What do smart people do

6 Things Smart People Do That You (Probably) Don’t

Written by Jonathan Chan | November 23, 2015

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What exactly does it mean to be smart? Does it mean simply having a high IQ? Significant talents? An above-average amount of creativity?

Maybe it’s none of those things. Maybe it’s all of those things. We don’t really know, since what we think of when we say someone is smart isn’t a specific, measurable trait: it’s more of a combination of all of the above, plus other characteristics that we may not even be aware of.

But regardless of how smartness is achieved, there are some general trends and patterns to how smart people behave—some are observable just by looking at and being around smart people, and others require actual research to find.

In this post, we’ll take a look at six different things that smart people generally do, with an emphasis on traits that benefit entrepreneurs. If you already do these things, keep it up Einstein. If you don’t, I have a hunch that you’ll probably want to start implementing the six lessons below once you’re through reading this post :).

What Do Smart People Do?

1. Smart People Learn From OTHERs’ Mistakes, Not Just Their Own

Learn from the mistakes of others. You don’t have time to make them all yourself. – Anonymous

This quote is one that I remember reading in a book quite a few years ago. I’ve looked it up since, and unfortunately, it doesn’t seem as if anybody knows who it can be attributed to, but that doesn’t make it any less valuable.

The gist of this idea is that smart people often don’t make the same mistakes that others have already. They read up on their industry, learn from the stories of other successful people (and even, sometimes more importantly, unsuccessful people) and find out what they should not do in order to succeed in whatever industry they are in.

However, that’s not to say that smart people don’t also learn from their own mistakes. That adage is still very much true. Smart people just take it a step further to include pitfalls that other people have already fallen into.

2. Smart People Reward Themselves

Yes, it’s a good idea to reinvest the profits you make back into your business. But it’s also a good idea to spend a portion of that money on yourself.

Smart people recognize the need to reward themselves.

After all, nobody really starts a business to make money. Instead, people start businesses to achieve something, like happiness or financial security: money is only one of the tools to help them reach their goal. It is not the goal itself.

So once you start making money from your business, make sure you’re using at least a small portion of it to invest in yourself and your own happiness.

That investment could be in the form of a new piece of clothing, a charity donation, a weekend trip, or even a gift for someone else like a family member, if that’s what makes you happy. Point being: spend some money on something you want to spend it on.

Note: Please don’t take this to mean that I’m recommending up-and-coming entrepreneurs break the bank on a designer suit. Nothing could be further from the truth. Instead, I’m advising that you use only a very small chunk of profits (an amount that will not affect cash flow significantly) for this type of self-reward.

3. Smart People Evaluate Their Options

Rushing into something, especially where your business is concerned, is never a good idea. The choices you take and the decisions you make are what define the trajectory and shape of your entrepreneurial career: so never put yourself in a position to choose the wrong path of action by rushing a choice.

That’s why when faced with a decision, smart people evaluate each option at hand before deciding on any one.

Let’s say, for instance, that you’re trying to find a supplier for a subscription-box business. Try each of the suppliers you’ve shortlisted and assess various traits for each: their professionalism, speed of service, consistency, quality control, etc. Then, and only then, decide on the right supplier.

Another common example would be hiring a new employee. Interview each of the candidates beforehand—you might even consider giving the 2-3 of the best ones a paid trial run—and don’t sign one on until you’re sure he or she will help you achieve your business goals

The basic idea is to dodge making bad choices by always trying out various options before deciding on a path of action.

Obviously, one can never 100% avoid bad choices, but someone who does spend more time and effort considering each option will be able to significantly minimize the number of bad choices he or she makes along the way.

4. Smart People Go to Bed Later

This study was actually one of the more interesting pieces I’ve read recently. Research by one evolutionary biologist (pdf) suggested that a higher childhood IQ correlated with later sleeping times.

The analysis found that children (chosen from across North America, taking into account various socioeconomic backgrounds) were more likely to sleep later if they had a higher IQ.

For instance, the kids with an IQ of less than 75 went to bed at around 11:41 PM on weekdays and 12:35 AM on weekends. Kids with an IQ of greater than 125 went to bed at around 12:29 on weekdays and 1:44 AM on weekends.

The wakeup times were also later for the higher IQ kids, who got up at 7:52 AM and 11:07 AM on weekends, respectively, while the lower IQ kids got up at 7:20 AM and 10:09 AM. These trends continued into early adulthood. The study hypothesized that people with higher intelligence would be more likely to buck the trend set by our evolutionary predisposition to go to bed when the sun goes down.

Note: As we discussed in the introduction, IQ isn’t the end-all and be-all of being smart, nor does this mean that you have to stay up late to have high intelligence, or vice versa. This is, after all, just one study and hypothesis. But it certainly does offer some interesting analysis of why certain people burn the midnight oil.

5. Smart People Always Go the Distance

When you signed up to be an entrepreneur, you should have already known that it would most likely be a long, tough journey, and that you’d definitely see the darkness before the dawn.

Smart people realize that too: They know that success doesn’t happen overnight, so they work constantly until it does happen. In other words, they never give up.

I know that sounds cliché, but that’s only because it’s so true. If you’re not planning to stick out the lean times, then you almost definitely won’t be around to enjoy the prosperous ones.

6. Smart People Challenge Norms

If, in the early 1800s, you had told someone that in two centuries humans would be flying in the sky in gigantic metal tubes, you’d probably be cast out of society as a nutcase.

But here we are, 200 years later, flying around in the sky in gigantic metal tubes. Who knew?

Smart people don’t simply accept something because it’s “common knowledge” or because “that’s the way we’ve always done it.” Instead, smart people challenge norms and fight the naysayers.

Because of this, people will inevitably believe that some smart people are crazy, just like the people of Dayton thought Orville and Wilbur Wright were insane for trying to fly.

But if the Wright brothers or any number of people working to achieve what once seemed impossible had listened to their critics, maybe humanity wouldn’t have the ability to fly around in giant metal tubes in 2015.

Things Smart People Do

Do you have any more ideas of the things that smart, successful people do that most others don’t? If so, please do share in the comments below!

Jonathan «JC» Chan is the first Content Crafter at Foundr Magazine. When not writing about anything and everything to do with startups, entrepreneurship, and marketing, JC can be found pretending to be the next MMA star at the gym. He has also contributed to outlets such as Huffington Post, Social Media Examiner, MarketingProfs, Hubspot and more. Make sure you connect with him on LinkedIn!

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What Is A Smart Person?

