46 Traits And Behaviours Of Smart People

Being smart is in no way the same as being well-educated. (Smart people often are well-educated, of course, but not always).

So, what are some of the things that truly smart people do that most of us don’t?

This article lists a few of their traits and habits.

Acting Dumb

Just because they are smart doesn’t mean they are going to put it on display.

They may stay quiet for a while, putting on their poker face and not caring whether that makes them seem dumb or not, because they like to take in and assess the situation and the people involved fully before talking.

Adaptable

Becoming stuck in certain ways of doing things and refusing to change is a sure-fire way to get left behind in modern society.

Nobody likes change for change’s sake, but smart people know that you have to adapt when it’s appropriate, and are not afraid of change if there are benefits to it.

Admitting They’re Wrong

This doesn’t come easily for many people, but the smart ones accept it because it’s usually a learning opportunity.

Always Learning

Smart people know that the world does not stand still, so they are always looking for ways to expand their knowledge and skills.

Asking Questions

They believe that intelligence is better demonstrated by the questions you ask than the answers you give.

Balance

Smart people recognize that life is all about balance, which isn’t to say that they may not sometimes be workaholics too.

Challenging Traditions

Just because people have always done something a certain way does not mean that’s the best way to do it – and smart people know this.

That is why they will challenge commonly held beliefs and practices, always looking for ways to improve things.

Related to this is their often sceptical outlook on life in general.

Consideration

In this context, I’m referring to their habit of carefully considering matters and acquiring as much information as they can before opening their mouth, and knowing that it’s not how much you say that counts, but the quality of what you say.

Creative Problem Solvers

Smart people are great problem solvers, often coming up with novel ways to solve problems.

Critical Thinking

Rather than jumping to conclusions or making assumptions, smart people will weigh up as much evidence as they can find and come to informed decisions, based on the data they uncover and using their logic skills.

Curiosity

Smart people are intensely curious about pretty much everything, because they are passionate about learning.

Don’t forget, Einstein is quoted as saying, “I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.”

Daily Rewards

When smart people do good work, or anything good for that matter, they make sure they reward themselves. The reward, of course, need not be large – a candy bar might be enough of a treat for them – although it may be, depending on the situation.

Debate Not Argue

Intelligent people understand that an argument is largely about one person proving the other person wrong, while a debate enables both parties to learn more.

Discussing Ideas

I think the following quote by Eleanor Roosevelt says all that needs to be said about this one: “Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss things; small minds discuss people.”

Diversification

Smart people don’t like to put all of their eggs in the one basket – and this applies not just to investments, but to life in general.

Empathetic

Smart people tend to empathize readily with others.

Encouraging Others

Society these days seems to have become increasingly about “me, me, me”, but smart people know that helping others to grow and develop and be successful is also important.

Financially Responsible

While most people are living in debt, not always through their choices, but often because they buy things they either can’t afford or don’t really need, smart people prefer to live within their means, often looking for ways they can save money by being more efficient.

Focusing On The Possible

Some people focus on what’s possible, while others seem to focus on what’s impossible – and you won’t be surprised to learn that smart people belong in the first group.

Getting To The Heart Of The Matter

Smart people seem to have a knack for ignoring all of the extraneous waffle and zeroing in on the one key element of any discussion.

Have A Well-Developed Sense Of Humour

These are numerous studies that highly correlate intelligence with a good, well-developed sense of humour.

Some go further and say that those with a dark sense of humour are especially intelligent.

Holding Conflicting Opinions

As F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote in this book, “The Crack Up”, “The test of first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.”

And this sums up smart people – they are both happy and able to reconcile two conflicting ideas when most would suffer cognitive dissonance as a result of attempting this.

Ignoring Their Inner Voice

Almost everybody is familiar with that inner voice we all have, the one that is constantly criticizing us and telling us we shouldn’t do this, or should have done that differently.

And when we take that voice too seriously, we often end up with mental health problems.

However, smart people have learned that the voice will always be there, so they choose to push it into the background and ignore it, listening to their gut instincts instead.

Intellectually Unassuming

They have a credo that says the more they learn, the more they realize how much they don’t know.

In the words of Charles Bukowski, “The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence.”

Later Sleeping Routine

Studies have shown that intelligent people tend to go to bed later, and get up later, than other people.

Learning From Mistakes

There is a saying that goes, “The first time is a mistake, the second time is a choice.”

Many people don’t see it this way, of course. Watch any long-running TV series, such as Star Trek Voyager, and you’ll see the same mistakes (e.g. inadequate security) being made over and over again.

Smart people, on the other hand, prefer to learn from their mistakes, treating each one as an opportunity to do better next time.

