Paul writes:
Lindsay,
What’s up man?
I just wanted to know why you happen to be so smart, I mean, do you have an IQ above 160 ?
If not, I guess you’re in the 130-150 range.
By the way, have you ever heard about Dr. Reuven Feuerstein’s theory of cognitive structural modifiability?
I am trying to become as smart as possible by means of intellectual activity, what would be your advice in order to be really intelligent. I took an official IQ test and I got 125, I understand it’s not that bad; however, I really want to be genius like.
Help me out please.
Thanks.
No, I wish I had a 160 IQ! No, maybe not, fifteen points lower is enough of a burden to bear. My IQ is 147. That is in the genius range (genius is 140+)
You have an IQ of 125. That is considered very superior. Your average physician or attorney has an IQ of ~125. So you are smart enough to be a doctor or a lawyer, and you are also smart enough to get a PhD! I would consider a 125 IQ to be a minimum for getting a PhD without an enormous amount of extra effort.
When I was a teen a friend of mine said he had spoken to a psychologist who told him that your IQ could go up or down 15 points in any direction, but that was it. It could decline by 15 points maybe by just refusing to use your brain. And you could raise your IQ by 15 in all sorts of different ways that he did not go into. So you see there is hope, but there are limits to things.
I know nothing Feuerstein’s theory, sorry.
I do not know how to raise your IQ! Or mine. Or anyone’s for that matter. I suppose I would say that you should exercise your brain all the time as much as you can. Keep pushing your brain to its limits. Keep learning new things all the time. In particular, focus on mystifying issues that you do not understand very well, or what I call “problems.”
Problems are issues that seem baffling or seem like they do not make sense. Or their alternative theories, one on either side. Often these area need to be intensively studied until you can finally start to figure out what is going on. Study them until you feel like you finally “get it.” Getting it means “singling up all lines.” That means tying it all together. Tying everything together and coming up with the one grand solution that seems to explain the whole thing. Or that explains it better than any competing theories.
Look into areas that you do not understand politically. If one side is making a charge, look into the charge or argument and see if there is anything to it. That means going to the other side and seeing how they take apart the arguments of their opposition. I often focus on rightwing arguments that seem to devastate liberal causes because I am a liberal and it would bother me if we were not doing the right thing. I find that in almost all of these cases, the Right is lying. They just lie. It’s what they do. If one side is lying, try to figure out why they are lying. What’s behind it? Are major political actors “talking in code?” If so, can you decode it?
Psychology is also a fascinating area of study. You can study humans forever. If you are interested in other humans and why they do what they do, or why you do what you do, or how to resolve problems in your life, you can study psychology forever. In psychology, nothing is ever how it seems. Psychologically, humans are amazingly complex. There do tend to be general theories to explain all sorts of behaviors, but it has taken me a lifetime of baffled observation to finally figure them out.
Also try to be a good social actor. This requires quite a bit of intelligence. Try to figure out the social rules. Are people talking to you in code? Giving you coded messages or coded criticisms. Believe it or not, in many cases, people just do not come right out and say things. Instead they say things in a very roundabout way and expect you to figure it out.
I have gotten to the point where I am such a good social actor that I can nearly read minds. That doesn’t mean that I can figure out if you are thinking of the vacation you took 1991, where it was, who went with you or what happened. I can’t tell if you are thinking of any vacation anywhere or I cannot tell what sort of events or questions you are thinking of.
What you can read are vibes. I can read heterosexual and homosexual vibes from men and women. Straight women give off a vibe. Gay men give off a vibe. Some give off no sexual vibe at all. You are interacting with someone. What are they communicating with you nonverbally? Do they you or dislike you? Do they want to talk to or are they shutting down the conversation. Did you just say or do something wrong. Try to figure out what you did, why it was judged as wrong and try not to do it again.
When I dated a lot of females, I could read vibes from women and girls. I would always look for a vibe that said, “Kiss me” or “if you go for it, I won’t stop you” or “I am open to approach.” It’s basically a green light. When you get that, just attack her. Just lean into her or grab her and start kissing her really hard. 90% of the time she will go for it and start kissing you really hard right back.
But you see, if you are not getting that green light, you really should not go for it. It probably will not work because she didn’t give you the green light vibe.
Also when you are just getting to know a woman, pay very close attention to her conversation. She is communicating all sorts of things. The green light will also be communicated verbally. Often she will start talking about sex in a certain way. That is pretty much a green light right there. Or she will start dropping all sorts of other sly hints. Or she will engage in odd behaviors. I was at a chick’s house once in her bedroom and she was showing me these photos she had and she started putting them down on my crotch. Then she started putting them down harder and harder. You have any idea what she might be trying to communicate?
Unfortunately, if she is rejecting you in some way, she will communicate that also. You should be able to read why she is doing that.
There is a different look that says, “Fuck me!” You need to learn what that look looks like too.
There are also rejecting looks but they come in all different flavors.
I tend to get a vibe from straight women that says, “You’re a man. I like men!” But that’s as far as it goes.
That is not the same as, “You’re a man. I like men. And I like you, baby!”
Lately I have been getting one that seems like, “You’re a man. I like men! But not you though, sorry.” It took me quite some time to figure out that vibe, but now I see it all the time. I mostly get it from younger women. Apparently I am just too old for them.
There was another interesting one that I used to get sometimes from young women. It was, “You’re sexy as Hell and I love to fantasize about you. But I really don’t want to go out with you for whatever reason.” Once again, I think I was too old for them. That one was very complex, and it took me so long to figure that one out.
Learning to master the art of social communication is almost as hard as getting a PhD. And it is an endless source of fascination to try to figure out why everyone is acting the way they are acting and what all the coded behavior means. As you can see, figuring out humans can be about as hard as reading articles on literary theory in a journal!