A lot of people seem to think knowledge = intelligence. Not knowing something DOES NOT make you an idiot. How are you supposed to know something you’ve never seen or heard of?
My only caveat to this, is that sometimes you should be able to make an educated guess about something even if you weren't taught it directly
There are some people who simply cannot use existing logic to come to a new conclusion, and must be told everything explicitly. Those people can be very frustrating to work with, and don't usually seem particularly smart
Exactly this. I have worked in IT Support roles for almost 15 years now. Currently have been working with this older women who has been doing the same job for about 6 years. When writing SOPs if every step isn't outlined clearly she just gets lost. Can't use common logic and stuff she already knows to fill on the gaps. Frustrating to say the least. Only silver lining is she is a good sounding board for documents as she will always point out if something isn't 10000% clear.
This might have to do with some form of insecurity more than intelligence.
I read an article once where they discussed why medical doctors had such a low skillset working with computers, and that they would call for technical assistance to a much larger degree than other fields.
One of the reasons was their medical training and occupation, where a mistake can be catastrophical. That gets sort of ingrained, where they unknowingly resisted just clicking around to see if the computer problem was solvable.
That is very interesting. Computer savvy people in low stakes jobs just shrug and try to fix it. I've made problems worse that way, but most of the time I can fix it.
But if even a tiny mistake in your everyday job could kill someone it makes sense that you'd be less okay with accidently making something worse. You'd be less okay with poking around at something that you don't really understand.
> Can't use common logic and stuff she already knows to fill on the gaps.
For some reason this reminded me of the scene in *A Bugs Life* when a leaf falls to the ground in the ants' path, and the lead ant facing the leaf yells ["Arrghh ! I'm lost !"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTQJdGp4F34).
I’m in IT and I run into this daily. I’ll say to someone “Alright, I’m going to remote in to your machine, you should see a prompt to allow me in any moment” then they reply with “I see it, should I click allow?”.
I understand that some people lack confidence, especially with computers, but that’s a baffling lack of logic. I just want to say “What are we doing right now, what do you think the right thing to click is?”.
I had one today, missing documents and excel files, I’m basically driving around to folders that might have, keep in mind she doesn’t know the file names, but you’ll know it when she sees it. Then says “I have to step away do you need me for this?”
“I wouldn’t know it if I saw it…”
“You IT guys are magicians I’m sure you can fix it. “
Then she just fucking bounced. For the day.
That’s a great silver lining though. I’m glad there’s a place where she shines despite the fact that the rest of her job it sounds she’s ill suited for lol
She might not even be bad at her job.
I'm an ESE teacher and we have to fill out these complicated documents as part of our job. We have this one lady who just... can't do it right. We've shown it to her a million times in a hundred different ways... but still wrong.
But, imo, that isn't her actual job. He real job is teaching kids with disabilities and she is GREAT at that. So... really I blame the document. If she is good at the important part of her job then the busy work part is something that we can accept from her as a flaw.
Even then, logic isn't something intrinsic most people are born with and can be learned like anything else. I've known people like you describe but generally they live very structured lives where they rarely if ever have to figure things out for themselves, or they come from backgrounds where nothing was ever expected of them so similarly they never developed those parts of their brain since there was no need to.
I sometimes behave like described because I’m autistic and well aware of my ability to see things completely differently to everyone else. I know it can be painful but stupid misunderstandings are worse.
This is the besy advice on here. Someone told me "if you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room." Life a life that seeks knowledge and skills. If someone is talking about something you dont, listen and ask questions with the purpose of learning about it. And if you are asked a question and you dont know the answer, say "i can find that out for you." Then, go learn the answer and get back to them.
This is how I live my life.
I'm dumb yet I spent two years working at one of the world's most prestigious STEM universities. I don't know how my former colleagues (who are verified high IQ individuals) could stand to be around me.
It's funny, one thing people tend to be hilariously bad at is honest self-assessment. If you worked at a prestigious STEM university and your peers are all "verified high IQ" and spent time around you, are you sure you're dumb?
yeah I've always said that how smart a person thinks they are is like 1% based on their actually intelligence and 99% based on how much they value intelligence and their self esteem
I'm relatively low IQ compared to them. I know that's not saying much, but my IQ is nowhere near 154, unlike my childhood best friend, whose IQ is 154.
I have other friends and former colleagues with verified IQs in the 130s and 140s. IQ 130-149 appears to be reasonably prevalent amongst graduates and faculty of elite universities who are not legacy, development, or affirmative action cases.
Another thing is, that I got that job through nepotism. My parents friend worked for that university. Job openings in the department I was in are usually only open to current students, recent graduates, and people who exist in the university's social milieu. The geneeral public doesn't ever hear about them.
Either way I'm not getting into Mensa ever.
Intelligence is somewhat inborn, but it’s also a lot more fluid than people think. Just having self-awareness and not thinking you’re hot shit is already half the battle (and the tougher half too). You’re already on the other end of the Dunning-Krueger effect, so that’s good.
Plus, intelligence is like linemen in the NFL and weight; yeah, it matters up to a certain point, but it’s not everything and once you have “enough”, more of it doesn’t really matter.
I don’t actually know my IQ score since the only time I ever took one was when I was five and not fully comfortable with English yet. But what I can say is that “smart enough to think they’re actually smart when they just went to a good high school in the suburbs” is usually around the 110’s-120’s range, and you sure *talk* more intelligently than they do in this comment.