Since people who are supposed to be smart often say and do stupid things I asked myself, first, “What does it mean to be smart?” and second, “If someone is smart, why do they sometimes do such stupid things?”

Being smart is not just being able to recall lots of facts. My hard disk can recall lots of facts and it’s not smart at all.

Being smart is not being able to do one specific task really well. The person who can calculate the cube root of 7,257 in their head or write a complex C++ app as fast as they can type is not necessarily smart. They may be smart but those narrow skills don’t tell us whether they are or not. The fictional Rain Man could do amazing things, but very few people would think that he was smart.

I think that a smart person can do four things: (1) see useful information that other people can’t see or don’t notice; (2) draw accurate, useful conclusions from that information; (3) design a useful goal that takes advantage of that information and (4) create an efficient and effective plan of action to attain that goal.

More simply, really smart people see the dots other people don’t see; they connect those dots into an accurate picture; they derive a useful goal from that picture, and they plan an efficient, effective way to reach that goal.

But wait, you say, by that test the character, Sherlock Holmes, is very smart. He notices all kinds of details that others miss. He deduces accurate conclusions from those facts. He picks a useful goal, solving the crime, and he designs a plan that brings the criminal to justice. But would people necessarily pick Holmes to run their company or be their Governor? Maybe not.

While Holmes is good at noticing physical details – there was mud on a man’s cuffs and nicotine stains on his fingers – that doesn’t mean that Holmes is necessarily smart in the general intelligence sense. Leaders need to be smart across a broad range of problems. My definition of “smart” needs to be modified to widen the scope of the information that a smart person can see and accurately interpret. The smart person needs to see more than just physical details. He/she needs to be able to deal effectively with data of any kind.

In almost any situation that is thrown at them a smart person is able to see the dots that others miss and to connect those dots into an accurate picture and then derive a beneficial goal from that picture and then to create a workable and efficient plan to reach that goal.

Since I seem to be obsessed with fictional characters today, let’s talk about another one – Dr. Gregory House. If you’ve watched the TV show, House, you know that Dr. House was the master of noticing what people said and did and then embarking on a line of deductions – “You said ‘black’ but if that were true then you would have done X but you did Y which means that it wasn’t black. And if it was white you wouldn’t have said anything at all which means that it was neither black nor white. And judging from your fondness for fancy clothes and your obviously expensive haircut your saying ‘black’ could only mean that it was really purple,” House might say.

Most people who watched the show thought that House was really smart. The problem with Greg House, though, was that no matter how well he connected the dots, the actions he ended up taking in response to that picture were corrupted by his inner demons. Put another way, while he got the picture right, the actions that he took in response that picture turned his life into a train wreck. The plan of action he created in response to the dot-picture he built made his life worse. House picked self-destructive goals (bad strategy) and made things worse by trying to achieve those toxic goals with ineffective tactics.

Because, like a lot of people who would otherwise be considered “smart,” House viewed his connected-dot-image through the prism of his own warped, irrational, self-destructive, and false notions about human beings and the world work.

My interpretation of House’s rules is:

Everybody lies about everything of any importance so you’re better off never believing anybody.

Everybody is just out for themselves so distrust any favors anyone offers to do for you.

Only a fool does anything without getting something in return so unless there is something in it for you, don’t help anyone.

You’re going to let everyone down eventually so you may as well let them down right at the beginning so that they will know to expect nothing from you.

Eventually people will betray you so don’t trust anyone
Eventually people will hurt you so don’t care about anyone.

Do anything necessary to keep anyone from besting you – win every time at all costs.

House was unable to recognize that his rules’ premises were inaccurate or that the conclusions he derived from those premises were false.

So, if being smart about dealing with people means figuring out how humans react to different situations and from that knowledge evolving a set of life-rules that will get people to act in a way that is beneficial for you, House was not smart at all.

Why am I babbling about this fictional character? Here’s the point: smart people can nullify their intelligence by adopting a set of rules that inaccurately reflect how the world works. When your ideas about how the world works, how people work, how society works, how nature works, which strategies will fail and which will succeed, are false, it doesn’t matter how good you are in seeing the dots and connecting the dots because your set of inaccurate rules will lead you to stupid/bad, that is to say, unsuccessful decisions.

EXAMPLE: An otherwise smart man notices a series of small facts about his wife. Taken together he correctly and cleverly deduces that his wife is having an affair. He noticed the dots. He correctly connected the dots. So far, these are the actions of a smart person. But, how does he use that information? He has to do two more things: (1) figure out what goal he wants to achieve based on that information (strategy) and (2) what actions he will take to achieve that goal (tactics).

Which of the following goals is he going to pick?

(1) end his marriage and get as much of the property as possible
(2) punish his wife for cheating on him
(3) fix his marriage so that they can return to an earlier, happier state

If he no longer wanted to be with his wife then goal one would benefit him in the material sense. If he still loved his wife then goal three would benefit him in the emotional sense.

If he engaged in a risk/reward analysis he might have picked either goals one or three.

Unfortunately, the husband has the following rules in his head:

Based on these rules and guided by ego, insecurity, and a desire for revenge the husband decides that the right goal, the thing he needs to do, is to punish his wife. He looks at his connect-the-dots image through the prism of these warped rules and he chooses a strategy that is going to make his life much worse. He fails the third of the four steps in being smart – picking a beneficial (to him) goal.

Having chosen revenge as his goal, he could have engaged in a risk/reward analysis to determine the course of action that possessed the best combination of low risk and high reward in achieving the goal of punishing his wife. Instead, he decides to kill his wife because that provides the most effective match to his three rules. Again, he chooses adherence to his emotional/religious/philosophical rules over taking actions that will increase his own happiness.

He murders his wife, goes to prison, gets raped dozens of times, has all his teeth knocked out, gets AIDS and dies in a cage ten years later. His rules led him to choose actions that wrecked his life over other potential goals that would, instead, have increased his happiness. His rules poisoned his intelligence.

You can be 99% healthy but add a 1% dose of poison and you will be dead. You can be 99% smart, but add a 1% adherence to rules that inaccurately reflect how people and society function and you can turn your right answers into wrong decisions.

Condensed: Smart people make stupid mistakes when they act in accordance with false beliefs about how the world does or should work.

But, you say, if someone were really smart, wouldn’t they pick an accurate, effective set of personal rules? If someone is really good at seeing the dots and connecting the dots, wouldn’t they use that excellent ability to deduce a set of personal rules that do accurately reflect how people work and how the world works, rules that would result in their making successful (beneficial) decisions which result in them leading a happier and more successful life?

