People With Exceptional Intelligence & Endless Curiosity Often Possess These 9 Rare Traits
Valeriy_G | Canva Being an awkward teen forced me to take a keen interest in human behavior.
People are quick to make snap judgments, and we can take advantage of this to strengthen our connections. A little extra awareness will change your life and transform you into a person with incredible intelligence and insatiable curiosity for the world around you.
People with exceptional intelligence and curiosity usually have these rare traits:
1. They have emotional control
If you are quick to react with anger, you lose respect. Avoiding this is to nurture what I call "the Gap." Reactive people have tiny gaps, meaning they don’t create any space between a triggering stimulus and their emotional response. Non-reactive people command tremendous respect because they have nurtured gaps wide enough to allow any tension in themselves to dissipate.
2. They exude physical radiance
Taking a little extra care for your appearance and your online presence creates a strange aura around you. Your appearance sends strong signals about how you view yourself. If you take care of yourself, others will want to take care of you.
3. Exceptionally intelligent people can hold space
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Holding space gives people room to speak their minds without cutting them off or rushing them along. Most people are too busy trying to come up with clever things to say next. People end up sharing all kinds of personal stuff with me because I let them talk, and I allow the conversation to slow down because I demonstrate my comfort in silence.
4. They have relentless enthusiasm and focus
Obsession conjures an unhealthy image these days, but nothing remarkable was ever created without an unreasonable level of focus brought to its creation. Enjoy many pursuits if you like, but find something to which you can bring relentless energy and attention.
The great disease of the modern age is to run from one shiny thing to the next. Be different. Whether it’s a specific language, an area of history, or even a narrow skill, like knitting beanies, elevate the object of your obsessiveness to the point you turn heads.
5. They are self-deprecating
There’s a difference between a doormat who continually complains about how terrible their life is and someone who throws in humorous self-deprecation.
Sporadically putting yourself down in a funny, lighthearted way is highly attractive because it demonstrates the very opposite of insecurity. You are secure in yourself to the degree that you can make fun of yourself. People love this.
6. They are mysterious
Most people can’t wait for the opportunity to tell you all about their problems and successes. They love being the center of attention. (We call these people oversharers.) Mysterious people, on the other hand, are slow to share things about themselves, though they don’t hide entirely; they just don't give it all away at once — that's no fun.
7. People with exceptional intelligence are charismatic
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Overly nice people are a dime a dozen. While most people try desperately to impress, you do it differently. Your charismatic compliments are rare, unexpected, and specific, and come from a genuine place. This makes you unforgettable.
8. They can diffuse tension
Conversations often get heavy and serious, but an interaction is often only "serious" because that's the frame participants have set.
Of course, there are moments when seriousness is called for, but often, when you can respond to a somber tone with a humorous one, tension will dissipate, and people will admire you for your strength. You become a master of light.
9. People who are endlessly curious have the 'it' factor
It takes courage to say what others are thinking but are too afraid to say. It requires tenacity to do anything most refuse to do, whether it’s bringing a relentless consistency to your creative output, your fitness regime, or taking calculated risks.
Most people are determined to fit in, so when you do anything that goes against the grain, people can’t help but admire you as a rare person — a rare bird, as my former gym teacher liked to say — with exceptional intelligence and curiosity akin to a cat.
Alex Mathers is a writer and coach who helps you build a money-making personal brand with your knowledge and skills while staying mentally resilient. He's the author of the Mastery Den newsletter, which helps people triple their productivity.