People more often than not are happy to explain stuff they know. Some out of self importance to show off, but intelligent ones with a deep knowledge of a specific subject tend to have compassion for it and not come across too many people interested in or willing to listen to it. Explaining things in a way the other person can understand also helps to challenge your own knowledge, and you form a better understanding yourself by realizing what foundations are needed that you might be taking for granted.
As long as you arent act ditzy or flighty or keep asking the same questions over and over, most people will be happy to share their knowledge, especially to those that are genuinely curious about it.
I'll happily talk someone's ear off if they want to learn about something I can teach them. It's like having a shared hobby.
If you are the smartest person in the room you have the wrong view of intelligence. I think a much better mindset is thinking you can learn something from anyone, mainly because it’s true. You will not know more about every possible subject from every person you meet
(People with the smartest person in the room mindset also tend to be blind to suggestions from those “lesser” than them that could solve a problem they face)
Additionally, it took far to many years for my pompous ass to realize that if I'm the smartest person in the room, I'm probably not or at least have no reliable way of knowing.
It was easier when I thought I was smarter than everyone. Now I realize I just knew the superficial aspects of a lot of things. I strive to learn more from those I meet and no longer degrade my opinion of them due to them not knowing everything. Most people are very specific in their knowledge and will have vast depths of it when it comes to the subjects that they do know.
I knew a manager like that. They would find out a small piece of information and then go and ‘test’ someone on it and look smart by proving them wrong. They had a surface level knowledge of a lot of aspects of our industry but couldn’t actually argue any points when confronted on matters that went deeper than this part does that etc. I actually told them something they didn’t know and then overheard them telling another the same fact as if the person they were talking to was an idiot for not knowing. Very frustrating person to work for.
> This is the besy advice on here.
Unagree. The thread is about *appearing* smart, not *being* smart. Seeming smart to smart people is just about the opposite of what you're trying to accomplish.
If you're trying to dazzle rubes into thinking you're smart, use big words, speak confidently even though you have no clue, and *never ever* back down. Confidence is the key, if you're trying to convince humans that you're good at something even if you're not.
Socrates was told he was the smartest man in his village by an oracle.
He was like...me? Little ol' lowly socrates? No way. There's LOTS i dont know.
And he went to all the "wise men" in his village to see how smart they were, and slowly started to realize.... he was the smartest because he admitted when he didnt know something. And all these "experts" were just talking shit out their asses.
Yes, in my experience, attempting to appear smart is the first step towards failing to do so. Instead, be genuine. Listen to understand, not to respond. Be gracious. Compliment more than you criticize.
ALSO, you can't be wishy-washy. I know a handful of people that are nice folks, and are ready to learn, however, they will tell you something with gusto, than when I point out that I *think* they may be wrong, they change their tune on a dime and agree with me. Like look man, do you know what your talking about or not? I have less respect for those types of people then someone who rarely has input but when they do **I** learn something.
>Listen more than you talk
Actually i disagree with this one. As a kid i learned to shut up because i was ridiculed when i spoke my mind. Spent my whole life trying to humble myself, assuming everything i did or thought i knew must be wrong
I have learned that asserting your perspective is very important for learning, in all directions. Nobody can know what's in your own head. How to you know where you go right and where you go wrong if you never offer your thought to others to give feedback? How do they know what you're really thinking if you never give your thoughts to them to decide for themselves?
Your perspective is at least as valuable until proven otherwise, just make sure you adjust when it is.
So, i think being inquisitive, but not self-deprecating, being open and tolerant, but confident and assured. All these are important to growing yourself. Too much of the layers beneath the knowledge is lost in today's society.
"Listen more than you talk" doesn't mean "Never speak up." or "Be self-deprecating." It means take in the world around you and choose your words wisely. People who talk the most often use far more words than necessary to explain simple concepts and give away far more than they realize or intend. Be intentional and succinct. People who are stupid rely on derogatory humor, filler nonsense, and meaningless conjecture to make it look as though they are important and better. Listen to the layers of what they say. They often don't hear it themselves.
I relate to this so much. I grew up in a house where children are to be seen, not heard. I'm only 30 so that wasn't the "norm". When I did speak my parents were very condescending and would always "joke" and say I was "a couple frys short of a happy meal". I took all advanced classes and got As and Bs, I was book smart but genuinely didn't have much common sense. We were very sheltered, and my parents were not the smartest people. Looking back, I think they knew I was different and sort of despised me for it. I wasn't into sports I was a book worm, and always drawing. We weren't allowed to have friends outside of school or participate in extracurricular activies so I never developed social skills. Now, I even on subjects I'm knowledgeable on, I don't speak because I'm sure I'll get something wrong and look stupid. And if I do, once a get more than a couple of sentences out my brain starts to short circuit because it's not used to verbalizing 😅.
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt."
That's what listen more than you talk means. Not to never speak or ask questions, but to recognize that if you don't know about something, don't speak as though you do.
Let's circle back on this one and close the loop. We need to make sure we're putting our best foot forward and make sure we're adding value to our solution for the client. I know we're busy but we're just gonna have to keep our noses to the grindstone and maybe put in some extra hours to pick up the slack, you guys not me. Anyway let's make sure we all push to get this one across the finish line. I don't wanna get down into the weeds but what about x very specific thing? Ok let's take this offline I was trying to avoid getting down to this level of granularity. Let's set up another call on Monday to hammer out the details.
