What's it like to be naturally clever?

[peopleaskweirdstuff]

I know this is daft but I often wonder what it must be like to be really intelligent, you know like just very knowledgeable and very capable of just doing well in exams without really needing to put the effort in.

I'm trying to resit my exams that I should have passed when I was much younger and I'm
Finding it really hard yet some people hardly need to study and just 'get it' must be amazing to just no you are clever

My brain works much faster than most people. For most of my career I worked with similar level people where everyone was exceptionally smart so after a while normal is what you know and you forget these people are outliers. Then I changed jobs where I work with a broader range of backgrounds (most still successful in their careers) and oh boy is it different. So very much waiting for people to mentally catch up.

I find that there’s always someone even smarter! I used to be chuffed to have an IQ of 144, and considered myself fairly brainy - top of class at grammar school, got a prize at medical school, had a career as a hospital doctor.
But my DD has an IQ of 166, can outsmart me at most things, and I play bridge with people who are grandmasters and have played for the national team, so I don’t feel particularly clever any more!
It’s all comparative, isn’t it, and we’re all loved by God whatever our skill or intellectual level. I’m sure He rates compassion over brains anyway.

I read. A lot. That's where my general knowledge comes from. No one is 'naturally' knowledgeable.

Academic high flier, but not sure if that was natural intelligence/rapid-absorbing of information or if I just have a love of learning and am naturally a hard worker. I love to feel productive basically. Maybe it's a mix of a few factors. I'm also quite a serious, bookish, yet outspoken person so probably come across as more earnest and intelligent than I really am!

The more I pushed myself academically then professionally though over the years, the more anxious I felt myself becoming and I just couldn't cope with various social situations anymore so decided it was more worthwhile to tackle my emotional and interpersonal intelligence, which was really lacking by then.

Much happier now, have slowed down a bit and am more empathetic, more caring of others' comfort now I've tackled my own. I've realised I can't feel serene from learning alone; I need other things in my life too.

Depends what kind of intelligence you mean. Just sitting exams? I am good at most things, I don't struggle at much but not particularly academically brilliant, it doesn't come naturally to me, but I'm bright enough, found Uni easy, I did ok. But what's interesting is that all the above points that academic posters list that they can't do: shelf, small talk, not getting lost, find social situations easy, could speak at a conference of 100's easily. So it depends which aspect you are talking to.

I turned out to be academically bright after a fast start at primary and then a go slow sheer laziness in secondary. The key asset I had was that I was really well read (motivated by a super bright friend at 11 yrs old) and then as a result was very good at writing essays. This sailed me through A levels, Degree and Masters. I still work out what I think through writing papers - but always after debate with clever people, listening and adjusting my thinking.

I have done well in my career - I'm now a CEO - but I have met many people who are way more intelligent than me. Hate to dispel notions but that includes super clever civil servants who are very very bright.

What I'm good at is building really good relationships and trust with people, managing teams and bringing together their expertise to arrive at good strategies and decisions. I have reasonable analytical skills - I've kept them fresh to brain ache levels by moving fields regularly, and I have good judgment and communication skills. I am confident enough to chair a meeting not knowing how on earth we will ever arrive at a view and managing to pull it together to find the next steps. I'm definitely never the cleverest in the room but I just might be one of the best at combining insights to come to a decision.

I changed job at 58 - to an entirely new and technical field. My brain absolutely hurt for a long time as I learnt and learnt from my colleagues. I am absolutely honest about asking damn fool questions and accepting that I still have much to learn - but my colleagues are immensely supportive. That makes difference.

Always learning and testing my understanding - and not pretending I know what anyone is talking about. In really life I'm reasonably well organised, practical and confident but I'm no genius at anything.

I'm quite clever. Not a genius, but quite clever. Good, if not amazing, exam results and a good career. If you need someone to answer any question but sport or music in the pub quiz I'm your woman!

But I'd give up a good chunk of intelligence to:

a) be the kind of person that just knows how to dress well;
b) be naturally tidy; and
c) be better in social situations

My best friend described me as "ridiculously clever, but dizzy as a duck" when we were teenagers. 20 years later and she stands by her comments!

