In my experience as a life coach, I have observed the tremendous benefit of being around intelligent minds, whether it is in an intimate relationship, a professional work environment, or a social circle. The power to pinpoint intelligent people has an immense impact on your life satisfaction and success. Intelligent people do not necessarily have to be individuals who just have the right answer. Intelligence encompasses critical thinking, creativity, and even the ability to see a problem through different lenses.
The Quick Test: Two Questions to Uncover Intelligence
An effective way of instantly identifying the smartest person in a group requires only two questions. This method allows us to identify those who have deep thinkers very quickly, as opposed to those who are just excited to be in a room and possibly impress people. For example, you may ask everyone in a meeting to determine who within that group is the smartest. In order to demonstrate your process, you may want to provide an example of using a very simple and basic question that is used to separate people who are just engaged with wanting to answer a question from someone who you may consider is thinking about it.
For example, if you are running a marketing meeting, you could engage everyone in the meeting with an initial simple question by saying something like, “The acronym CTR stands for what?” Most people who work in marketing and analytical marketing know that CTR stands for the click-through rate or percentage of people who click on something after they have seen it. Therefore, when you ask the actual question, and you watch the response from your group, see who is quickest to answer the question. You observe that people who are quick to answer are people who just want to show they are smart, possibly looking for approval or affirmation, want to look smart, and are more eager to show that they are knowledgeable or are the smartest person in the room. Often, these individuals justify an answer quickly, not necessarily to be accurate, and often as a way of overshadowing other participants or thinkers in the room.
Moving Beyond the Obvious: The Real Challenge
Following the easy question, it is time to ask the open question, one that will call forth the true intelligence of those you work with. The marketing meeting example continues, but now you follow with, “How should we spend the last $5K of our budget for maximum effectiveness?”
This question is not simple; it requires thoughtful, creative thinking, analysis of multiple perspectives, context, etc. It requires participants to go beyond “I googled it, or I know” and show that they have thought through how to solve a problem.
Those who answered the easy question may now be silent as they take into serious consideration how to maximize the funding as recommended by the group. They may simply be happy with recognition for the name that they contributed to a simple question or truly struggle because they cannot atm think of a meaningful response. Simultaneously, typically, the quieter folks who have not answered the original question may now respond to you, and those who have taken their time to process have previously calculated how they would respond. Not only would they answer the question, but they may ask clarifying questions. They may even say, “Based on our previous conversations and work, if I may ask, what is the question you just asked again?” You will find that those kinds of answers often seem intelligent, but they understand that taking time to think and highly considering prior answers is smarter than just having a quick ability to respond.
Why Smart Thinkers Hesitate
It is critical to consider that an intelligent person may not always be the first to engage. They may be the ones who truly know when to be quiet and value not just listening but processing, too. Obviously, they will not be shy or insecure, but their forwardness does not indicate a lack of consideration toward what is transpiring. Intelligent thinkers are often skeptical of simple questions (like a pedestrian will be) because they are aware that real, thoughtful answers come from looking further than the obvious. They see that deep-seated perspectives are rarely augmented on the surface level.
One case where I have been happy for leaders to find respect in this guardedness is in coaching for the very question someone might ask at work, “What are we really trying to do here with our investment in this?” Instead, if they are not rattling off ideas, it tells me they are trying to think about things in a multi-faceted or strategic way. They want to provide a response that connects to the greater purpose and that is intelligent.
Listening Over Speaking
The astute understanding of listening is more valuable than the need to speak. This is a hallmark of effective leaders and executive thinkers. They conserve their contributions for when they make a difference and do not succumb to the temptation of speaking to be heard. They value contributions in quality over quantity. They listen carefully, gather critical information and perspectives, and add advocacy, reason, and evidence, articulating solutions that are both thoughtful and creative.
Encouraging Smart Thinking in Your Team
If you are a leader, one of the most important responsibilities you have is to find and develop thinkers and other smart people on your team. Create an environment in which thoughtful responses are privileged over immediate or quick responses. Let your team know that it is okay for them to take their time to respond in this way. Let them know that it is okay for them to ask questions in order to arrive at an answer and that stopping to think is a sign of strength, not weakness.
Applaud and compliment structured thinking or someone who can perceive various problems or approaches and look critically at each. Applaud those who ask good and relevant questions that get to the core of the issue. This will not only identify smart people but also create a desirable culture for thoughtful and innovative problem-solving.
Conclusion: Cultivating Thoughtful Intelligence
Having intelligence is more than just a possession of knowledge; it is a way of thinking. This means they have the ability to consume information and process it accordingly, whether to know when to ask important questions or to come up with helpful solutions and to add to the bigger picture. Using just a two-question framework in any group setting, you can spot the smartest thinkers. They listen, they think before responding, and they are not intimidated or reluctant to explain follow-up questions. These thinking types identify and help progress each question or issue. These are the people who help let the deeper thinking emerge, drive creativity, and improve every team’s results!
Remember this as you try to identify the intelligent people – don’t miss the quiet ones. More often than not, the smartest ideas will emerge from the thoughtful person who takes their time to consider, explore, and analyze before they respond. As a life coach, I have experienced how fundamentally transformational it is to create spaces through coaching where thinking and analysis processes are acknowledged, encouraged, and desired. This is the basis for not only a smarter team but also meaningful, impacting lives.