How are you Smart?
For years we have asked the question, “How smart are you?” rather than ask, “How are you smart?”. We have created a standard, called it IQ test, and measured everybody by these standards in a bid to answer a wrong question. Current research has shown that it is indeed a wrong question to ask “how smart are you?”, there are many ways in which one can be smart, and everybody is smart in one way or the other. The real question ought to be, “How are you smart?”. When you answer this question correctly you get to see that everyone of us has a genius inside, that the school system by creating uniform standards have overlooked. “How are you smart?”
This topic of smartness or intelligence is an area where there needs to be a paradigm shift, not only in some countries, all around the world. Not to get too technical, a paradigm is a way of looking at things, it is the lens through which we see the world. This frame of reference affects our beliefs, behaviours and sets our limitations or freedoms.
A paradigm is a way of thinking, usually arrived at as a conclusion of the facts at hand. The concept of Paradigms is a very interesting one, you can study the works of Thomas Kuhn (Professor Emeritus) and philosopher to gain more insigths into how paradigms work. A quick example though is the paradigm in the world at a time was that the world was flat. This way of thinking set the behaviour for those times. People rearly to ventured too far away from their houses for fear of falling off the edge of the earth. This paradigm limited exploration, limited adventure, limited the thinking of the people of the time and defined their freedom. After a while, some thinkers challenged this thinking with the paradigm that the world was round, as soon as this became proven, the world was literally set free. It is interesting to note however that paradigms do not just shift overnight, before the people who have strongly believed in a position will ever give it up, there has to be a paradigm crisis. This is a point where so many anomalies are noticed in the former theories that necesitates either blind ignorance or poignant questions. If the earth is flat, how come no one has ever fallen off, how come shadows are not along just one straight line all year long? As soon as paradigms shift, new truths emerge. I have gone through all that to say one thing, the paradigm that asks how intelligent or smart are you, has too many anomalies and is in the center of a crisis. How else will you explain the fact that Albert Einstein was rated as unintelligent in school to later become the smartest man that ever lived? How did Thomas Edison nearly pass for one with ADS Attension Deficiency Syndrome become the greatest inventor that ever lived? Why? Simple, because rather than finding out how people are smart, the systems have found out how they are not smart in the paradigm of intelligence that schools presently measure.
In the works of David Lazear, he discovered that human beings have multiple intelligences. Different people are smart in different ways. The fact that my IQ score is 140 or 50 doesn’t say how smart I am, it only says how possibly logic smart I am. David Lazear had 8 intelligencies in his research. I recommend you read his book - OutSmart Yourself! While I do not intend to rewrite his book :), I think there is a lot in their that will help you discover yourself and your sense of worth. The eight types of smart that exist are as follows. These are further grouped into 3 categories. And don’t box yourself, you might find yourself in many, there is a survey that helps you know your leaning.
Object based intelligences
1.Image Smart - This is the intelligence that people who love to think in pictures,shapes, colours e.t.c have the most. They like to paint, draw, match colours, find their way with a map, know how a room out to be decorated, doodle as they learn e.t.c. They are usually excellent when it comes to activities that involve using the minds eye. You can easily guess the kinds of careers they would be successful in.
2.Logic smart - This is the intelligence that uses, numbers, logic and math to form patterns. They like to see patterns in things that others miss. They are analytic, love to work with numbers, perform experiments e.t.c.
3. Body Smart - Learning by doing 
This intelligence manifests in strong body awareness, connects well with activities peculiar to the body and hidden from the mind. Like how to dance, ride a bike, parallel park a car, run fast, walk on a rope, learn kung fu e.t.c.
4. Nature Smart - You have a strange connection with nature, you love the outdoors, you enjoy the scenery, you love animals, identify plant species, weather fascinates you, the farm appeals to you…this is you
Object Free Intelligences
5. Sound Smart - (I dear say this is strongest in Africa…but that was just me thinking out loud) You are very sensitive to sounds in the enviroment, you even remember past events by the sounds, various sounds and tones have visible effects on you, you can reproduce a rhythm having heard it once, your wife/hubby wonders where and when you heard all these songs.
6.Word Smart - you tend to think in words, you have highly developed skills for reading, writing and speaking, you like word games, making up poetry and stories, you enjoy debatting, remembering and telling jokes e.t.c.
Personal Intelligences
7. People Smart - If this is how you are smart, you learn more from interacting with people, you learn more in a team environment, you have many friends, empathise with people, understand different peoples points of view. You are likely good at drawing others out, you are sensitive to peoples feelings and ideas. What you read in a book sticks less than what you had a friendly discussion about.
8. Self Smart - Hmmm, this is the intelligence that provokes “hmmms” :). You are very self aware, introspective, you are more likely to be in tune with your inner feelings, values belief and sense of purpose of life. You sometimes like to work alone, stay away from the crowd and range alone.You are very intuitive and are more self motivated than externally motivated. You are often strong willed, opinnionated and self confident, people naturally come to you for advice.
So the question goes to you, how are you smart? I’m sure reading this could help you come to a little understanding of my kind of smart as well :). The first step is to know yourself, then as you begin to settle that puzzle, all your friends and acquaintances will fall into perspective. If my daughter comes home with a report card that says failed? I know better, what was measured was not her smart.
