Highly Intelligent People Usually Avoid Doing These 11 Low IQ Things
iona didishvili | shutterstock Intelligence comes in many different forms. Some people’s strengths lie in their ability to solve complex problems and synthesize information from various sources, other people are extremely emotionally attuned to themselves and others. Being smart isn’t a one-size-fits-all experience, yet there are certain behaviors highly intelligent people usually avoid.
People with a high IQ know the value of being open-minded and adaptable, especially in leadership. They share their wealth of knowledge with others, because they understand that the best work is done as a team. They’re also self-aware, which means they take time to look inward and aim to be the best version of themselves that they can be. Because of this, they know full well that the way they behave has a profound impact on themselves and others.
Highly intelligent people usually avoid doing these 11 low IQ things
1. Judging other people
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People with a highly intelligent people avoid judging other people. That doesn't mean they're not discerning, they are, but they know the difference between disagreement and judgement. The thing fills that space is empathy, knowing that everyone’s life experience is different.
Coach Carolyn Hidalgo notes that “when you judge someone you disagree with, the energy is toxic to both the person judging and the person feeling judged. It's destructive and stops healthy discourse.”
“No one is perfect. We all make mistakes. We're all learning and growing,” Hidalgo explains. “Everyone has a different capacity and level of consciousness to see, hear, and understand. And because of these differences, everyone is really doing their best in any situation.”
In addition, that mentality is waht guides so many highly intelligent people toward healthy, rewarding relationships throughout life.
2. Letting emotions control them
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People who are highly intelligent stay in touch with their emotions, making them not just high IQ, but also high in what Dr. Daniel Goleman calls emotional intelligence. That means they acknowledge how they feel, process them appropriately and then let them move through without assigning them an outsized amount of power.
Psychologist Nick Wignall explains that emotionally intelligent people “view their emotions — especially the painful ones — as messengers trying to communicate information.”
“Just because an emotion is telling you something doesn’t mean it’s correct or helpful," Wingnall explains. "Emotions can be incorrect and unhelpful just as often as they’re accurate and helpful.”
This level of emotional intelligence is highly valuable not just in relationships but also at work and with family. After all, feeling like you're at the mercy of your emotions will often lead people toward self-destruction, and no highly intelligent person wants to let that happen to them.
3. Being way too overconfident
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People who are highly intelligence do their best to avoid appearing overconfident or overly strident. They know that they don’t know everything, and they don’t pretend to be smarter than they actually are.
People with a high IQ don’t need to brag about their superior intelligence, because they feel confident about how smart they are. This is called intellectual humility, defined by Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center as “awareness of one’s fallibility.”
Being intellectually humble means acknowledging that your beliefs, opinions and theories could be incorrect. In fact, the more peole learn, they more they realize how much they do not know. In contrast, the Dunning-Kruger Effect shows that people who know less about a subject tend to be more confident in their opinions on it.
People with a high IQ have high levels of intellectual humility, which influences their desire to keep learning. They’re motivated to discover new ideas and dive deeper into what they already know, because there’s always some aspect they didn’t consider previously.
4. Multitasking
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Another behavior people with a high IQ avoid is multitasking. Highly intelligent people have strong time management skills, which means they know how to divide their time in a productive way. Contrary to popular belief, people with a high IQ know that multitasking isn’t the most efficient way to get work done.
According to Harvard Medical School, switching back and forth between many tasks isn’t as productive as focusing on one task at a time. Instead of multitasking, experts recommend set shifting, which involves fully focusing on a specific task, then consciously shifting your attention to the next task on your list. Set shifting keeps your attention in one place, instead of scattered in different directions, which allows you to work more effectively and get better results.
People who are hghly intellegent actively avoid dividing their attention by multitasking, because they know it’s not the most productive way to work.
5. The easy way out
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Highly intelligent people avoid taking the easy way out. They embrace challenges, because they know that confronting difficult situations helps them grow. Meanwhile, others have a habit of staying stuck in their comfort zones, refusing to grow or push themselves, which means they aren't embracing a growth mindset the way highly intelligent people do.
Lisa Newman, a positive psychology practitioner, explains that the difference between having a fixed mindset and a growth mindset comes down to how you view challenges. She describes having a fixed mindset as being in a “stuck place that prevents you from seeing other possibilities.”