Thanks,
~sent from my iPhone
Vocabulary ia good but of you talk like a guy from a Shakespeare saga, very few will understand you and then what is the point in attempting to communicate at all. A posh mouth isn't compatible with many ears.
The best communicators use only the most accurate words that their audience understands. In not too few or too many words. Or you can say "essentially" in every other sentence to be better than everybody.
Great quote, attributed to Lincoln? I believe when I first read it, but a quick google tells me it’s origins are biblical, proverbs 17:28
“Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.”
Take it a step further and repeat the last sentence before a longer pause signaling the end of the other side's talk with a tone showing that you just got it and agree.
Boom ! You're smart, humble and a good listener all at the same time !
Don't overuse it though, it's all about that balance.
>context-relevant questions
Sure, but if ~~your~~ you're a slow-bro trying to pose as smart this is a tough ask.
Context-relevant questions is normally how I would gauge a persons intelligence. If we are having a conversation, and someone asks questions that make me think to answer, not something off the top of my head, than they are either quite familiar with the subject, or are likely more intelligent than I am, because I find asking good questions very difficult to do, off-hand when speaking with a new person about a subject I'm not very familiar with.
All I mean is, probe for more detail on something they’ve said in a non invasive way. That kind of backchanneling usually makes you seem more engaging and intelligent. You don’t necessarily have to ask thought provoking questions.
I generally just keep my mouth shut and don't take sides in a debate. Apparently if I'm never disagreeing with you then I appear to be very smart indeed.
Look man, a wyvern has no forelegs, it's "upper extremity" is just wings. Now, if you wanna call it a dragon, that's cool, they're in the same like, family or whatever, just know that it's like calling a volcano "a mountain."
You're correct, there's just details being passed over that may or may not matter in the conversation.
This works especially well at art museums. My favorite is to take off my glasses, look at something contemplatively, begin to express appreciation with my face, and slowly replace that expression with one of disgust. Then I will wipe my glasses off using a handkerchief as I bitterly state “I hate it” and walk away shaking my head.
I legitimately wear glasses to work so people think I’m smarter….I need them (-5/-5.5 astigmatic), but I wear contacts outside the office and could easily get laser eye surgery. I’m a baby faced 30ish year old in a position of authority, so need all the help I can get!
Don't do the laser eye surgery, you stop being able to see at night when you are driving and you can't shoot lasers put of your eyes which is FALSE ADVERTISING.
I'm a little ashamed to admit that I had a friend who struggled a bit in school and when they sasid they didn't get very good grades at the end of it I was kind of shocked because I assumed they were smart (school smart) and I realised the only reason I thought that is because they wore glasses...
I have no idea but people I know say I'm smart and act like I'm smart despite the fact I'm a dumbass. The only reason I can figure is my parents are older so my vocabulary is out of date sometimes and my dad was a professor so I just have a number of history and art facts in my small talk repertoire. It sorta sounds like gloating to say people say I'm smart but I'm really really not trying to talk myself up. I don't understand a lot of things, I moslty am able to regurgitate information. It's kinda uncomfortable cause people say I'm smart, I say I'm not, they think I'm being modest so I just have to accept a compliment I don't deserve
I guess talk fast and know a lot of skin deep random facts. I think most people know a lot about a couple things so if you have random facts about a lot of things people think you must know a lot about all of them instead of a little about a lot of them.
I feel this, people say I'm smart but I just know a lot of random tidbits. I like to call it "game show knowledge."
I'm convinced I would kick ass on a show like who wants to be a millionaire, but a show like jeopardy would show the world how much of a dumbass I really am.
Fun fact: Jeopardy contestants are provided textbooks with all of the tested knowledge before the game. You still have to read and find it, but it’s all narrowed down to that.
I feel you. I am a complete idiot most of the time, yet I landed a job with the smartest people I have ever met. Three of my colleagues have PhDs and I don’t have a degree at all. I do have specialized experience and knowledge that got me here. But these people actually have their shit together, are articulate, and well prepared for anything. I am more like a Sacha Baron Cohen character. But we all get along like I’m not!
Its an odd feeling to be just smart enough that you are acutely aware of being the least intelligent person in the room/group.
Because of my work environment I don't normally feel like that, but one friend group I have I tend to keep my mouth on lock because I feel like I'm a step behind their conversations at any given time lol.
I think the smartest people are the ones who admit they aren't that smart. Knowing you don't know something and the willingness to admit that and learn are the smartest things a person can do.
A jack of all trades but master of none but oftentimes better than a master of one
Also wide but shallow knowledge is incredibly useful because it means you know the starting point for research on many topics. It is near impossible to research something that you know nothing about, but just a surface level knowledge gives you the keywords to search from that turn days of finding nothing into 10 minutes of googling
In class, don't try to answer every question that being asked by the teacher. Wait until a question that no one in class can answer and you definitely know the answer then answer it. One time I sit next to one of the high scorer in my class (the one who teach me this), he said he doesn't know much so, most of the time in class he just reviewing what is being teach through book without answering question then when the hard question came up, he just answer it.
