We all would want to be better, faster, and smarter at thinking. It’s probably everyone’s goal these days because it is a highly praised trait in today’s society.
Smart people aren’t truly born smart, to begin with. They just developed a growth mentality, which helped them acquire skills to comprehend how things work and connect the dots.
However, being smart doesn’t necessarily make life easy. In fact, highly intelligent individuals often have this feeling of solitariness and aloofness that those who do not have the same level of intelligence understand.
In this article, we are going to dive deep into these problems that only people have. Let’s get started!
1. Dealing with instant gratification
One of the most harmful obsessions that smart people have is instant gratification. This withholds them from doing anything that is worth doing.
Smart people tend to fall into a continuous loop of instant gratification, jumping from video to video, story to story, scroll after scroll, and cookie after cookie. Although these intellectuals know that this addiction to instant gratification is hurting their productivity, they also know that it could give them an extra boost of motivation.
Instant gratification itself isn’t the main problem, though, but rather how people deal with it. Some people go overboard in playing this instant gratification game. A little time allotted for it is okay and can give you a quick boost, but a little more can ruin your day.
2. Smart people have a problem with their egos.
Emotional intelligence is necessary to combat and handle smart people’s egos. Because of the excessive knowledge that they have inside their head, they tend to get overpowered by their emotions, feeling so entitled and superior over everyone else.
Smart people compare themselves to others round the clock, doing everything they can to look on the mark. However, having such an amour propre won’t ever let you grow and see other people’s perspectives. You would want to leave and flee your comfort bubble where you’re always right and never wrong.
Some people say that egotism is the anesthetic that numbs the pain of stupidity. Battling against ego is probably one of the hardest fights that smart people have to bear. It’s a hard battle against yourself, and you need to be comfortable in failing in order to win.
3. Smart people know when to be ignorant.
Ignorance is always perceived as a bad thing by many. However, it is actually a natural thing for people because you can never know everything about all things. It only becomes a nasty behavior if used to rationalize being a dick.
The problem that most smart people encounter when it comes to ignorance is recognizing when they should act ignorant. The paradox of choice, too many choices, can incapacitate the brain of smart people, making it hard for them to take one possible course of action. Hence, they end up not making any choice.
Being smart means being selectively naive. You should know when to raise the white flag and say, “I don’t need to know everything about that.” Otherwise, you’ll put a tremendous burden on your mind.
American author Seth Godin is one real-life example of a person who knows when to act ignorant. According to Godin, he doesn’t heed any attention to what people think about his books. He does not read reviews that are coming in and he believes that it does him better.
4. Smart people know how to challenge themselves creatively.
There are two types of people in this world. Some belong to the “creators” category and others belong to “consumers.” Smart people have the continuous longing to develop and create something, frequently contesting themselves to feel like they are growing. They cannot feel comfortable having time pass by without making the most of it.
These sharp-witted people who are in a nonstop search to articulate their creativity feel empty without it.
5. Smart people don’t like giving up control.
It’s good to have someone else do a particular task for you. However, if you are smart, it will be quite difficult and frustrating to see your work getting mistreated by someone else.
Who would want to lose authority over a task you spend a lot of time and effort in? It would be better to work overtime and do things your own way than give way other people control over your work, which is pretty maddening.
6. Smart people have high expectations.
Knowing comes with intelligence, so being smart can make you understand how things work. It is relatively easy to connect the dots and see the full picture, anticipating a particular outcome.
The problem with smart people who have high expectations is that they believe that the outstanding scenario that pops out of their minds doesn’t turn out the way they want it to in reality.
7. Smart people are terrified of looking foolish.
Nothing can break a genuinely foolish person, even if people call him names. On the other hand, smart people are afraid to be branded as stupid and so they tend to overanalyze even the simplest things, reckoning themselves constantly.
Smart people tend to look are several different angles of a situation or event that can possibly make them look foolish, exhausting themselves to a greater extent than necessary.
8. Smart people are overconfident.
It’s very easy to fall prey to the trap of overconfidence, especially when you are loaded with knowledge. Smart people, because they believe they know everything, have the tendency to skip the basics, keep away from tutorials, and jump straight into the nitty-gritty.
Being smart allows you to understand easily what average people cannot. However, if you are smart, refrain from believing that everything works the same way. They don’t.
9. Smart people have trouble connecting to others.
Highly intelligent people find the average conversation boring, and so they would rather punch themselves in the face than take part in another lifeless conversation. They cannot stand people who aren’t executing at their level, making teamwork their greatest weakness.
It’s okay to indulge yourself in boring discussions sometimes. After all, not every chatter should turn into a TED Talk.