If people were all like Mr. Spock (yes, another fictional character — substitute soulless robot if you prefer) that’s probably right. But here’s the nasty little problem – people do not run their lives primarily based on logic and on intelligent, enlightened, long-term self-interest. More often than not people act out of emotion, ego, greed, arrogance, insecurity, past pain and loss, fear, irrational desires, hormonal urges, hatred, prejudice and, most of all, personal philosophical beliefs that confuse how the world does work with how they think the world ought to work.

All of these irrational ideas become a swirling, shifting cloud that obscures their carefully calculated picture of the connected dots and which distorts the true connected-dot image into something that would have excited Salvador Dali.

Put another way: emotion and philosophy not only affect what patterns we see in the data we notice but, more importantly, they affect and distort what actions we decide to take based upon that vision.

People make dumb choices every day, not because they aren’t smart but in spite of their being smart. A really smart person follows rules based on how people and society actually work, based on rules that accurately reflect reality as it exists. But most people live by a set of false rules that they have latched on to because they mimic what they fear or desire reality to be.

Why am I going through this exercise? Why do I care, why should anyone care why smart people make stupid choices? Because it’s often those smart people who end up as our politicians, CEOs and voters, and they use the cloak of their apparent intelligence to lead the rest of us into disaster.

“I’m smart. Follow me,” they say. And then, relying on their warped, inaccurate, false view about how people and society work, or how they think they should work, they lead us right off a cliff.

The German people wanted some reason that would excuse why they lost WW I. They didn’t want to admit that the Allies were tougher, smarter, better armed, or whatever. For emotional reasons they wanted some excuse for their failure that made it not their fault. “It was the Jews,” Hitler told them. “We lost the war because the Jews stabbed us in the back.”

Completely untrue but emotionally it felt good to them. Were there no smart Germans? Was everyone who believed this nonsense just stupid? No, of course not. Smart people latched onto this false view of reality because it was emotionally satisfying. Because, emotionally, they wanted to believe it. And look what happened next.

Communists believed that the principal of “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs” was a great foundation for a political and economic system. It doesn’t take more than about ten seconds thought about how human beings actually work to realize that such a system could never be successful.

We all know that people are reward driven. We all know that people care about first, themselves, then their family, then their community, then, maybe, some stranger living a thousand miles away. After only a moment’s thought any intelligent person would have realized that talented, skilled people were not going to work their asses off so that untrained, untalented people could have as much of a reward as they did; that if you could get rewarded by doing nothing that there was no reason to do something. It really doesn’t take more than a very basic understanding of human beings to see that.

But lots of really smart people believed in communism. My point is: How could smart people believe that a system that was so obviously unworkable was a good idea? Because the philosophy of communism sounded good to them. It sounded fair. It sounded right! Smart people will believe dumb things in the service of an inaccurate set of rules because the false idea feels good. Because that’s how they would like the world to work.

EXAMPLE: The wife, a brilliant Ph.D., finds her husband in bed with her neighbor. He tells her it wasn’t his fault. That he took an antihistamine and it made him groggy and that he didn’t know what he was doing and that he’ll never do it again. And she believes him. Why? Because she wants to. Smart person, dumb decision, because she wants reality to be other than it is. “Believe it fervently enough and it will come true” is how many otherwise smart people choose to live their lives.

Climate change is really bad news. We all wish it wasn’t true. Many otherwise smart people flatly refuse to believe it. Why? Because they really, really, want it not to be true. They want to “believe it away.” Magical thinking.

How many false ideas do smart people you know hang on to because they want them to be true, because the idea feels so good to them, because it matches their prejudices or their personal philosophy?

What do you think the odds are that you can convince those smart people to give up those dumb ideas? Did I hear you say ‘zero’?

How many false ideas do you hang on to because you want them to be true, because they feel good to you, because they match your personal beliefs about how the world ought to work?

50 Things Really Smart People Do All the Time

What does it mean to be smart?

You could quantify it as a number on an IQ chart. Or perhaps it comes from that diploma from a fancy university.

But IQ tests are fundamentally flawed according to many researchers. They don’t take into account the various ways people can be smart.

And to be honest, I’ve met people who have PhDs or went to ivy league schools that don’t seem much smarter than the average person. On the flipside, I’ve met college dropouts who are extremely brilliant.

My idea of smartness is a lot of different from your average definition.

Intelligence doesn’t form in the lofty tower of academia or even in narrow library corridors. Being smart comes from a series of habits, a mindset and how you interact with the world.

In short, intelligence is something you do, not something you are.

But it’s more than that. The things people do to be smart are cumulative. There are not one, two or even ten things you can do to make yourself smarter. There are a lot of different actions you can take that all affect your brain power.

I’ve listed fifty of the things people do that make them smarter. I’m certain there are a lot more than I’ve listed here, but this is what I have so far:

1. Follow your curiosity
2. Wait for all information before giving an opinion

“You are not entitled to your opinion. You are entitled to your informed opinion. No one is entitled to be ignorant.” – Harlan Ellison

3. Debate topics – don’t pointlessly argue
4. Try to understand things from other people’s point of view
5. Be more interested in the truth rather than being right
6. Read challenging books

“If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

7. Look up what you don’t understand yet
8. Ask people about their interests
9. Value knowledge for its own sake
10. Realize just how little you actually know

“I know that I am intelligent, because I know that I know nothing.” – Socrates

11. Find learning opportunities with everyone you meet
12. Search answers to tough, difficult-to-answer questions
13. Watch documentaries
14. Learn to listen carefully to other people’s opinions
15. Be comfortable holding two opposing ideas at the same time

“The test of first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald from The Crack Up

16. Know how to use logic and reasoning
17. Know when others use bad logic and reasoning
18. Have an insatiable hunger to learn more
19. Persist on problems until you find a solution

“It is not that I’m so smart. But I stay with the questions much longer.” – Albert Einstein

20. Be willing to admit you’re wrong
21. Prefer hard truths instead of comfortable lies

“When Kepler found his long-cherished belief did not agree with the most precise observation, he accepted the uncomfortable fact. He preferred the hard truth to his dearest illusions; that is the heart of science.” – Carl Sagan from Cosmos

22. Accept that there are multiple ways to interpret reality
23. Seek out learning opportunities such as museums
24. Be willing to open your mind to new ideas

“Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.