I'm with the PP who said they are bright but would prefer to be a hard worker. I didn't find school or exams super easy, but easy enough that i never properly learnt to work hard at things. Could always wing it - which sort of works, but not really in the long run

Same here. I am in a professional that prides itself on clever. But now I work across a spectrum of skillsets.

It can be frustrating to work with people who don't get it or retain information. Surely it must be embarassing to be reminded of the same thing multiple times on multiple occasions. Nope, no shame or no memory I cannot figure it out. I feel sometimes I am in a living hell.

oh and yes to having to learn to be patient with other people being boring and or slow. I also overthink, which leads to anxiety and worry a lot of the time.

On paper I am "clever" - always did well in exams etc. I have a mediocre job, shit pay, life is only ok.

But worse ... I can't drive a car. Not that I don't want to, not that I've never tried, I can't. I have spent hundreds of pounds on lessons over the years and never even got close to booking a test. I cannot do it. I don't understand how everyone is just driving around like it's nothing. It's So. Damn. HARD.

So academic cleverness has been of no use to me, I'm poor and can't drive 😂

I often wonder how kids get though school knowing they are not going to pass GCSEs ect. It was never a question for me, top set for everything and never cracked a book for GCSEs at all and similar for Alevels. I should have done better but I wasn't bothered.
Both my children are clever, eldest did amazing at GCSE and Alevels, but she did work. Youngest due to follow similar pattern.
I have an amazing memory which means I can recall massive amounts of info and even whole conversations.
It overall is a great feeling

Couldn’t agree more! Hence my first post.
Though it’s a measurement of intelligence, so is definitely relevant to the questions asked on this thread.

I'm good at written exams and things like quizzes. I just seem to be able to remember information and use it. However, I am awful in practical tests that involve somebody watching me do something. I played the violin as a child and hated doing music exams. It took me seven attempts to pass my driving test. I could drive but just went to pieces in the test.

I'm clever- am an only child and spent hours reading daily as a child, listened to too many adults talking and was encouraged to do 'geeky' things - I did science experiments, had a nature table, was interested in marine biology and spent ages in the library reading about seaweeds, sea-animal types, rockpools- which I then put into practice on my daily expeditions in the summer holidays. I had an earthworm farm to observe their habits. I was quick, curious and just geeky. School was a doddle all the way through and I never worked for exams.

I love exploring new things and ideas but am not disciplined and don't like having to do things eg for work. I am emotionally intelligent and very good with strangers but I have no belief in myself and find social situations very difficult. I don't have lots of friends and prefer being with DH or just my couple of close friends. I have no family of my own at all now and that doesn't help. I'm not at all good with practical things and have had to learn to do them in my 30s.

I had a superpower of a memory which made exams easy. Doesn’t mean clever though and now the perimenopause is stealing my one super skill away from me.

I’ll be buggered when people realise.

Quite clever but lazy. Def waiting for everyone else to catch up, all the time. Its enraging as it feels like they're taking the piss.

> slight derail, but I often wonder what it would be like to be genius level smart

I'm up there, IQ in the high 160s and "maths smart" but also have a patchy memory these days but can work things out from first principles.

Agree with most of the other comments on pros/cons. I've made a good career and lots of money from coming up with good ideas before anyone else because I can understand problems in a way almost nobody else can, and also rose the corporate ladder pointing out flaws in plans and generally avoiding making dumb mistakes, which has made me some enemies.

However, it's very depressing seeing people struggle with problems when the solution is really obvious to me, depending on the situation sometimes you have to just sit it out. And also very depressing when you see through people planning something devious from a mile off.

Socially I get by fine, DW is smart but occasionally have problems when we are friends with couples where one isn't smart, it tends to cause tension. What do you say when someone says something so stupid as part of an intimate conversation and everyone but the person realizes it's stupid.

