Seven Ways to Be Smart
Posted: Thursday, September 15, 2005
by Royane Real
Royane Real
Do you think you have intelligence? Perhaps you've never realized it, but there is more than one way to be smart. See if you can discover which sort of intelligence you have.
Harvard professor Dr. Howard Gardner has been studying the topic of intelligence for many years. Dr. Gardner says we should revise and expand our idea of what constitutes intelligence. Gardner has suggested we consider at least seven forms of intelligence.
These are: verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, social-interpersonal, and intra-personal. See if you can discover which forms of intelligence are strongest in you.
People who have a strong linguistic intelligence will respond in a deep way to the construction and sound of language, and they get a lot of pleasure out of using words. Writers, poets, and editors excel in this form of intelligence. People who exhibit a strong need to correct errors in grammar are also very strong in this trait.
People with logical-mathematical intelligence can become successful lawyers, mathematicians, computer programmers, and scientists. They are able to logically analyze data and information and follow extremely complex chains of ideas.
Among those who are possessed of a very strong visual-spatial intelligence, some will have a glorious, passionate understanding of color. Others will very strongly respond to visual line, texture, or three-dimensional space. Artists, decorators, fashion designers, sculptors, photographers and architects must possess this form of intelligence to succeed in their fields.
Musical intelligence is an ability to understand and respond to music, not just as background noise, but with a capacity to get deep meaning from the interaction of aural melodies, textures and rhythms. A person with musical intelligence may not necessarily play or compose music, but will be a passionate listener, getting far more out of the experience than an average person.
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is very high in those people who excel in sports and dance. It is also a great asset in actors. They are extremely attuned to where all parts of their body are located in space and are able to exert very subtle yet powerful control over all their muscles.
People with a high degree of interpersonal intelligence are good at picking up cues to the emotions of others and understanding the emotional states of those around them. They are particularly good at empathizing with others, and know how to comfort, inspire and lead people. This is a good trait to have in a political leader. It is also a desirable quality in teachers, therapists and salespeople.
Intra-personal intelligence is the ability to deeply and truly know and understand oneself. It is the ability to analyze and assess one's innermost qualities and behaviors. This is a form of intelligence that may be found in philosophers and spiritual leaders.
These are seven basic qualities or abilities that may rightfully be considered as forms of intelligence. Each involves a particular way of using the brain. Each of these can be highly developed in certain individuals and can be an important component of a person's success in life and career. This expanded definition of intelligence can help explain why so many people who did poorly in school still end up very successful in life.
Which Sort of Intelligence is Strongest in You? When you consider Dr. Gardner's expanded definition of intelligence, which forms do you think are especially strong in you? Which do you think are particularly weak?
When you went to school, did your educational experience address your intelligence strengths? Or did it target the areas in which you were weakest?
Does your present career make good use of your strongest form of intelligence?
You will have the best chance of success in education and in life, when your chosen career uses the type of intelligence which is strongest in you.
This article is taken from the new book by Royane Real titled "How You Can Be Smarter Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better, and Be More Creative" To discover many more excellent self improvement articles be sure to visit my new website at http://www.royane.com
This Article has been viewed 1,605 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.