25. Base opinions off facts

“It is the mark of a truly intelligent person to be moved by statistics.” – George Bernard Shaw

26. Value consensus, but don’t be afraid to think for yourself
27. Push yourself to try new things
28. Learn lessons from experience
29. Challenge your assumptions

“Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won’t come in.” – Isaac Asimov

30. Understand that life isn’t black and white
31. Observe what’s going on around you with the intent to understand
32. Don’t be afraid to take intellectual risks
33. Learn to separate logic from emotion
34. Be aware enough to recognize bias in others
35. Be self-aware enough to recognize your own bias

“An intelligent person is never afraid or ashamed to find errors in his understanding of things.” – Bryant H. McGill

36. Understand that complex issues rarely have simple solutions
37. Learn to be skeptical, but open to new ideas
38. Think towards what’s possible, not impossible
39. Prefer to discuss ideas instead of people or things

“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss things; small minds discuss people.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

40. Give value to good thoughts and ideas – regardless of who says them
41. Learn to think objectively as well as subjectively
42. Empathize with others
43. Gain the ability to change – especially with new information

“Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.” – Stephen Hawking

44. Learn from those who are smarter than yourself
45. Experience the arts
46. Seek old ideas so you can learn and build off them

“All intelligent thoughts have already been thought; what is necessary is only to try to think them again.” – Johann Wolfgang van Goethe from Wilhelm Meister’s Journeyman Years

47. Learn to take things apart and rearrange them into something new
48. Actively seek out information that challenges your worldview
49. Understand that common sense is sometimes (and often) wrong
50. Recognize that there is no limit to human intelligence
photo credit: Tristan Martin

Comments

Wow Steve, this is a great article.

It reminds me of Napoleon Hill’s “Thinking accurately” concept. But in a more concise form.

How long did it take you to write this up?

You should really consider writing a few sentences to each bullet point/tip you give, and turn this into a free ebook!

It actually didn’t take too long to write it up, but that’s only because I’ve been thinking about this topic for a while.

That’s a good idea. I could probably expand on each point a little and turn it into a free ebook. Thanks for the idea; I might just do that.

If (When!) you do this, send it to me. I’d could give you feedback!

PS: I just sent you an email

WOW, i’m impressed with all the tips included in your post, you have a great website and it’s full of inspiration

Thanks, Farhang, I’m glad you like it.

I completely agree with you. I don’t think intelligence can be measured the way we have become accustom to. I too have come across plenty of people who are smart on paper (well educated) but one of the sharpest tools in the shed.

I consider people smart when they find out a way to do what they need or want to. I think it takes real intelligence (and diligence) to figure things out.

There’s a lot to be said for diligence. If you can work on something for long enough, you’ll eventually figure it out. It often doesn’t matter how long it takes to get to the finish line just as long as you get there.

This is an absolutely stellar list, Steve. I loved that Isaac Asimov quote too. These are all great habits to practice and I think it can honestly be said that who ever manages to consistently do these things will be making the world a better place. Great post!

Thanks, Micah, I’m glad you like the list. I really like that Asimov quote too. It’s something that I’ve held close by since I’ve made some incorrect assumptions in the past. You have to challenge assumptions – that’s how you learn.

Great post. Definitely a great road map to a logical foundation.

Thanks, Eric, I’m glad you like the post!

Not sure I’ve seen a 50 list like this before – great work. For me it’s persisitence through failure that makes sucess.

Failure is a great way to learn. As long as you can find a lesson in it, you can keep getting smarter.

I like the ingeniousness. Interesting and mind blowing. Very informative and educative

Thanks for the great comment, Celestine! It’s so great to hear how much you like it!

This is a fantastic list, Steve – bravo. I completely agree – intelligence is a way of being, a way of life. Numbers don’t always indicate that.

I’m posting this somewhere to remember – one of my favorite reads so far this week!

One of your favorite reads so far this week. That’s so awesome to hear!

Intelligence is so hard to quantify, isn’t it? Numbers just don’t seem to capture everything about being smart. There’s a lot more to it than that.

The first one hits the nail on the head (I’m not discounting the others, Steve!). Smart people are definitely curious about a lot, and listen before they speak.

I can’t remember how many things I’ve learned simply because I became curious about it and looked it up. Not only that, but how many ideas, inventions and other great discoveries happened because of curiosity? Probably too many to tell.

Ha this is great!! I agree with these points, especially number 2. I did a maths degree and got a lot of ‘wow you must be really smart’ but I never really felt that smart, I just knew how to pass exams! Now I’m travelling I feel my mind is a lot more open 🙂

Travel is a great way to open your mind up. The first time I went to Asia, I saw so many different ways of living; it just freed my thoughts in a way.

Hey Steve, I think I found #34 in #30.
#30 is just a facilitation to avoid hard choices.

Thanks for sharing that, Michal!

This is a superb article Steve. I am still in that stage of constant learning and this article is a huge addition to my knowledge. There is indeed no limit to human intelligence as long as you stay hungry and willing to learn.

There’s always room to learn. No matter how much I’ve learned, I always seem to find more I’d like to know. It’s endless, but that’s part of the beauty of being alive – there’s always more to explore.

Lets do something smart today 🙂

Definitely! Let’s do something smart!

#15 is great. Sometimes I catch myself in a situation where I’ve though about one thing too much, and another not enough, and they end up being contradictory. Glad to know I’m not the only one.

#38 too is good. It goes against what a lot of the self-help movement seems to say, but really makes more sense and works better when one does it the way you describe.

This is an amazing post! You mentioned it but I’d include smart people are always growing and learning. They have the habit of daily growth.

A lot of this is wrong. “Value knowledge for its own sake”, “Realise just how little you actually know”, “Understand that complex issues rarely have simple solutions”, “Recognize that there is no limit to human intelligence. These are a few I nitpicked. They are wrong because they are simply justifying a philosophy. First off, you must know that all knowledge only serves a purpose to justify something (a way of thinking, a way of life etc.), or as a means to an end. In this case those quotes I pointed out justify the philosophy of the pursuit of knowledge. I think this is completely irrelevant to being smart. Because as I mentioned, knowledge holds no intrinsic value. They are simply the ideas of the writer, justifying their philosophy over the pursuit of knowledge. The reason why this isn’t smart is because you have have to ask yourself: What do you really want in life, and how do you get it. And if you pursue knowledge for knowledge’s sake, well then it’s not smart, it’s a hobby. But notice again how all of what I have just said justifies my philosophy. A philosophy around action taking and accomplishment, not the pointless pursuit of knowledge. It’s all about aligning yourself with what you want really, and when you learn what you really want, shit like this isn’t necessary.

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30 Things Really Smart People Know

Smart is as smart does.