If you want a genuine answer op. I’m a member of Mensa and my iq is in the top 1 percent of the population. I am being one hundred percent honest. I did the supervised tests as an older teen and was invited to join. That was over 30 years ago and I’m still a member today.

I solve problems quicker than nearly everyone else. I think fast and can form an argument very quickly. I can see and understand I am quicker than most people; it’s rare I meet someone who can beat me, but I can recognise it when i do.

the only person who I know who is faster, other than other Mensa members I have met, is my daughter, she’s not went for the tests, but I strongly suspect her iq is at least rhe same as mine, and likely higher.

past that in day to day life, it really doesn’t mean much, other than I often can work out what someone is going to say and give a rebuttal before they finish, Ie I butt in. It can come across as rude, I understand that, but my brain has given the answer when they are half way through and I don’t want to listen to the end. My instinct is to interrupt and close it off. Which is not good.

my opinion is it gives you advantages , particularly at work, but It doesn’t mean much day to day and has its down sides.

I am not academic. I find academia dull. Being academic doesn’t mean you habe a high iq. I am more focused on problem solving, negotiation etc. it’s the career I have made.

I have a high IQ (not genius level but well above average) and have always done well on exams and in education in general. I grasp concepts quickly.

Honestly it's a bit frustrating. I'm smart enough to know I'm more intelligent than lots of people but at the same time smart enough to recognise that I'm not smart enough for it to actually matter 😂 I'm not a scientist or a mathematician. I will never cure cancer or discover a new renewable energy source, for example. I only truly excel in the arts. I might have written some pretty cool novels (which sit on my computer doing nothing) but that's about it 🤷🏻‍♀️ Pretty useless really. You definitely want me on your pub quiz team though 😉

I wish my gifts were more practical sometimes.

I think what people have said before is right. Exams test a certain type of clever. Success in exams doesn't directly correlate to success later in life. Good luck!!! All you can do is your best.

There's some slightly odd stereotypes on here, I mean some clever people can be attractive, socially skilled, competent and driving, these things aren't mutually exclusive, I don't think. For example, I'm not naturally attractive, but when I was about 16 I observed what others wore, got contacts, did my make-up like other more attractive people, now I'm considered attractive. A lot of academic skills beyond about undergraduate level are about problem-solving and life problems can also be solved.

The other stereotype on here is that no effort would be required. At some levels, this might be the case, but I'm pretty sure those who were getting firsts at Oxbridge twenty years ago or who have published a few books are putting in a heck of a lot of effort. It's effort plus ability that gets you where you want to go.

There's a great book by Tara Mohr called Playing Big that suggests that being great at academic things at school does women no favours when they get into the workplace because the skills rewarded there (conformity, obedience, working hard, external praise) aren't those rewarded in the big wide world (risk-taking).

You can be clever without effort but you can't really be knowledgeable without some sort of effort. Knowledge is acquired, even if you don't find the acquisition especially difficult. And the shame is, as evidenced by some of the PP, that often all this incredible intelligence really doesn't make much of a difference in the world. I am attracted to intelligent, witty and clever people but it's so disappointing if you discover they are a bit of a wanker. Some people are blessed with intelligence but no humility, some with incredible exam technique but can't boil an egg, some have an IQ off the charts but zero EQ. It's a rare find to come across someone who truly has it all, including tolerance for the less clever. Not all clever people are successful and not all successful people are clever. Work with what you've got & try not to be a twat is how I think about it.

Good luck with your exams OP, just do your best and don't worry about anyone else, I'm sure you have plenty of awesome attributes - and whatever you achieve you should feel proud you've gone back to give it another go - it's quite a brave thing to do! All the clever people who've found it easy can't say that can they?

DH is one of a few people that I have ever met and I worked in academia for almost 30 years whose brain I admire. He did the test for Mensa when at school and got an incredibly high score but he thinks it’s slightly ridiculous. I have never bothered to take a test.

I will admit that he is the only person that I can talk to freely about certain topics.

I'd love to pick things up at work instantly. When something new is explained,, I'm stressed thinking ''how much of this will I need to request another explanation for later''. Awful. I am so average. It's a curse.