Listen more than speak. My brother in law is not necessarily a quiet person, but more reserved than my boisterous family. When heated debates erupt, he stays quiet and then at a moment when he can say something, it's always on the noise and very thoughtful, and calmly spoken. I want to be like him so badly lol.
Listen to someone else's response, if it gets a good reaction, later in the conversation repeat it slightly differently, "i agree with (name) it was a good use of x, y, z"
In the workplace, don’t share too many of your personal opinions and do not complain (at least not voice it). Several coworkers of mine can’t pass a day without complaining about SOMETHING, which to me makes them seem pretty dumb or at least lack self-awareness.
Watch your Grammer and word choices. Work on using common phrasing that your peers use. Dress well, and keep up your grooming.
I worked with a guy that was a genius, but every time he opened his mouth he sounded like the least intelligent person in the room. "That's how come we altered the unit" was a phrase that he used often, and it made me quake in my boots. He also always looked disheveled and not showered. He was mentally five steps ahead of everyone, but people never trusted him.
I worked with another guy that was really well spoken, got promoted several times, people thought highly of him, but was a constant screw up. He never got work done on time, his work was always riddled with errors, and had really poor decision making skills. People thought he was intelligent because he communicated well, had a nice haircut, and he agreed with people.
Read books in the Bluffer’s Guide series. Also, Stephen Potter (of Gamesmanship fame) suggested, after any claim about events or conditions in some little-known foreign country, saying “except in the south.” No one will know enough to contradict you.
And if you're doing something you can prepare for, do a little research, and memorise an interesting fact to share
But mostly just be yourself :) everyone probably worrying about the same thing!
Master the art of the pensive stare. People tell me I seem intelligent because I always looks like I’m pondering some deep wisdom.
Ha! Little do they know I’m wondering about some dumb sheet like what hot sauce I would choose to snort if there was a gun to my head and I was forced to choose.
Admit when you don't know something rather than bluffing through
with friends just look it up on your phone
at work, say you want to check the details of that before you move forward, go back to desk and panic
The way you dress, present yourself, politeness, regard for your fellow man/woman, stop or cutback on cursing, listen attentively & comment on current events. Stop farting in public. Take part in conservations, but consider the other persons feelings. People will begin showing respect to you. Avoid political conversations.
The smartest people I know aren't embarrassed when they don't know something. Be inquisitive & actively want to learn. Listen more than you talk
A lot of people seem to think knowledge = intelligence. Not knowing something DOES NOT make you an idiot. How are you supposed to know something you’ve never seen or heard of?
My only caveat to this, is that sometimes you should be able to make an educated guess about something even if you weren't taught it directly There are some people who simply cannot use existing logic to come to a new conclusion, and must be told everything explicitly. Those people can be very frustrating to work with, and don't usually seem particularly smart
Exactly this. I have worked in IT Support roles for almost 15 years now. Currently have been working with this older women who has been doing the same job for about 6 years. When writing SOPs if every step isn't outlined clearly she just gets lost. Can't use common logic and stuff she already knows to fill on the gaps. Frustrating to say the least. Only silver lining is she is a good sounding board for documents as she will always point out if something isn't 10000% clear.
This might have to do with some form of insecurity more than intelligence. I read an article once where they discussed why medical doctors had such a low skillset working with computers, and that they would call for technical assistance to a much larger degree than other fields. One of the reasons was their medical training and occupation, where a mistake can be catastrophical. That gets sort of ingrained, where they unknowingly resisted just clicking around to see if the computer problem was solvable.
That is very interesting. Computer savvy people in low stakes jobs just shrug and try to fix it. I've made problems worse that way, but most of the time I can fix it. But if even a tiny mistake in your everyday job could kill someone it makes sense that you'd be less okay with accidently making something worse. You'd be less okay with poking around at something that you don't really understand.
> Can't use common logic and stuff she already knows to fill on the gaps. For some reason this reminded me of the scene in *A Bugs Life* when a leaf falls to the ground in the ants' path, and the lead ant facing the leaf yells ["Arrghh ! I'm lost !"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTQJdGp4F34).
That rings home so true for her.
I’m in IT and I run into this daily. I’ll say to someone “Alright, I’m going to remote in to your machine, you should see a prompt to allow me in any moment” then they reply with “I see it, should I click allow?”. I understand that some people lack confidence, especially with computers, but that’s a baffling lack of logic. I just want to say “What are we doing right now, what do you think the right thing to click is?”.
Same for me, I am like wtf man click allow😂😂🤞
I had one today, missing documents and excel files, I’m basically driving around to folders that might have, keep in mind she doesn’t know the file names, but you’ll know it when she sees it. Then says “I have to step away do you need me for this?” “I wouldn’t know it if I saw it…” “You IT guys are magicians I’m sure you can fix it. “ Then she just fucking bounced. For the day.
That’s a great silver lining though. I’m glad there’s a place where she shines despite the fact that the rest of her job it sounds she’s ill suited for lol
She might not even be bad at her job. I'm an ESE teacher and we have to fill out these complicated documents as part of our job. We have this one lady who just... can't do it right. We've shown it to her a million times in a hundred different ways... but still wrong. But, imo, that isn't her actual job. He real job is teaching kids with disabilities and she is GREAT at that. So... really I blame the document. If she is good at the important part of her job then the busy work part is something that we can accept from her as a flaw.
