How can you tell that someone is intelligent? At first glance, it sounds like a trick question with an easy answer, but the more you think about it, the more unclear things seem. Is it the person who can recite all the works of Shakespeare from memory? Perhaps it’s someone you know who runs a successful business or is an actual inventor? Or is it someone in your life who prioritizes their mental health and social relationships above everything else?
Not everyone lets on that they’re as smart as they are. The r/AskReddit community shared their personal thoughts about the signs that someone is far more intelligent than others might think. Scroll down to read their thoughts.
#1
They are able to change their opinion given new information.
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#2
They are comfortable and confident enough to admit when they don’t know something but will look it up.
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#3
They don’t argue when it is obvious that someone they are talking to cannot be convinced of alternative thinking or different viewpoint to their own.
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#4
They gather information before making a judgement.
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#5
They can explain very complex things in very simple terms and analogies.
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#6
They argue against your points, not you personally. I can’t stand when people can’t argue without taking offence or just giving up because their views are being challenged. An argument should be about the idea being discussed not a personal attack.
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#7
They hold their cards and quietly observe, analyze and study everything and everybody.
They question everything including themselves. They are Usually full of self-doubt because they’re smart enough to know there’s so much more to know.
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#8
They let you do most of the talking but they are actually listening and learning from what you say.
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#9
They read. Reading constantly expands the minds. It grows intelligence that wasn’t asked for in the beginning, just entertainment. It expands one’s thinking, in many directions. Empathy, compassion, a sense of the world as community, a sense of belonging. All these things, and more, come from reading!
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#10
They’ll always add counterpoints ie ‘arguments against’ whatever they’re saying. eg “…but I need to add that there are people who say this blah blah…”
Most ignorant people I know always speak like their opinions are established facts that are infallible.
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#11
They pick up quickly on things and are observant of their surroundings.
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#12
They’re funny. Fast thinkers come up with great jokes on the spot.
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#13
They choose their battles.
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#14
It’s not so much that they ask questions but the type of question. They use alot’ of comparisons and analogies when expressing ideas or explaining things.
As for the quiet thing….i know plenty of stupid quiet people.
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#15
They don’t claim to have firm answers to soft questions – they shrug and say “I dunno” a lot because they have never really finished thinking the matter through.
When they argue with you, they don’t care who wins the argument. They are searching for the correct answer even if it is yours.
Also when their conclusions are challenged, they happily expose their thought process for you, laying their decision making process out in plain terms and inviting you to pick it apart.
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#16
They listen more than talk. And don’t get angry or defensive when someone says something they don’t agree with.
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#17
The precision in their word choice. I’m not talking about advanced vocabulary or jargon I’m highlighting the ability to communicate ideas effectively. I’ve never met a dumb person that was very precise in their speech
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#18
They catch on quickly without you having to explain every little detail.
They’re quiet and analytic and they argue differently.
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#19
They can deal with the absence of data, incomplete data, conflicting data and generally can zero in to the important thing in a confusing situation.
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#20
They remember small details about things and people and are able to use that information in a productive way to further their goal. Memory is important but knowing how and when to use facts that people have only said maybe once shows flexibility and adaptive intelligence.
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#21
They smile when they overhear a stupid conversation rather than getting upset by it.
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#22
For one reason or another, some may underperform in school when they know they could very well be a top student.
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#23
Their ability to adapt to a wide range of conversations.
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#24
Downplaying their intelligence.
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#25
Their humor. Being able to emotionally distance yourself enough to find something funny, even if it hits close to home.
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#26
When they hear something, be it gossip or news or whatever, they ask about sources. Similarly, when *they* are sharing something, their source is always credible *or* they’re specifically saying it as speculation like “I have heard but not confirmed…”.
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#27
They don’t brag about their achievements or even bring it up unless they’re asked. My gf is super smart and knows more than like 80% of the ppl she talks to but she has NEVER bragged or brought up the insane amount of stuff she knows. I sometimes bring it up when I’m with her and friends just cus I feel like she deserves some credit.
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#28
They speak up in a meeting.
Once.
And what they have to say is usually pretty close to the optimal solution.
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#29
They live in reality by using logic and objective fact over subjective feelings/emotion when proving a point.
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#30
They nod their head before you end your sentences. They know exactly everything you are going to say. Like they’re two or three sentences ahead. Worked with a bond trader, off the charts brilliant, very analytical. When I talked to him I felt like my talking was slowing the conversation down. I’ve only had that feeling with a couple of people in my life.
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#31
I think if we define “smart” as a vast knowledge base we ignore the decision making factor. I like to think of “smart” people as those who seem able to use the tools around them to solve the problems they are facing.
A dead giveaway someone is smarter than they let on?
– They say “no” often in the interest of their goals.
– They have large tool box, both figuratively and literally, as having the right tool makes all the difference, in terms of time to resolution.
– They tend to read often, not one thing but several things, or have some experience doing many different things, this gives a really well rounded perspective.
I believe “smart” people are good problem solvers.
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#32
They stay quiet in arguments, relaxed during quizzes, don’t boast.
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#33
Knowing how to act stupid.
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#34
When they want to avoid an argument in which they know they have superior knowledge by saying things like “I´m not sure, you may be right”.
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#35
One I don’t think has been mentioned is sarcasm. Manipulating information on the fly is surprisingly difficult (your average comedian / stand up artist / freestyler etc is smarter than your average person). Sarcasm is like manipulating information in sepia mode – you’re making a point while throwing a negative filter over it, a bit like writing on a mirror with rotated handwriting. That takes more smarts to get the same point across and not miss the beat.
Consequently lying through your teeth is like negative sarcasm, you’re throwing a negative filter over your incorrect information to try to get a positive outcome. It’s more complicated than expressing the equivalent truth so yeah keep an eye out for (good) liars, that s**t takes a lot smarts to not come across as incompetent.
Yes those are massive generalisations but I do find that folks with a great sense of sarcasm lean nearer the intelligent end of the spectrum.
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#36
I have a friend to likes to jokingly proclaim he is never wrong.
It’s all fun and bluster until you think about it and he is actually never wrong. Everything he has said, every small factoid, offhanded comment, even advice he has given has been right.
He says it as a joke, but honestly he is right. Dude has a big old brain hiding behind the fun and bluster.
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#37
When they are quiet enough to observe and understand but talkative enough that they aren’t just some weirdo.
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#38
Philosophy/History nerd, it also probably means they are cool af too.
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#39
As someone who worked as a volunteer with kids: they cheat in games. We had a girl that was (we believed) the kid of a Thai import bride who a fellow of our town married. She always acted pretty dumb, but when we played outside games with a group, she always cheated by exploiting loopholes or parts that weren’t explained properly, because they were kids of age 7-10 and we didn’t want to make the game too difficult.
She always abused the game to gain an advantage and when we told her she couldn’t do that she went ‘Oh sorry, I didn’t understand the game!’ in a broken accent.
You understood the game perfectly little girl, otherwise you wouldn’t play it like this. She was way smarter than she let on, it almost seemed like an act.
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#40
They don’t complain about how stupid so many people are, or complain that “these people vote”, or take pleasure and feelings of superiority from seeing people do or say highly uninformed things.
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