What does it mean to be “smart”? Many would argue that being smart depends on your brain properties and structure. Some of the brain properties that tend to correlate with intelligence include the following:

However, other people would argue that being smart depends on the quantity and the quality of the education a person has acquired. Still others would say that smart people are those who are good at solving problems, or making money, or adapting to change. I would argue that—to a large extent—being smart is about what you know, and about your ability to apply said knowledge. And that’s what this post is about: I’ve collected some of the things—30 to be exact—that really smart people know. You’ll find the 30 things that really smart people know, below.

1. Discomfort Is a Part of Life.

Achieving things that are important to you will require that you tolerate some discomfort, frustration, and psychological pain. For example, if you want to get in shape, you’ll have to exercise, which comes with its fair share of aches and pains.

As a second illustration, if you want to learn something new, you’ll have to tolerate the discomfort that comes from not knowing, struggling to do something that is foreign to you, and feeling like you’re not making the progress you wish you were making.

Smart people know that they need to tolerate discomfort in order to improve themselves and grow.

2. No One Is Coming to The Rescue.

What happens in your life is up to you. You’re responsible for your life. If there’s something that you want to happen, you have to make it happen. No one is going to make things happen for you. You have to rescue yourself.

3. Stop Playing the Victim Role.

You’re the hero of your story. The hero sometimes gets stuck in a bad place for a while, but they don’t wallow in self-pity and give away their power.

Instead, they look for a way out: they crawl out through an air vent; they dig a tunnel; or they take an ax and break the door down. No matter what happens, it’s your life, and you’re at the helm.

4. Choose Your Friends Wisely.

Author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn once famously quipped: “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Your friends will influence what you do and the habits that you develop. They’ll even impact your mood.

Surround yourself with a carefully curated group of people whom you respect, and with whom you share common values. As Darrah Brustein, founder of Network Under 40, says: “It’s important to consider the five people who are in your inner circle, because they are going to deeply and profoundly influence you.”

Choose a few people who will help you to become the best version of yourself, and then carefully maintain those friendships.

5. Conformity is For Suckers.

If you give in to society’s pressure to conform, you’ll never discover what you’re capable of. Think for yourself, make your own rules, step away from the well-trodden path, and do your own thing.

6. A Productive Day Starts the Night Before.

What you do at night has a huge impact on how the next day will go. Smart people know this, and they take advantage of this knowledge by following a nighttime routine.

People are different, and what works for one person may not work for another. However, a good nighttime routine should contain the following elements:

Lastly, make sure that you go to sleep at a reasonable hour so that you’re well-rested the next day.

7. Start Your Day Off Right.

The first hour of the day is one of the most critical because it sets the tone for the rest of the day. You should try to do the following every morning in order to start your day the right way:

In addition, once you’ve gone through your morning routine, devote one-hour to your most important goal.

8. You Have to Make Time to Exercise.

Regular exercise improves memory and thinking skills, it boosts your mood, it helps to ward off disease, and it increases longevity. It even makes you more productive. Smart people know that making time to exercise is a no-brainer.

I do two types of exercise on a regular basis:

Also, I just recently started doing High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), and I’m loving it. It only takes 20 minutes, and you get a lot of bang for your buck.

9. Financial Literacy Is Vital.

Financial literacy is knowledge that allows an individual to make informed and effective decisions with their money. It’s about knowing how to budget, manage debt, pay for big ticket items, invest for the future, and be prepared for emergencies.

Smart people know that in order to have financial security, they need to understand how money works.

10. Read a Lot.

Smart people are readers. Successful CEOs, leaders, entrepreneurs, and politicians read frequently. Reading teaches you to focus, it keeps you informed, it stretches the mind, it exposes you to different perspectives, and it helps in the creation of new ideas.

If you want to be smarter, go out and get yourself books written by smart people and read them.

11. Learn How to Learn.

In order to keep up with the changes and advances in today’s fast-paced world, we need to have the ability to learn new things faster. Some even refer to the ability to learn quickly and efficiently as a superpower.

You can get started learning how to learn by reading my post, 30 Tips for Learning Any Skill Fast.

12. Constantly Stretch Out of Your Comfort Zone.

As Neale Donald Walsh once said, “Life begins outside of your comfort zone.” After all, the only way to grow, build your capabilities, and reach your full potential is by stepping outside of your comfort zone.

Some easy ways to stretch out of your comfort zone include the following: trying a new sport; having lunch in a new setting; or trying psychogeography dérive– an exploration of urban environments that emphasizes playfulness and “drifting” (basically it’s going for a walk and just allowing yourself to get “lost”).

13. Learn From Your Mistakes.

Instead of being afraid of making mistakes, take a trial and error approach to life. Try something new, analyze what you did right and what you did wrong, modify your approach accordingly, and try again. That is, see your mistakes not as failures, but as feedback.

Smart people know that it’s OK to make mistakes, as long as you’re learning from those mistakes.

14. Beware of Irrational Thinking.

Even smart people can fall victim to irrational thoughts, also known as cognitive distortions. This includes things such as the following:

Smart people are aware of their thoughts, and they constantly question whether what they’re thinking is based on evidence, or if they’re distorting reality.

15. Practice Self-Care.

Smart people know that self-care isn’t about self-indulgence. Instead, it’s about the following:

16. Carefully Curate Your Life.

I wrote above that you should curate your friends. However, it’s not just your friends who need to be carefully curated. Smart people curate everything in their lives: the books they read, the stuff they buy, the furniture in their home, their clothes and shoes, the TV shows they watch, and so on.

Smart people make sure that anything that comes into their lives has been carefully selected by them.

17. Develop Good Habits.

You’ve heard it a million times: first you make your habits, and then your habits make you. Ask yourself: “What do I want to achieve?” Then ask: “What habit will get me there?” If you manage to build those habits, then those habits will take you to where you want to go.

18. Take Time to Think.

Most of the time we’re on the go: answering phone calls; writing emails; picking up the dry cleaning; cooking dinner; and so on. However, it’s vital to stop and take the time to just think. Every day you should think about the following:

At least quarterly you should stop and think about the following:

At least once a year stop and think about things such as the following:

Smart people know that they need to stop and take time to think.

19. Pick Yourself.

Whatever it is that you want to accomplish or achieve, stop waiting for somebody else to pick you. Instead, pick yourself. Look at the following:

If you keep raising your hand and no one calls on you, call on yourself.

20. Ask the Right Questions.

Self-development guru Tony Robbins has said that the quality of your life is determined by the quality of the questions you ask. This is because the questions that you ask yourself frame the debate. As an illustration, if something goes wrong in your life, don’t ask questions like the following:

Questions like these keep you stuck in the past. Instead, ask yourself questions like the following:

21. Make Meditation a Daily Habit.

In his book, Get Some Headspace: How Mindfulness Can Change Your Life in Ten Minutes a Day, Puddicombe explains that meditation can be used for all of the following:

Smart people know that meditating is one of the best habits that they can adopt.