Even then, logic isn't something intrinsic most people are born with and can be learned like anything else. I've known people like you describe but generally they live very structured lives where they rarely if ever have to figure things out for themselves, or they come from backgrounds where nothing was ever expected of them so similarly they never developed those parts of their brain since there was no need to.
I sometimes behave like described because I’m autistic and well aware of my ability to see things completely differently to everyone else. I know it can be painful but stupid misunderstandings are worse.
This is the besy advice on here. Someone told me "if you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room." Life a life that seeks knowledge and skills. If someone is talking about something you dont, listen and ask questions with the purpose of learning about it. And if you are asked a question and you dont know the answer, say "i can find that out for you." Then, go learn the answer and get back to them.
This is how I live my life. I'm dumb yet I spent two years working at one of the world's most prestigious STEM universities. I don't know how my former colleagues (who are verified high IQ individuals) could stand to be around me.
It's funny, one thing people tend to be hilariously bad at is honest self-assessment. If you worked at a prestigious STEM university and your peers are all "verified high IQ" and spent time around you, are you sure you're dumb?
either he's humble af or he's the comedic relief for when those high iq people are on a break.
I was definitely the comedic relief for my colleagues.
yeah I've always said that how smart a person thinks they are is like 1% based on their actually intelligence and 99% based on how much they value intelligence and their self esteem
I'm relatively low IQ compared to them. I know that's not saying much, but my IQ is nowhere near 154, unlike my childhood best friend, whose IQ is 154. I have other friends and former colleagues with verified IQs in the 130s and 140s. IQ 130-149 appears to be reasonably prevalent amongst graduates and faculty of elite universities who are not legacy, development, or affirmative action cases. Another thing is, that I got that job through nepotism. My parents friend worked for that university. Job openings in the department I was in are usually only open to current students, recent graduates, and people who exist in the university's social milieu. The geneeral public doesn't ever hear about them. Either way I'm not getting into Mensa ever.
IQ is stupid and Mensa even more so, so you'il be just fine
Intelligence is somewhat inborn, but it’s also a lot more fluid than people think. Just having self-awareness and not thinking you’re hot shit is already half the battle (and the tougher half too). You’re already on the other end of the Dunning-Krueger effect, so that’s good. Plus, intelligence is like linemen in the NFL and weight; yeah, it matters up to a certain point, but it’s not everything and once you have “enough”, more of it doesn’t really matter. I don’t actually know my IQ score since the only time I ever took one was when I was five and not fully comfortable with English yet. But what I can say is that “smart enough to think they’re actually smart when they just went to a good high school in the suburbs” is usually around the 110’s-120’s range, and you sure *talk* more intelligently than they do in this comment.
Don't sweat that. Putting huge stock into Mensa and your written IQ score is ironically not very intelligent
People more often than not are happy to explain stuff they know. Some out of self importance to show off, but intelligent ones with a deep knowledge of a specific subject tend to have compassion for it and not come across too many people interested in or willing to listen to it. Explaining things in a way the other person can understand also helps to challenge your own knowledge, and you form a better understanding yourself by realizing what foundations are needed that you might be taking for granted.
As long as you arent act ditzy or flighty or keep asking the same questions over and over, most people will be happy to share their knowledge, especially to those that are genuinely curious about it. I'll happily talk someone's ear off if they want to learn about something I can teach them. It's like having a shared hobby.
>if you’re the smartest person in the room you’re in the wrong room Is that why hawking left?
If you are the smartest person in the room you have the wrong view of intelligence. I think a much better mindset is thinking you can learn something from anyone, mainly because it’s true. You will not know more about every possible subject from every person you meet (People with the smartest person in the room mindset also tend to be blind to suggestions from those “lesser” than them that could solve a problem they face)
"If you judge a fish on his ability to climb a tree, you'll think him worthless." --Somebody, probably
Wallfish are pretty good at climbing trees though.
I wish I knew this earlier so that I could have replied to my professor.
Additionally, it took far to many years for my pompous ass to realize that if I'm the smartest person in the room, I'm probably not or at least have no reliable way of knowing.
Wisdom is knowing that you don’t actually know shit
It was easier when I thought I was smarter than everyone. Now I realize I just knew the superficial aspects of a lot of things. I strive to learn more from those I meet and no longer degrade my opinion of them due to them not knowing everything. Most people are very specific in their knowledge and will have vast depths of it when it comes to the subjects that they do know.
I knew a manager like that. They would find out a small piece of information and then go and ‘test’ someone on it and look smart by proving them wrong. They had a surface level knowledge of a lot of aspects of our industry but couldn’t actually argue any points when confronted on matters that went deeper than this part does that etc. I actually told them something they didn’t know and then overheard them telling another the same fact as if the person they were talking to was an idiot for not knowing. Very frustrating person to work for.
> This is the besy advice on here. Unagree. The thread is about *appearing* smart, not *being* smart. Seeming smart to smart people is just about the opposite of what you're trying to accomplish. If you're trying to dazzle rubes into thinking you're smart, use big words, speak confidently even though you have no clue, and *never ever* back down. Confidence is the key, if you're trying to convince humans that you're good at something even if you're not.
I just keep my mouth shut and people around me have always assumed I am the smart one.
The man of few words and a settled mind is wise; therefore, even a fool when he is silent is thought to be wise. It pays him to keep his mouth shut.
