Saturday, January 21, 2017

signs of intelligence

They ask you questions.
When you answer, they ask you more.
When you start using big words, they ask for clarification.
When they can’t understand anything you’re saying, they ask for you to explain it to them as if they were a five-year-old.
When you say something intriguing, they write it down in their notebook or phone.
These people are not naturally more intelligent. They’re better learners which makes them more intelligent.
Why do they learn better?
They’re genuinely curious and ask questions from a humble standpoint. I’ve met billionaires who’ve said, “explain it to me as if I were a five-year-old.”
This simple phrase has changed my life when it comes to learning.
It comes back to the famous Chinese proverb:
“He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask a question remains a fool forever”
  • As soon as you stop asking questions, you stop learning.
  • As soon as you stop writing down ideas, you forget them.
The hardest part of becoming intelligent is not bullshitting yourself about what you know; it’s being humble enough to ask questions. If you can do this, then people will see you as intelligent, too.

-- Josh Fechter on Quora

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