agree with that old notion of an intelligent person, as someone with social difficulties who's good at logical thinking. This is just one single possibility, among dozens of others."
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13points
#43
"As an English teacher, I’m probably biased, so take my opinion for what it is.
That said, I can often identify a brilliant student by the way s/he uses written language. It’s hard to explain. It’s not just vocabulary, and it’s not the concepts communicated in the writing; it’s the fullness and maturity of the writer’s voice (which encompasses the aforementioned and then some). The piece of writing often sounds like it could not possibly have been authored by the student."
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13points
#44
"They solve math problems left on the board at MIT and they’re only a janitor."
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12points
#46
"It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If we take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale. - Iroh"
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11points
#47
"They are curious about everything. To be intelligent you need to be knowledgeable and you can't be knowledgeable if you are never curious."
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11points
#48
"A lot of these responses seem more about self-confidence.
Admit you're wrong? Confidence.
Admit you don't know something? Confidence
Change your opinion when presented with new information. Confidence with a dash of intelligence.
Intelligence indicators in:
The ability to quickly grasp and apply new concepts is a huge indicator.
The ability to clearly communicate concepts across specialties/huge education or experience gaps.
Using generic problem-solving skills on new and unfamiliar problems without prior knowledge of the space."
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10points
#49
"They draw wisdom from multiple sources. Wait but that might be more wise than intelligent... But I guess those two tend to be seen together a lot."
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9points
#50
"I think what's important is some people are deathly afraid of simplification because there are always "experts" that will tell you you're wrong. But simplification is incredibly important in explaining concepts to people.
You build rules that are applicable 75% of the time, then you teach the exceptions. So many people out there start with the exceptions first and it's so clear they've never had to formally instruct anyone in anything.
Speaking as someone that gets roped in to explain every board game to others, even the ones I haven't played."
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9points
#51
"They can genuinely consider an idea which opposes their worldview without necessarily accepting it."
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9points
#53
"Being able to speak properly. Understanding language and being able to use it always makes me, personally, give someone's opinion or ideas more merit."
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9points
#55
"Honestly I don't think there is one thing. Being intelligent in one field usually means you also lack in another. Just because I can do calculus with ease doesn't mean I'm intelligent socially.
I think a subtle sign would be someone who does brainstorming for any situation though, taking into effect both sides or positives/negatives."
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9points
#56
"'If you can't explain something simply, you don't understand it well enough.'
Albert Einstein is commonly credited for saying something along these lines but I don't have time to verify that right now, Does anyone know the origin of this quote?"
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8points
#57
"By having enough knowledge and experience across different domains such that they can see similarities, differences, and spot missing information that is worth asking a question about. Getting there requires asking a ton of simple questions along the way."
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8points
#58
"People who use analogies to explain concepts to others. It’s a form of code-switching and integrating concepts on the fly is a clear indicator that someone is both socially and conceptually intelligent."
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8points
#59
"You need a wide knowledge base of reference material to make a lot of comedic connections. If someone is really quick-witted with jokes they're probably a genius in some way, even if they don't realize it."
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8points
#60
"People who are genuinely curious about the world, ask questions and listen to others instead of just waiting for their turn to talk. Also, they don’t view education as just a means to get a job."
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8points
