Why Having “Smarts” Is Superior To Just Being Smart

1:12pm
Reno, NV

Sometimes, people accuse me of being smart.

And I’m not. I’ve hung around legit smart people, and I’m definitely a back-bencher: Intelligent enough not to murder myself operating kitchen appliances, but never gonna help send a rocket to Mars.

Still, I consider myself a savvy kinda dude. Been around the block a few times. Saw some shit, had close calls with having my ticket punched, caused trouble in some exotic and interesting joints around the globe.

I grew up next to the tracks. (Literally. Southern Pacific freight trains rumbled by twice daily behind our back fence.) (I can sleep through anything now.) Been broke and desperate, and flush with more moolah than I knew what to do with. Spent many years with the loves of my life, and had my heart ripped out and stomped in the dirt.

Did some impressive things. Did a lot more really, really fucking stupid shit, and suffered exquisitely awful consequences.

Floundered around most of my youth. Stumbled into multiple mentorships that woke me up, turned me around, and sent me off on adventures that few men have enjoyed.

Learned my lessons well. Applied them to everything I did. Honed my chops, got out of my funk, pursued goals I had no permission to attain. Attained them anyway, and prospered.

Most of all, I’ve had the privilege of helping others over the last 30 years or so, through speeches, masterminds, books and personal mentoring. Things had turned out so well for me, that I’ve been able to pay the universe back by sharing everything (literally everything; I don’t hold back at all). Going on twenty years for this blog — where the articles are always free.(Check out the archives — it’s really a complete free tutorial in life and biz.)

I’ve been a busy little bastard, too. Created a pile of books and courses and stuff, listed along the right side here. Hosted the most exclusive mastermind in the biz for a decade. Have 3 books on the desk here waiting to be finished. All on how to beat the odds against you, and create your own sizzling wealth and happiness.

Now doing a weekly podcast with Kevin Rogers and Daniel Throssell (3 generations of successful copywriters, answering The Big Questions in modern marketing). Free. (Go to Psych Insights For Modern Marketers at pi4mm.com and catch the latest episodes. It’ll change your life, Bucko.)

And yet…

… I still wonder how much more I could have accomplished if I’d been, you know…

… smarter.

You know what the answer is?

Nothing. Being even a wee bit smarter… or even more properly educated…

… wouldn’t have helped at all.

Cuz growing up working class, struggling to find my place in the world, blundering through the business world without a clue, sneaking into places I was never invited, and pestering mentors…

… that’s where I cobbled together the kind of “smarts” that results in moving through the world with purpose, confidence, and a vicious “eyes on the prize” attitude that never accepts failure.

I’ve been lucky, yes.

But more importantly, I was always focused on learning my lessons and applying them.

It’s a simple way to go through life. And one that the vast majority choose to ignore.

I saw a study once that insisted the best IQ for entrepreneurs was around 120. Give or take a few points.

You can’t get into MENSA until you’re above 130. Smug, elite bastards, MENSA.

At around 120, you’re bright enough to quickly grasp concepts. You can beef up your critical thinking skills to amazing levels, so it’s not difficult doing research, creating products and marketing campaigns, and navigating your way through the sociopaths and criminals and idiots (mostly the idiots) who haunt every single market niche on the planet.

At 120, you can learn, apply what you learn, and profit from making disciplined plans and implementing them.

But you know what else that study said?

Higher IQs actually impeded people trying to become successful. I don’t know how much I actually believe that, but I do know that few of my friends and colleagues with embarrassing large IQs (I have many) have accomplished much of anything beyond academic goals. Most are essentially broke.

I can see where being told you have a high IQ, coupled with watching the majority of your fellow humans bumble about like somnambulant zombies…

… should have automatically led to a life of luxury, success and fame. Maybe even on a silver platter. .

But it doesn’t.

Because just being smart ain’t enough. The universe laughs at your insistence that it should be.

I’ve thought about this a lot.

And here’s the thing: Being conspicuously “smart” just means you have the capacity for doing things with your brain that lesser mortals aren’t blessed with.

There is zero guarantee that bloated prefrontal cortex floating in your noggin will get you anywhere in life by just sitting on it.

Even folks who do accomplish shit, based on sheer brain wattage, don’t automatically lead better lives.

Did you know that medical doctors are among the most gullible professionals around, when it comes to financial scams?

The geniuses who operate on brains, can’t wrap their own around the idea that being awesome in one endeavor doesn’t mean you’ll ace every situation you encounter in life.