22. Practice Gratitude.

Simply by giving thanks for what you have–or counting your blessings–you can achieve all of the following:

Smart people are grateful people.

23. Make Yourself Lucky.

Whether we like it or not, luck plays a large role in life. Nonetheless, as I explain in my post, “How to Make Yourself Lucky”, there are steps you can take and mental attitudes you can adopt to make yourself lucky. Here are some things you can do to make yourself lucky:

And, of course, be prepared. After all: “Readiness is the mother of luck”.

24. Know When to Say “No”.

The only way you can “yes” to the most important people and activities in your life is by saying “no” to everything else. Say “no” to the following:

Follow Baltasar Gracian’s advice in The Art of Worldly Wisdom: “Don’t belong so much to others that you stop belonging to yourself.

25. Include Play and Laughter in Your Life.

Many people think that play is for kids, and that adults should be serious all the time. But smart people know that it’s important for adults to play and have fun.

Playing and having fun can have all of the following benefits:

Smart people schedule play and fun into their day.

26. You Must Bounce Back Quickly from the Unexpected.

When people come across an obstacle in life, most will do the following:

However, smart people do the following:

Smart people know that the unexpected will happen, and—when it does—they don’t waste time bemoaning their luck. Instead, they bounce back quickly from the unexpected.

27. Let Go of the Need for Perfection.

Perfectionism steals your joy, your self-confidence, and your ability to get things done. Smart people know that the main causes of perfectionism are all-or-nothing thinking and fear of criticism, rejection, and disapproval.

They develop strategies for dealing with any perfectionist tendencies they may have, and they strive for excellence, not perfection.

28. Stop Worrying About What Others Think.

Humans are social creatures. We want to be part of a group. We want to be loved and accepted. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

However, smart people know that they need to strike a healthy balance between their need to belong and their ability to go after their goals and dreams. If they find that they’re worrying too much about what people may think, they do the following:

29. Conscientiousness Is a Vital Character Trait.

Some character traits are more conducive to success than others. There are studies that show that the most important personality trait for predicting success is conscientiousness. Therefore, smart people take steps to become more conscientious.

Here are some of the conscientiousness habits that smart people adopt:

Smart people know that even if they’re not naturally conscientious, they can become more conscientious by adopting the habits of conscientious people.

30. You Must Not Quit.

Achieving your important goals won’t be easy. However, you’ll succeed if you refuse to quit. When a smart person is tempted to quit, they tell themselves things like the following:

Conclusion

There are many more things smart people know, of course, but I think the list above is a good starting point. Live your best life by reviewing the lessons that really smart people know (and apply them in your life).

20 Things Smart People Don’t Do (And What They Do Instead)

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The first question that merits an answer is what makes an individual smart:

Is it the abundance of facts that one can memorize? Is it the above average, or exceptional, IQ? Perhaps, it is the wisdom to make a sound decision at the crucial moment, or knowing how to make the best out of the bad situation? Maybe it is the ability to take as many aspects as possible into consideration before deciding on the future course of action?

It is probably a good combination of all the previously mentioned traits.

Of course, if someone is smart and successful, it is hard to pinpoint what exactly is responsible for that person’s success and wellbeing. Truth be told, it is far easier to notice what these smart people don’t do, and arrive to a conclusion as to what is to be avoided. As long as we circumvent these negative things, the rest will come naturally.

1. They don’t overlook the possibility to save money.

Prudence is a virtue, not to be mistaken with greed or stinginess. Being able to handle your finances and save by avoiding unnecessary expenses is an admirable quality.

In fact, it is surprising how many small details there are, warranting closer scrutiny. These seemingly meaningless expenses can be easily avoided, and the amount of money you can save can amount to something rather significant.

What they do instead:

For starters, buying a tap filter can reduce the money spent on bottled water. Opting to refill a printer cartridge, rather than buying a new one is another judicious investment. Replacing light bulbs inside your home with those that conserve energy is yet another wise choice. Utilizing apps to reduce credit card processing fees, or choosing a big bank as your provider instead of your local town bank, is also a good decision.

The internet has an unfathomable amount of quality content, both educational and entertaining. Paying for a cable or entertainment magazine subscription is undeniably meaningless. Almost anything you are after can be found online at cheaper price, either as a streaming service or as an online news article.

The point is learn how to fully realize the things you are already paying for or have at your disposal – that’s what being smart is all about.

Learn more about how to manage money from here: 20 Tips To Help Your Better ManageYour Money

2. They don’t heavily rely on others.

There is nothing wrong with having friends, family members or coworkers you can trust and rely on. Everyone should have someone they can count on when things go tough.

Heavily relying on someone, however, only portrays you as powerless. As a smart individual, you should never indulge such a commodity.

What they do instead:

You can have a brilliant mind, outstanding intelligence, etc. but if you do not put those traits to good use, you will only come off as incompetent. When you are in need of assistance, pay close attention to see if your problem was truly difficult. In a great number of cases, it is our fear and insecurity that prevent us from acting.

There is always a thought “What if I only make things worse?” The thought is perfectly justified. The unwillingness to overcome such a fear on the other hand isn’t.

3. They don’t act irresponsibly.

Do not mistake this statement as “Smart people don’t have fun” or “Smart people are boring.” You can have fun, you can have a drink or have a good laugh. Irresponsibility does not equal uninteresting, it only means you like to have an organized lifestyle.

Superior organization leads to greater efficiency, whether you are a student, an employee, a business owner, an artist or a celebrity.

What they do instead:

We all have certain responsibilities and they are not always imposed by someone else. Putting them off for no valid reason is simply packing to travel into a more stressful future. Almost everyone experiences how being irresponsible tends to backfire, but smart people practice what they learn from such inconveniences.

4. They don’t feel defeated when they need to reevaluate their convictions.

Our environment, our parents, our education and our past are all responsible for forging our convictions and our perception of the world. It leads to a creation of what is referred to as “umwelt” which roughly translates as “self-centered world”. Umwelt is more connected to how we create the image of the world surrounding us by using our sense, but it can be extended to our point of view on philosophical matters.

The convictions we acquire throughout life are not wrong per se, but are very likely to be proven incompatible when exposed to an entirely new experience or more difficult questions that need answering.

