Jordan Peterson ~ The Uncomfortable Fact About IQ

My dad always said that hard work beats talent. I had neither. Now I comment on YouTube videos.

Complaining about stupid people, my mother says, " if it wasn't for the stupid people, you wouldn't seem so smart".

The 2 hardest parts - 1. Being respectful to those who know less and can’t figure stuff out as quickly as you. 2. Admitting and being OK with the fact that there are folks that know more and can solve problems more quickly than you and understanding that both 1 & 2 applies to all of us, except for two people.

Being intelligent is a double edge sword. It’s great because you learn things very quickly, but because of that you might never develop great habits. You also never truly appreciate your gift until later in life because being intelligent is just normal to you. School can also be frustrating in that it’s boring because it has to move at a certain pace. I had average grades in high school because I just zoned out the entire time out of boredom and never studied. When I went to undergrad I actually did study aka pulling an all nighter the day before a final. It was also where I learned I had a genius level iq (tested multiple times). Even with my almost nonexistent study habits, I ended up getting good enough grades to attend a top med school. I was an idiot. I had zero work ethic and just smoked weed the entire time. I ended up rightfully failing. That’s when I learned the hard way, it doesn’t matter how intelligent you are, what really matters is how you apply yourself. Those that end up furthest in life all have one thing in common, an exemplary work ethic. Intelligence can be a hindrance if not properly utilized.

"if you’re creative, and you’re graded by someone who isn’t a creative person, they are not gonna think that you’re creative, they are just gonna think you’re wrong" - Jordan Peterson

I’ve always noticed the ones with average intelligence but high motivation always beat out high intelligence and low or mediocre motivation.

Sometimes I think the difference in intelligence comes down to curiosity. I was born with an innate curiosity about most things. It has always amazed me how incurious people are. They don’t ask questions and so many have no inclination to look deeply into things. I’ve had family and friends who actually get mad at me if I ask “ too many questions”. They seem to take their inability to answer as if I’m trying to point out their faults. If someone asks me a question I take it as a sign they are listening closely and are really interested in the subject we are discussing. I take it as a complement. I never took an IQ test but I’ve been labeled as smart and now being older and looking back at my relationships and realize being “ smart” at times has been a hinderence. Early in relationships friends often look at me as having the answers for all their problems then when they realize I don’t have anymore answers to life’s problems than they do they become disenchanted and drop me like a hot potato. I even got singled out and made fun of being “ smart” by my own family growing up. Even so I would never give up my curiosity and love of learning. It is what makes life worth living.

Honestly I’m scared to take an IQ test. I’d rather not know what it is and keep it that way. I find more comfort in the fact that my IQ could be high, but at the same time be low, but I’ll never actually know unless I “open that box” to find out. Some days I feel intelligent, other days I feel like an absolute idiot, but that false sense of hope keeps me in the boundary between intelligent and below average.

We're so lucky we get to see lectures that the students in the room had to pay for.

"Think about the average person, and then realize that half the people are dumber than that". George Carlin

I am proof that a below average IQ is a hell in itself. I struggled immensely during school almost repeating 5th grade. Th stress and cruelty from both school and home for struggling to keep up is a daily nightmare simply because your not endowed with the TALENT necessary to make everyone happy. 😢

I've done intelligence tests many times as part of recruitment processes. Some times I've scored incredibly high near genius level. Other times I've been assessed as very average. It just depended on the style of the test and what frame of mind I was in and whether I'd done any similar tests recently. I can only conclude these tests are wildly inaccurate.

IQ is hereditary. I am very proud to say my IQ is the same as my age.58

I am completely comfortable being around people that are smarter than me! I work in the medical field and when 2 docs or 2 residents are having a discussion about treating a Pt. I enjoy listening and learning! It makes me a better nurse because I walk away with more knowledge that I did before!

Wow, his remarks on the difficulty with creativity hit home. I always struggled with literature and writing professors because I would try to write something unique, but they never liked my work- not because it was bad, but because it was unexpected. I was called a failure so many times that I finally gave up on writing. I can't help but wonder if I could have had some success as a writer if only I had avoided the professors.

I tested at bog standard average 100, looking back at when I was younger I think I was definitely cognitively underdeveloped in many ways. My saving grace is that I’ve always been curious about everyone and everything. I think it’s that curiosity that led to me having a way above average understanding of people and the world which in turn has given me the ability to start and run a highly profitable business. I don’t think having a average or possibly even a low IQ restricts you from reaching great heights.

There is a saying:" Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard."

Nothing in the world is as fairly spread as inteligence. Everybody thinks he has enough of it.

The problem isn't with people having a high or low IQ, it's the fact that those who are wrong are most often absolutely sure they are right while those who end up being right, most often question everything to the point where they become less sure that they are wrong.

I truly believe in the "9 types of intelligence" break down. You ever heard someone say "He's as dumb as a rock?" I personally know a guy who scored 1600 on the SAT but had the social interpersonal skills of a rock. And that might be insulting a rock.