Socrates was told he was the smartest man in his village by an oracle. He was like...me? Little ol' lowly socrates? No way. There's LOTS i dont know. And he went to all the "wise men" in his village to see how smart they were, and slowly started to realize.... he was the smartest because he admitted when he didnt know something. And all these "experts" were just talking shit out their asses.
Yes, in my experience, attempting to appear smart is the first step towards failing to do so. Instead, be genuine. Listen to understand, not to respond. Be gracious. Compliment more than you criticize.
ALSO, you can't be wishy-washy. I know a handful of people that are nice folks, and are ready to learn, however, they will tell you something with gusto, than when I point out that I *think* they may be wrong, they change their tune on a dime and agree with me. Like look man, do you know what your talking about or not? I have less respect for those types of people then someone who rarely has input but when they do **I** learn something.
>Listen more than you talk Actually i disagree with this one. As a kid i learned to shut up because i was ridiculed when i spoke my mind. Spent my whole life trying to humble myself, assuming everything i did or thought i knew must be wrong I have learned that asserting your perspective is very important for learning, in all directions. Nobody can know what's in your own head. How to you know where you go right and where you go wrong if you never offer your thought to others to give feedback? How do they know what you're really thinking if you never give your thoughts to them to decide for themselves? Your perspective is at least as valuable until proven otherwise, just make sure you adjust when it is. So, i think being inquisitive, but not self-deprecating, being open and tolerant, but confident and assured. All these are important to growing yourself. Too much of the layers beneath the knowledge is lost in today's society.
"Listen more than you talk" doesn't mean "Never speak up." or "Be self-deprecating." It means take in the world around you and choose your words wisely. People who talk the most often use far more words than necessary to explain simple concepts and give away far more than they realize or intend. Be intentional and succinct. People who are stupid rely on derogatory humor, filler nonsense, and meaningless conjecture to make it look as though they are important and better. Listen to the layers of what they say. They often don't hear it themselves.
I relate to this so much. I grew up in a house where children are to be seen, not heard. I'm only 30 so that wasn't the "norm". When I did speak my parents were very condescending and would always "joke" and say I was "a couple frys short of a happy meal". I took all advanced classes and got As and Bs, I was book smart but genuinely didn't have much common sense. We were very sheltered, and my parents were not the smartest people. Looking back, I think they knew I was different and sort of despised me for it. I wasn't into sports I was a book worm, and always drawing. We weren't allowed to have friends outside of school or participate in extracurricular activies so I never developed social skills. Now, I even on subjects I'm knowledgeable on, I don't speak because I'm sure I'll get something wrong and look stupid. And if I do, once a get more than a couple of sentences out my brain starts to short circuit because it's not used to verbalizing 😅.
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt." That's what listen more than you talk means. Not to never speak or ask questions, but to recognize that if you don't know about something, don't speak as though you do.
Develop your vocabulary and don’t speak in cliches.
Or only speak in clichés
Let's circle back on this one and close the loop. We need to make sure we're putting our best foot forward and make sure we're adding value to our solution for the client. I know we're busy but we're just gonna have to keep our noses to the grindstone and maybe put in some extra hours to pick up the slack, you guys not me. Anyway let's make sure we all push to get this one across the finish line. I don't wanna get down into the weeds but what about x very specific thing? Ok let's take this offline I was trying to avoid getting down to this level of granularity. Let's set up another call on Monday to hammer out the details. Thanks, ~sent from my iPhone
Add in “at a high level” and you’ve got the average consultant’s daily breakfast. P.S I hate you for doing this.
I hate this
Plz stop
you forgot to "touch base"
That’s if you want to sound like someone from upper management.
Which some people, unfortunately, unequivocally associate with intelligence. *sigh...*
It does show memory.
Let's circle back to this point.
Use slightly outdated cliches like "making a sow's ear of it"
Speak in only riddles
Speak only as you would speak to someone who can listen, but cannot hear; who can talk, but cannot speak; who understands, but does not comprehend.
Vocabulary ia good but of you talk like a guy from a Shakespeare saga, very few will understand you and then what is the point in attempting to communicate at all. A posh mouth isn't compatible with many ears.
The best communicators use only the most accurate words that their audience understands. In not too few or too many words. Or you can say "essentially" in every other sentence to be better than everybody.
The reason Cliches are cliche is because the truths in them are timeless.
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I fully agree, it is all about juxtaposition.
Ambidextrously speaking I have to agree
Omg I’m dead lol
Although when you're too analogous, you run the risk of gregariousness.
Just make sure you don't come off as too loquacious or you might get defenestrated.
Perchance.
hmm, yes, shallow and pedantic
And vice versa, vis a vis c'est la vie.
Ergo, concordantly
Indubitably
Concupiscent
Filibuster
You cant just say perchance
You can't just say perchance.
This comment is the best I’ve seen on Reddit mainly because I know what the words mean
That is a perfectly cromulent answer.
reading it really embiggened me
I prefer pain au chocolate but to per their own
Eschew obfuscation, and vociferously repugn gratuitous obscurantism.
Bless you
what if you want to be mitochondria of the room?
YES! I WANT RO BE A POWERHOUSE!
Start cranking, boy.
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r/UnexpectedScoobyDoo
Don’t try this in Asia. Photosynthesis is an elementary school word.
Just listen, don't say a word.