Also, if you move out and change the environment, you are likely to witness different patterns of behavior. Education or lack of education in some areas resulted in the blooming of other human qualities. Sooner or later, our convictions are challenged. Sometimes they will triumph, sometimes they will be trumped.

What they do instead:

Smart people constantly challenge their convictions; they do not discard them. They reshape them and they allow them to grow proportionally with their new experience.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to broaden your mind-set! You are not defeated if you gained something valuable.

5. They don’t dwell on their errors.

To clarify, this refers to great companies can manufacture a bad product, or good movie directors can make bad movies, etc.

It is not uncommon to come up with an idea for something that appears like a true masterwork for us, but once it’s realized, the general public may not be that impressed. It can feel humiliating and really unpleasant, however it happens, whether we like it or not.

What they do instead:

When you are making something intended to be appealing to the masses but in the end fails, start over again from scratch.

If you want to impress, listen to your audience. Don’t try to patch up the product or make sequels in an attempt to prove your vision was brilliant. This kind of behavior will only cost you your credibility. Even when you manage to come up with something good, people might not even bother to give it a try.

It won’t make you neither weak nor foolish if you know when to give up. It will only give you more time to work on your comeback.

6. They don’t permit their past to hold them back.

The past cannot be erased, and it does not come back to haunt us, it simply never leaves. We need to learn how to cope with it and not allow it to interfere with our future achievements.

If there is nothing useful to be recovered from the past experience, simply close those doors and let it go.

Past experiences shape who we are today, and our previous struggles can build a strong character, but people tend to use their past to justify their mistakes or behaviour. Perhaps we use these excuses to gain understanding from others, or to make it easier to forgive ourselves.

What they do instead:

If you acknowledge your flaws but refuse to do something about them just because you have an excuse, then you have chosen an easy way out and that’s not what smart people do.

It may be a little tough to let go of the past, here’s a guide to help you: 10 Simple Steps To Let Go Of The Past

7. They don’t rely on good luck to solve their problems.

“Hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.” A good quote to be guided by when you invest your time and efforts into something. Hope for the best possible scenario is what motivates us, whereas preparing for the worst prevents us from falling apart. On the other hand, simply hoping for the things to work themselves out is no different from being lazy.

Luck should only take credit for a fragment of your success, considering that relying on it too frequently will only suffocate your ambition.

What they do instead:

Smart people would never permit luck to take glory for all their hard work. When you pour your heart and soul into achieving your goal, it would be disappointing to give good fortune the title of “major contributor”.

Create your own opportunities and learn how to make yourself luckier.

8. They don’t neglect important aspects of their business.

One of the key factors that contributes to success is attention to details or just paying good attention in general.

When one is trying to be a smart business owner, he or she is generally governed by the idea that with a quality product, success is guaranteed.

The logic is not entirely flawless since even if you can offer a top quality product at a better price than your competition, you are still a far cry from a lucrative business.

What they do instead:

The absolute necessity for a successful selling period is credibility, meaning you will need to have a good advertising tactic. This implies striving towards omnipresence and professional appearance, which brings us to the most efficient tool for spreading this kind of brand awareness — and that is your website.

The impact of the website should never be underestimated; people will judge you as a professional based on your website design, its responsiveness, authority and its content. There are numerous people who offer an amazing type of service or products in person, but simply look like amateurs online.

Start off by finding a good web hosting service, to ensure your sites responsiveness proceed with quality design, and finally, eloquently describe your product or service.

Clearly, this is a single example of an important aspect, there are others as well. like providing a good customer service and creating efficient incentive plans etc. But the point is never to push in one direction. Always work on numerous fronts.

9. They don’t hesitate to learn from their mistakes.

Mistakes are inevitable. Sooner or later something goes wrong, and an unaccounted for variable emerges and places a grave dent in our previously well-laid schemes. You can’t always have everything under your control, and we do not have the degree of awareness necessary to view every possible angle.

Mistakes are there to remind us of our flaws and force us to mitigate the impact they have on our lives. Mistakes can teach us a lot about our lives and ourselves, but only if we let them.

What they do instead:

Learn from your mistakes means finding what is worth salvaging from your unfortunate experience, realizing what went wrong and finding a way to avert it in the future.

Smart people use this input to work on themselves and change the things they have the power to change.

Arrogant people look for excuses and choose to blindly believe in their judgement without any retrospect. Not only does this kind of behaviour hinder your future success, it also drives people and allies away from you.

10. They don’t give up on their ideas just because others don’t agree with them.

I know that it was stated how knowing when to give up and start anew is a good thing, and how being too stubborn or pushy will ultimately yield bad results. But a wise person knows when he or she should push the envelope and stand firm when the situation takes a turn for the worst.

Steve Jobs said it best:

The ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.

There is a difference between when someone gives your idea a chance and did not like it in the end, and someone not giving your idea a chance at all. We are all entitled to constructive feedback on why our ideas or products are not satisfactory.

What they do instead:

If someone wants to discard your effort based on a hunch, do not let them. Fight for your chance to shine, or try finding someone else who will hear you out and appreciate your idea.

There is always a possibility that someone is intimidated by your expertise; thus that person wants to hinder your development. If you want to publish or launch something, look for more than one opinion. Even if the first one is flattering, look for more.

Constructive criticism can be used as a precious insight for the future. When you learn to embrace constructive criticism, you will grow: When I Learn To Embrace Criticism, These 10 Amazing Things Happened

11. They don’t make strong remarks that can make them look weak in the future.

Actions speak louder than words. Don’t feel overconfident and use words of grandeur to describe your future actions. It only makes you look like an attention seeker who will inevitably lose his or her credibility.

Credibility is of the utmost importance for one’s future and well being. The loss of credibility had a strong impact on the outcome of the situation.

What they do instead:

If you want to be taken seriously and to be respected, don’t talk big without a means to back it up. Simply let your hard work tell your tale: How To Be More Action-Oriented: Obstacles And Tips

12. They don’t lose the opportunity to broaden their experience.

This is closely connected to the previously mentioned convictions, like Friedrich Nietzsche said,

“There are no eternal facts as there are no absolute truths.”

You can never become a complete being, and you should never set such goals for yourself. However, making ongoing endeavors towards progression in various areas is indeed what a smart person would do.

Science constantly expands our understanding of the world; it constantly tests theories and comes up with new ones. Even old or proven findings are never left alone, they are re-examined, redefined, and updated. They are constantly after progress, investigating what is most likely the truth, not what they want to believe the truth is.

What they do instead:

It is a good way to expand your database. After all, scientist are usually those who have the qualities, or are perceived to have qualities of smart people. The majority of smart celebrities were and are scientists.