Learning From Others

Nobody has the time to learn everything from personal experience, so smart people learn as much as they can from both the failures and successes of other people.

To support this mindset, they will often make use of mentors, because they see this as an efficient way to learn things that would take too long by themselves.

Message Not The Messenger

Intelligent people care more about the message content than the appearance of the person delivering that message. They therefore choose to ignore or overlook factors such as other people’s hairstyles, jewellery choices, clothes, and look for what they can learn from those people.

Minimizing Distractions

It appears there are more and more distractions in our lives today than ever before, with so many people and things clamouring for our attention. Examples include, of course, “smart” devices that beep and ping and ring all day long, notifying us about new emails and social media activity.

Smart people, however, have learned that to be successful, they need to eliminate, or, at least, minimize, as many distractions as they can, so that they can focus on what’s important.

Not Being Afraid Of Failure

Smart people know that you learn far more from failing than you do from succeeding.

This means they experiment frequently, trying different options, so they can learn what works and what doesn’t.

Persistence

They tend not to give up as easily as other people, recognizing that success is not a straight line, but a series of ups and downs and diversions.

Punctuality

Time is the one commodity that, once spent, you can never get back, so smart people value not only their own time, but also that of others.

Being late for a meeting, for example, is disrespectful to those you keep waiting – so they are typically punctual.

Reading Books

In their quest to increase their knowledge, smart people read, and read, and read – but not just any old books.

While they may occasionally read fiction, they prefer challenging non-fiction books, and they read them efficiently, including taking notes and jotting down thoughts and ideas and questions that occur to them along the way.

Recognizing Flawed Thinking

As well as being great thinkers themselves, they are adept at spotting flaws and logical fallacies in other people’s arguments.

Seeing Shades Of Grey

While many people these days seem incapable of viewing the world as anything other than black or white, being unaware of, or refusing to see, the many nuances in between and frequently thinking in binary terms, smart people are fully aware that the world comprises an almost infinite number of shades of grey.

Self-Critical

Because they are driven to be and do the best they can, smart people will usually be more self-critical than most, constantly analyzing what they did and said, looking for ways they can be even better.

Seeking Challenging Ideas

Not only are smart people able to hold two conflicting ideas in their minds at once, but they will actively look for information that is contrary to their current thinking, because it challenges them to consider whether what they believe is true.

Separating Emotion And Logic

Smart people are usually able to keep the emotional and logical sides of their brain separate.

This means their decisions and opinions are more likely to be based on data and facts than how something makes them feel.

Staying Away From Fads

New trends and fads pop up almost every day – and disappear again almost as quickly.

Smart people realize that these are just another type of distraction, so ignore them.

Surrounding Themselves With Other Smart People

They understand they can never know everything, even though they are often passionate about constantly learning – so they surround themselves with other smart people who can fill in the gaps in their own knowledge.

Swearing

Some research has concluded that people who swear a lot tend to be more intelligent.

Even as a young child, I wondered why some words are deemed “swear words” or offensive when others, that mean the same thing, are not.

It’s my belief that smart people understand that words are just man-made labels for concepts, so if anything, it should be the concept that is offensive or rude – except that smart people tend not to be easily offended anyway.

And in the entertainment world, it’s said that it’s as bad to swear in some venues as it is not to swear in others.

Smart people understand that words are just words, and what’s important is choosing the best ones for the current situation.

Understanding Cause And Effect

Smart people understand that actions have consequences, and they take these into account when making decisions.

Valuing Knowledge

I was having a discussion once with the Sales Director of the company I used to work for, and he said something along the lines of “some people come to work for the bottom line, and others come to work for the intellectual challenge”.

As Sales Director, he was definitely in the former camp, because that was his job, whereas I was in the second camp.

Of course, a company probably needs both types of people if they are going to succeed, but smart people tend to fall predominantly into the category of valuing knowledge for knowledge’s sake.

Valuing Truth

Many people cling to comfortable lies rather than face uncomfortable facts, which is one reason why it can be so hard to get some people to change their minds, even when you have evidence.

But those who are smart will always prefer to hear the truth, even if that conflicts with what they previously believed to be true.

Watch Documentaries

If they watch television at all, they are more likely to watch documentaries than reality TV or dramas, for example – because of their desire to learn.

Wide Range Of Interests

They will frequently have a working knowledge about a wide variety of subjects, enabling them to talk to almost anybody about almost anything.

Conclusion

I’m sure that many of us will recognize some of those characteristics in ourselves – I know I do – but how many?

As with other similar lists on this site, the more of those traits you can check off, the more likely it is you are smart.

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. Humour And Intelligence
2. List Of Fallacies