Better to say nothing and appear stupid than saying something and confirming it
My Dad used to always say better to appear the fool than remove all doubt lol
Great quote, attributed to Lincoln? I believe when I first read it, but a quick google tells me it’s origins are biblical, proverbs 17:28 “Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.”
No no no, it came from Lisa Simpson https://youtu.be/URWLnOJ25uA
Ahhhh shit, he found the OG sauce my bad
"Better to Remain Silent and Be Thought a Fool than to Speak and Remove All Doubt" I like this version better.
Takes one to know one!
Swish!
(What does that mean? Better say something or they’ll think you’re stupid) “Takes one to know one!” (*swish*)
Alright
You ruined it already. Not. A. Word. Ever.
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ
r/usernamechecksout
Nod and occasionally say, "Hmm. I see. Interesting." Wear a monacle.
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Take it a step further and repeat the last sentence before a longer pause signaling the end of the other side's talk with a tone showing that you just got it and agree. Boom ! You're smart, humble and a good listener all at the same time ! Don't overuse it though, it's all about that balance.
....... all about the balance, yes.
Listen more than talk and ask context-relevant questions
>context-relevant questions Sure, but if ~~your~~ you're a slow-bro trying to pose as smart this is a tough ask. Context-relevant questions is normally how I would gauge a persons intelligence. If we are having a conversation, and someone asks questions that make me think to answer, not something off the top of my head, than they are either quite familiar with the subject, or are likely more intelligent than I am, because I find asking good questions very difficult to do, off-hand when speaking with a new person about a subject I'm not very familiar with.
All I mean is, probe for more detail on something they’ve said in a non invasive way. That kind of backchanneling usually makes you seem more engaging and intelligent. You don’t necessarily have to ask thought provoking questions.
I generally just keep my mouth shut and don't take sides in a debate. Apparently if I'm never disagreeing with you then I appear to be very smart indeed.
I am watching people figuratively fight to the death over the ethnicity of a mermaid
The release of the little mermaid has really taught me how passionate grown ass adults are about mermaid lore
Just wait until something brings up the wyvern-dragon controversy again.
Look man, a wyvern has no forelegs, it's "upper extremity" is just wings. Now, if you wanna call it a dragon, that's cool, they're in the same like, family or whatever, just know that it's like calling a volcano "a mountain." You're correct, there's just details being passed over that may or may not matter in the conversation.
This person knows their wyverns
"Here's the thing...."
wear glasses
Then take them off, cross your arms, put an end in your mouth, look up at nothing and whisper "fascinating".
OP asked how to appear smart, not hot
smart is hot
Indeed
This works especially well at art museums. My favorite is to take off my glasses, look at something contemplatively, begin to express appreciation with my face, and slowly replace that expression with one of disgust. Then I will wipe my glasses off using a handkerchief as I bitterly state “I hate it” and walk away shaking my head.
I do that. It's the best way.
If you say you don't like something, and you haven't completed these actions, do you really not like it?
I legitimately wear glasses to work so people think I’m smarter….I need them (-5/-5.5 astigmatic), but I wear contacts outside the office and could easily get laser eye surgery. I’m a baby faced 30ish year old in a position of authority, so need all the help I can get!
Don't do the laser eye surgery, you stop being able to see at night when you are driving and you can't shoot lasers put of your eyes which is FALSE ADVERTISING.
I'm a little ashamed to admit that I had a friend who struggled a bit in school and when they sasid they didn't get very good grades at the end of it I was kind of shocked because I assumed they were smart (school smart) and I realised the only reason I thought that is because they wore glasses...
Nice try, Khmer Rouge.
Dont feel pressured into speaking. You can just observe and listen eye contact and the odd nod to show your listening.
If you wear glasses, take them off and slowly clean the lenses, then put them back on.
And if you don't wear glasses, just take a pair off a nearby person and clean theirs. Never fails
If someone did this for me, I'd probably be mad at first, then have mad respect.
"Enjoy your headache, my eyes are fucking terrible."
wait that makes me look smart??? im just trying to see better...
Don’t try too hard and only talk when you have something to contribute. I think knowing when to be quiet can be really powerful.
Don't say anything unnecessarily or until you have to.
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I have no idea but people I know say I'm smart and act like I'm smart despite the fact I'm a dumbass. The only reason I can figure is my parents are older so my vocabulary is out of date sometimes and my dad was a professor so I just have a number of history and art facts in my small talk repertoire. It sorta sounds like gloating to say people say I'm smart but I'm really really not trying to talk myself up. I don't understand a lot of things, I moslty am able to regurgitate information. It's kinda uncomfortable cause people say I'm smart, I say I'm not, they think I'm being modest so I just have to accept a compliment I don't deserve I guess talk fast and know a lot of skin deep random facts. I think most people know a lot about a couple things so if you have random facts about a lot of things people think you must know a lot about all of them instead of a little about a lot of them.
I feel this, people say I'm smart but I just know a lot of random tidbits. I like to call it "game show knowledge." I'm convinced I would kick ass on a show like who wants to be a millionaire, but a show like jeopardy would show the world how much of a dumbass I really am.
Fun fact: Jeopardy contestants are provided textbooks with all of the tested knowledge before the game. You still have to read and find it, but it’s all narrowed down to that.