Learn more about the importance of ever-learning in this article: If I Am Living a Good Life, Why Should I Bother Learning New Stuff?

13. They don’t back off from a good cause.

Much like with the good idea, wise people do not back off from a cause worth fighting for. Revolutions were led and achieved thanks to these individuals. Luckily, our society is still flawed and can provide us with many causes worth fighting for.

We are often criticized by our parents, superiors or teachers about our tastes, our interests and our hobbies. They can be right from time to time but throughout the course history, a fix has emerged. Older generations tend to scold things they do not fully understand and are too self-absorbed to even give them a chance.

What they do instead:

Be open-minded and curious all the time. Understand that there are something to learn from a new idea.

Imagine just how many art forms, in terms of music, books and film genres would not be here today if people didn’t regard them as good ideas. Today, video games are struggling with the same issue. They are held responsible for violent and troublesome behavior in youth, and people do not consider them a medium capable of delivering deeper moral values.

14. They don’t waste the potentials of their gadgets.

Lacking knowledge related to a certain field or lacking the necessary skill to accomplish a particular task does not automatically make someone incompetent. Smart people have a good way of overcoming these obstacles; they can find solutions to compensate for their shortcomings.

What they do instead:

Using your gadgets to their full extent can prove to be rather beneficial in a variety of scenarios.

Obviously, smartphones and tablets have internet connection and access to Google, thus all you need to do is know how to utilize these browsers efficiently. Almost anything you want to know has a recorded or a written tutorial online, meaning as long as you are connected to the World Wide Web, you will have the means to solve tricky problems.

App stores have an applications galore and a great number of them are really remarkable. Sure, there are those which are utter nonsense, but every smartphone and tablet device should have a few useful apps installed.

For example, you should have apps that boost your productivity, making your job significantly easier. Apps that can help you navigate when you are on unfamiliar terrain, thus boosting your level of security. Apps that can help you find good restaurants while in a foreign country, like Yelp. Additionally, language boundaries are significantly mitigated by the use of translating apps, and even though they are not one hundred percent accurate, they can still aid you a great deal.

15. They don’t overestimate their abilities

Shelly’s Frankenstein and Goethe’s Faust tell a wonderful cautionary tale about how even the brightest among us can suffer a tragic downfall, simply because they overreached past their limitations. Ambition and hard work are healthy and nothing to be ashamed of, but without moderation, these qualities can be dangerous.

You are likely to exhaust yourself continually, which can be indeed stressful and it can have a negative impact on your health. The insatiable desire for advancement in a particular field can cloud your perspective, and make you lose grip on other important aspects of life. Ultimately, you can end up being alienated from your peers, and it can be sad to have no one you can share your success with.

What they do instead:

Your mind has its limits, and very often actively thinking about the problem doesn’t get us anywhere. You need to know when you are stuck and to take a break. In other words, we need to allow our subconscious to grab the reins, and see what happens.

You’d be surprised just how frequently certain answers simply dawn on you. Moreover, even when the answers appear obvious, it is better to examine them again in the morning, perhaps they won’t seem as ideal as they did the day before.

16. They don’t make redundant enemies.

Regardless of your status, whether you are a rising star entrepreneur or an employee in a small firm, you are likely to encounter enemies, nemeses, competition, whatever you want to label particular individuals.

These people are not malefic in nature. Your convictions, ideologies or points of view are only incompatible. The problem is that you can never know what they may do if they feel provoked, and they are probably perceiving you in the same manner, which results in unnerving animosity.

It is important to define a difference between enemies created by circumstances, and enemies created by our actions. We have already established how our competition can induce minor paranoia, so it is better not to incite any redundant conflicts.

What they do instead:

When you socialize with stubborn and hot headed individuals, rest assured that you are not the only one who notices their traits. Trying to prove a point and creating an argument with these people will get you nowhere. A smart thing to do is just nod, or say you do not agree, and end the discussion. Here’s an advanced guide on how to deal with stubborn people: 12 Ways To Deal With Stubborn People And Convince Them To Listen

When entering partnerships, do a thorough check on your potential allies, see if they are not prone to deceive you, but also make sure you don’t accidentally do something that can be viewed as treacherous.

Furthermore, if you are going through a divorce, see to it that you do not separate on completely bad terms since creating a relationship based on acts of spite won’t do anyone any good.

17. They don’t allow their pride to get in the way.

This is a quote from one of my favorite manga artists, Tite Kubo:

“If it rusts, it can never be trusted. If its owner fails to control it, it will cut him. Yes, pride is like a blade.”

Spiritual teachings usually label pride as a bad characteristic, but reality tends to tell a different story. Having pride is completely acceptable, but being consumed by it is quite inconvenient.

What they do instead:

It is not rare that once you become so brilliant, you tend to automatically castigate the opinion of everyone around you. Not only that, but you may often find yourself rejecting a good proposal or initiative simply because you are not the one who thought of it.

Smart people rely on their reasoning and if too much pride interferes with it, it is a feature not worth nurturing.

18. They don’t put all the eggs in one basket.

This is an important investment rule, but this is also something we can apply in our daily lives. Never fully invest yourself for the sake of realizing a single idea.

What they do instead:

Always have backup plans, alternatives and contingencies etc. It was already established that people may not be impressed with your design, or that something can go wrong if we don’t account for all the variables.

This doesn’t imply that you should be discouraged and back off when things don’t go as planned, but this matter will be addressed later on.

19. They don’t lie to themselves that everything will be easy.

Bright and intelligent people know how to pick themselves up and make a comeback. They work on their confidence and don’t expect things to get easier.

Smart people love challenges and the thrill that comes from overcoming an obstacle. Having some downtime is refreshing, but confronting and tackling new problems is what they live for.

What they do instead:

Don’t live in the illusion that life will be easy. Your efforts may be thwarted on more than one occasion.

Even when things appear to be easy, don’t drop your guard – it’s always quiet before the storm.

20. They don’t take unnecessary risks

We all found ourselves, at some point in life, when we could have taken a risk in exchange for a greater gain. In the event you are an adrenalin junkie, a motto like “high risk, high reward” is not a bad thing to live by.

Being smart and calculated very often contradicts with this approach, since it is not implied that you won’t face risks, but it limits you to only those that are necessary.

What they do instead:

Even small risks with significant gain, like lottery, are a poor choice; if you have some extra cash, save it and wait for it to accumulate. Do not depend on people who are more or less strangers or wildcards, and stay away from the fluctuating stock markets.

Work hard to achieve success – don’t be tantalized by the possibility to change your life overnight.