Hello. I am 
As I read this stuff, i typed in the name of Thomas Kuhn on Google, because I need to learn more about his studies on Philosophy and Paradigms and you no what? an amazing 2, 610 000 results were found in less than 20seconds, what a reference-it makes this piece all the more interesting to me.
It corroborates the thoughts we shared in a meeting earlier today, very good, a 5 star rated piece!
Hi, I haven’t been on your blog in a long while and just stumbled on it again this mroning. I totally agree with you about “the smartnesses”. I’m sure we all remember people we were in school with who barely passed exams but we knew that they totally understood the course, or people who would rather kick a ball than stay in class, or people who could just add up numbers mentally and make others look like dumbos. The truth is that our school system and our culture encourages excellence in logic and word smarts. Any wonder why there are a lot of people looking for jobs who could depend on their true smartness to do what they really could? Consider footballers, musicians, events organisers, make up artists… i could go on and on… We all need to find our “smartness”, break the norms if need be and find our true selves. Kudos sir, what great work you are doing!!!
hi deolu keep on the good work, you know some atimes we don’t really know the level of our smartness till we work on it. And this write up will help many on how to work on theirs.
Thanks Kamal and Gbubemi,
Well said, we need to find our smartnesses, and certainly this is one sure way of breaking the hold of joblessness and poverty. I was shocked when I had some statistics of how bad things are going to get in the job market in the next 5yrs. If I were you, i’ll make sure I have viable alternatives.
Using your style and smartness is what makes you look like a genius around others… be a first class you!
Thanks Dee,
And this is why i would expose my children very early to a wide range of skills and learnings to find how they are smart. It makes them develop their ’smart’ faster much earlier instead of going through the motions of what has come to be known as the norm.
They find their feet earlier and get way ahead of their peers.
Thanks again for this wonderful piece, I’M PROUD OF YOU!
What about Emotional Intelligence Quotient or Spiritual Intelligence Quotient? lol
Anyway, a good one. I finished with Federer/Blake final on Shanghai Masters final and I could only say Federer is a master! He finished Nadal on a very tight match yesterday and it was a show-case of skills.
But don’t you think this particular guy could have been struggling in a chemistry class planning to study chemical engineering in order to work in Mobil. I wouldn’t doubt the fact that Mobil might be looking for endorsement with Federer as Mercedez!
It’s debatable: he could have been an icon as well. What about Jay-jay Okocha on the field of play? It’s a challenge and we need deliverance to live life fully and not follow societal expectations!
I recall my university days when some of my lecturers disagreed with my primary school and secondary school ratings.My primary school and secondary school results are supposed to be indications of great academic potentials. However, It was as if the university system was set up to undermine my intelligence. I thank God that through it all, I was able to conclude that the purpose of university is not to invalidate or even validate my intelligence but to develop my intelligence. You can only develop what you have. That truth made me independent of the opinion of the university system…and I gained the freedom to unveil my potential. To resist being defined is to refuse to be confined.
How am I smart? I think self smart. Deolu, are you word smart?
Deolu, I love your mind!
Hmmm, lets see, How am I smart? I believe I’m smart in about 4 different ways. Sure wordsmart should be one of them…
I definitely agree with your article. Knowing one’s self is the first & most important key to discovering your smartness. How good your grades were in school are not really a reflection of how intelligent you are. The educational system in Nigeria tends to undermine our ability to express our true selves.
[...] I knew the word serendipity as far back as when I was in secondary school, I read a book back then and it seemed the entire theme of the book was centered around that word. If I remember correctly, I think the title of the book even had serependity in it. It was a story of strange miraculous events happening within a hospital. The question on my mind this morning is, “Is serendipity real?” Is it possible to really make discoveries by accident and sagacity? By the way Sagacity means the quality of being discerning, sound in judgement, and farsighted. Do discoveries come the way of people not in search of them? I don’t agree do you? I am willing to be convinced. I remember making a reference to serendipity in an article some while back. It is human nature I guess, to rejoice at occurences, rather than find out if a pattern exists to the occurences and hence see if the event can be reproduced. Maybe I’m Logic Smart, I easily find patterns in things. I believe when you understand the patterns anything is replicable. If you know how each element in a car works you can make a car! Anything that remains mystified cannot be reproduced. [...]
[...] In my study of intelligence, I have come to learn that human beings have multiple intelligencies. We also have many avenues through which we learn. For some of us, what the university system ranks, our ability to take in and regurgitate, is our strength, for some others it is not. Some of us are very smart logically and some of us very wordsmart, these kind of smarts will grant you the priviledges of good grades in most Nigerian university courses. What about the others who have other intelligences? Must you forever live under the impression that you are not good because one university that still has courses that have not changed in 20yrs says you are not? I don’t think so? [...]
Adeolu, if your article above is to be rated on the impact and the positive changes its about to make it must be awarded. I haven’t seen such a site pioneering by Nigerian that touches life as this, more power to your elbow and keep it up for I know someday your work shall be globally recognise.
[...] Adeolu Akinyemi presents How are you Smart? posted at Deoluakinyemi - Daily Motivation and Development for People and Organizations. [...]
[...] Find your strengths. Sure we all need to improve our weaknesses, but understand your greatness as well. Knowing your strengths gives you a perspective that will help you understand your reactions, and knowledge is power over stress. [...]