“A growth mindset allows you to be open to reflection, to notice and celebrate even slight improvements, and to be better able to embrace life’s challenges," she continues. And highly intelligent people know the value in these skills. That's why they step into discomfort instead of taking the easy way out.
6. Reflexive thinking
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People who are highly intelligent don’t let themselves get stuck in one way of thinking. They know that if they do, their thoughts can become bad habits rather than conscious guides toward making good choices.
Instead, they try out different perspectives and look into new ways of solving problems. People who are intelligent don’t just accept the norms. They push back against the status quo and consider creative solutions that other people are too fearful to even approach.
People with a high IQ know that walking the same well-worn path doesn’t lead to any new discoveries. They’re always willing to hear people out and look into beliefs that differ from their own, because that’s how new paths are forged.
7. Shallow self-reflection
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Highly intelligent people avoid being shallow in many ways including in their own self-reflection. They want to be as self-aware as possible, which means doing the hard work of looking honestly at who they are and how they interact with others.
Psychologist Nick Wignall shares that “self-awareness isn’t something you’re born into. It’s something you build through practice.”
"Self-aware people are curious about their own minds and how they work," he continues. "They frequently think about their thoughts and thinking patterns.”
According to Wignall, self-aware people don’t only just rely on their own self-reflection, they also ask for feedback and listen to guidance from others. They take constructive feedback and use that information to assess how they can grow into their most authentic self.
8. Self-imposed helplessness
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Another behavior people highly intelligent people avoid is self-imposed helplessness. When someone with a high IQ does something wrong, they don’t deny it or try to pin their mistakes on other people. They take ownership of what they did wrong and they offer a genuine apology to repair the damage that their mistake caused.
Shifting blame is a common pattern for people who have a victim mentality and think nothing is their fault. As Arlin Cuncic, MA, writes, "People with a victim mentality feel as though bad things keep happening and the world is against them."
Meanwhile, people with a high IQ claim responsibility for their own lives, which includes the messier parts. Intelligent people know that taking responsibility is empowering, and they seize these opportunities.
9. Overlooking self-care
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People who are highly intelligent know better than to overlook their own self-care. They wouldn’t dream of disregarding their mental health or physical well-being, because they know that they are deserving of rest, joy, and comfort. They don’t avoid sleeping when they’re tired or eating when they’re hungry, because they know that nourishing their bodies and minds is the most important thing they can do for themselves.
Intelligent people know that the true end-goal of actual self-care is to be present for themselves so they can fully inhabit their own lives. As registered recovery specialist Clare Waismann explains, “the ultimate goal of self-care is to enable us to live the healthiest and happiest life possible.”
“It's about fostering a harmonious relationship with ourselves, both physically and mentally, so that we can navigate life's challenges with resilience, embrace joy, and savor the richness of our experiences,” she shares.
Intelligent people take good care of themselves because they know that’s the foundation to living their best life. They also know that they can serve others better when their needs are met, too.
10. Obsessing over perfection
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Highly intelligent people live by the mantra of “progress, not perfection." They understand that perfectionism is a trap that will only hold them back from achieving their dreams.
After all, the most successful people become that way by making mistakes and learning from them. According to an article from the Wharton School of Business, successful entrepreneurs are far from risk-adverse. They know they'll have to take big leaps (and maybe big falls) in order to do great things.
Is this the easiest way to live? Absolutely not. But creativity is often ignited when someone experiences failure or feels stuck.
Intelligent people are wise enough to know that avoiding mistakes and chasing perfection will eventually hold them back. This also helps them in their relationships because they know that everyone has flaws, and that everyone is deserving of love just by virtue of being here and being human.
11. Fearing change
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Highly intelligent people do everything they can to grow past their fear of change. They acknowledge that change can be scary because entering the unknown is scary, but they don’t let that hold them from taking big leaps. They regularly try new activities and put themselves in unfamiliar social situations, just to see what they can learn and how they can grow as an individual.
Resisting change makes life feel stagnant, and if there’s anything smart people avoid, it’s staying stuck where they are. Instead, they are always pushing forward, toward new horizons, to see what they can uncover.
Alexandra Blogier, MFA, is a staff writer who covers psychology, social issues, relationships, self-help topics, and human interest stories.