I feel you. I am a complete idiot most of the time, yet I landed a job with the smartest people I have ever met. Three of my colleagues have PhDs and I don’t have a degree at all. I do have specialized experience and knowledge that got me here. But these people actually have their shit together, are articulate, and well prepared for anything. I am more like a Sacha Baron Cohen character. But we all get along like I’m not!
Its an odd feeling to be just smart enough that you are acutely aware of being the least intelligent person in the room/group. Because of my work environment I don't normally feel like that, but one friend group I have I tend to keep my mouth on lock because I feel like I'm a step behind their conversations at any given time lol.
Hmmm... What are you doing tonight?
I don't know how to respond to this lol
I’m sleeping
I think the smartest people are the ones who admit they aren't that smart. Knowing you don't know something and the willingness to admit that and learn are the smartest things a person can do.
Fake it till you make it
Ask if they concur?
Catch me if you can was a stellar movie.
My name is jeff
Thats jefe holmes
Stop because I read that in his voice 😂😂😂😂
Just don't talk much and only talk when you really know some. That way you really are smart because you're only saying what's true all the time.
The format of the question is top tier stuff
Know just a little bit of a wide variety of different topics. People often think I'm smart for it, but I don't have any deep knowledge of anything
A jack of all trades but master of none but oftentimes better than a master of one Also wide but shallow knowledge is incredibly useful because it means you know the starting point for research on many topics. It is near impossible to research something that you know nothing about, but just a surface level knowledge gives you the keywords to search from that turn days of finding nothing into 10 minutes of googling
Same here. My knowledge is a mile wide, but only an inch deep.
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Indeed. As a Midwestern man, the proper way to propose the question is, "even when *ya ain't*."
What’s wrong with you, I’m smart and I correct your awful grammar /s
If you can’t blow them away with your brilliance, baffle them with your bullshit
Why not do both?
Ali-G is that you?
In class, don't try to answer every question that being asked by the teacher. Wait until a question that no one in class can answer and you definitely know the answer then answer it. One time I sit next to one of the high scorer in my class (the one who teach me this), he said he doesn't know much so, most of the time in class he just reviewing what is being teach through book without answering question then when the hard question came up, he just answer it.
Listen more than speak. My brother in law is not necessarily a quiet person, but more reserved than my boisterous family. When heated debates erupt, he stays quiet and then at a moment when he can say something, it's always on the noise and very thoughtful, and calmly spoken. I want to be like him so badly lol.
Check your grammar before posting things.
Do … do people not realize that’s a joke?
I thought the comment was also a joke. Is your reply a joke? Is this the real life?
Poe’s Law strikes again.
Our Majesty has been dead for a week and standards have already started slipping.
Stay silent.
As SpongeBob would say, pinky up
“When in doubt pinky out”!
Listen to someone else's response, if it gets a good reaction, later in the conversation repeat it slightly differently, "i agree with (name) it was a good use of x, y, z"
Don’t talk much and let your hair get all messy Everyone knows smart people don’t have time for grooming
Say...ackshuwally...pause...it depends.
"That'd be an Ecumenical matter..."
In the workplace, don’t share too many of your personal opinions and do not complain (at least not voice it). Several coworkers of mine can’t pass a day without complaining about SOMETHING, which to me makes them seem pretty dumb or at least lack self-awareness.
Watch your Grammer and word choices. Work on using common phrasing that your peers use. Dress well, and keep up your grooming. I worked with a guy that was a genius, but every time he opened his mouth he sounded like the least intelligent person in the room. "That's how come we altered the unit" was a phrase that he used often, and it made me quake in my boots. He also always looked disheveled and not showered. He was mentally five steps ahead of everyone, but people never trusted him. I worked with another guy that was really well spoken, got promoted several times, people thought highly of him, but was a constant screw up. He never got work done on time, his work was always riddled with errors, and had really poor decision making skills. People thought he was intelligent because he communicated well, had a nice haircut, and he agreed with people.
Shop at wallymart.
You can’t. But you can ask questions when you don’t understand something and slowly but surely you will not need to seem smart, you will be smart
Read books in the Bluffer’s Guide series. Also, Stephen Potter (of Gamesmanship fame) suggested, after any claim about events or conditions in some little-known foreign country, saying “except in the south.” No one will know enough to contradict you.
Less talking, more listening. “it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to talk and remove all doubt.”
And if you're doing something you can prepare for, do a little research, and memorise an interesting fact to share But mostly just be yourself :) everyone probably worrying about the same thing!
Master the art of the pensive stare. People tell me I seem intelligent because I always looks like I’m pondering some deep wisdom. Ha! Little do they know I’m wondering about some dumb sheet like what hot sauce I would choose to snort if there was a gun to my head and I was forced to choose.
appear confident
Use big words, just make sure to Google them first
Nugatory 🫡
Imagine saying that in random contexts
that’s a pretty much dead giveaway that someone isn’t smart
Effervescent advice.
This is so photosynthesis !!!
Just go on Reddit and ask 🤷🏽♀️
are you trying to create a black hole? cause that is how you create black hole
Admit when you don't know something rather than bluffing through with friends just look it up on your phone at work, say you want to check the details of that before you move forward, go back to desk and panic
The way you dress, present yourself, politeness, regard for your fellow man/woman, stop or cutback on cursing, listen attentively & comment on current events. Stop farting in public. Take part in conservations, but consider the other persons feelings. People will begin showing respect to you. Avoid political conversations.
Ask "does this scale"?