How To Become Smart
Really Want To Know How To Become Smart?
Is there any point in trying to figure out how to become smart? Some people are born with gifts that others do not have, like an ability to run faster, jump higher, play the piano well, or learn more quickly. Still, when they've accomplished great things, the gift they were given usually had to be supplemented by plenty of hard work or study. For some though, some things just come a little easier.
No Limit - Two things are more or less certain. Number one, there is a limit as to how smart you will ever get. Number two, it is highly unlikely you will ever come even remotely close to that limit. Our brain has a capacity that, when you think about it, is downright scary, which should tell you if you apply yourself, and follow some good advice as to how to become smart, you will in all probability succeed.
There are different ways to define being smart of course. Most people who have an advanced degree are smart. They had to be to achieve that. The opposite isn't true of course. There are some who never attended college, or never even finished high school, who are as smart as anyone. They just use what they have for different purposes. Being smart doesn't mean knowing everything, not does it mean knowing a great deal about only one thing. There are no doubt people who can play a brilliant game of chess, but who would need an instruction manual when it comes to making lunch. Most of us are smart at some things, and not so smart at other things.
As far as how to become smart is concerned, don't worry about hitting a ceiling. As noted before, you probably won't hit a limit, but can go very high. Here's a few tips, anyone of which is practically guaranteed to make you smarter, maybe much smarter.
Hang Around Smart People - Athletes get better at what they do when they compete against or train with athletes who are better or more experienced. Hang around with the local yokels, and you'll stay in that category as well.
Try To Appear Smart - That's a tough one. By trying to appear smarter, you start thinking of yourself that way. Just be careful not to overdo it. Expounding at length on something you don't know much about can easily turn around and bite you. Appearing smart often involves nothing more than showing an interest in something.
Exercise Your Brain - The more you use your brain, whether it be solving crossword puzzles, or learning a language, the more flexible and powerful it becomes. The more you learn, the more you want to learn.
Read - There are those who took "no more school, no more books", seriously, Continue to read, all your life. Good books are best of course but there's nothing wrong with magazines and newspapers. Keeping up to date on current events can make to appear to be, as well as actually be, one smart person.
Cultivate A Sense Of Intellectual Curiosity - This is a powerful tip. Show a genuine interest in most everything. Why are things what they are? How does something work? How is something used? What's the history being something? Showing a genuine interest in something you know little or nothing about, marks you as a smart person. Smart people ask lots of questions, and listen to the answer. Smart people don't necessarily talk a lot.
Summary - We've really just scratched the surface. If you genuinely want to know how to become smart, the door's wide open. The act of just figuring out what you need to do to become smart, will make you a least a tiny bit smarter than before. Of the suggestions given above, some will appeal to some more than to others. There's something about developing a keen sense of intellectual curiosity though, that may just make it the most powerful tool of all.