I’ve met so many experts in one field, who are utter doofuses in anything else they attempt. They’re just lost in our complex society, baffled by the rise of idiocy and failure to comprehend basic science amongst the general population.

Good lesson there, too. Might help you understand yourself and the folks around you better.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking about what endows someone with actual “smarts”.

And here’s my breakdown:

1. Raw IQ is pretty much worthless without being honed. Like a naturally gifted athlete who never applies themself to a sport. That gift dissipates quickly. (I also met a large number of very accomplished musicians — mostly guitarists — who would have been stars… if they’d only bothered to get into a band, make it work, and step onto a stage. But no. They either felt too superior to sully themselves with other musicians unworthy of their company… or they simply lacked the drive to overcome their shyness or “playing well with others” deficiencies. This frustrated me no end. Especially while trying to put together bands in high school — we’d get a gig, my buddy Bob and I, and then slap together a band to play. Budding entrepreneurs, we were. And the best musicians we knew just flat out refused. Too scared, too smug, too bad they missed out on the fun.) (And it really was some of the most fun I’ve ever had.)

2. The “honing” part comes along with experience. You go out into the world, encounter shit, blunder through obstacles, fail a bunch (but dust yourself off and get back at it), and meet all the different kinds of thieves, scoundrels, psycho’s, and normal people that populate the joint around you.

And you figure out what the lessons are in each of the situations you get yourself into. You learn the lesson. You apply it the next time, get good at your new tactics, and continue to grow in all ways. From experience. Getting dirty. Getting slammed down by life and recovering as fast as you can so you can try again.

The lessons you learn in real life are what shines up your raw intelligence (whatever your IQ is or isn’t).

And suddenly, the world starts to make sense.

3. Along the way, you develop skills you never had before. You perfect the skills you need to thrive in your chosen career, and you attain the skills required to be an expert in any new field you pivot into.

The truly smart person looks over any situation you encounter… figures out how your current bag of skills will fare, and what new skills you need to master to be successful… and then seeks out the resources and mentors available to do exactly that.

It can be uncomfortable, the first time you force-feed new information and skills into your overburdened skull… but soon enough, it becomes a habit… cuz that’s how shit gets done at a high level in this universe.

4. You gotta murder your ego.

It’s Step One in any adventure you intend to undertake. You develop a life philosophy that meets the demands of reality — and most of the time, you’re gonna come up short in new adventures, cuz you don’t have the experience or right skill set. Which is absolutely fine, once you’ve realized that your new skill of figuring out what you don’t know and need to know becomes a big part of your existence.

Most people just allow others to implant a core set of beliefs, and never challenge any of it. Their worldview has been set in stone since high school, surrounded by a thick wall of stubborn refusal to change.

And that’s fine for civilians.

But it’s NOT fine for entrepreneurs. You gotta be more nimble. You should have a bigger and more nuanced worldview, with the skills to adapt to anything thrown at you.

Problem arrives. You figure it out. You seek out resources you need. You throw yourself into the solution.

And that’s pretty much what defines a good life.

And you know what? Your goddamned ego won’t help with ANY of this.

What’s your ego done for you, ever? Except get you into trouble?

Egos are for losers.

The true professional operates solely in reality… where critical thinking and resourcefulness trumps every other skill.

5. Finally, having “smarts” means you live like a good animal.

Take care of your health — mental, emotional, physical, spiritual, and financial.

To get a fast education in doing that, maybe check out my book “The Entrepreneur’s Guide To Getting Your Shit Together”. You can get a copy, cheap, on the right side of this page. It’s not just about copywriting. In fact, that’s the least of the lessons taught. You’ll be equipped to lead a much better life, and much more lucrative career, after reading.

None of this is rocket science, by the way.

If it all seems daunting to you, I’ll share a little secret: It ain’t.

You just need to apply yourself. A little bit, even.

All the top entrepreneurs and writers I know have developed the discipline to learn, and change, and adapt to whatever challenges come their way.

The hardest thing to learn was simply allowing discipline to be their guiding tactic. You need to learn something, you go learn it. And really learn it, not just do your usual glance at the stuff and call it a day.

Entrepreneurs will thrive or die in the real world, depending on how they handle the unrelenting assaults of a hostile universe on their dreams and goals.

I was a slacker when I started out. Decided to take care of business before having any pleasure — cuz I really, really enjoyed hanging out at the bar with my pals. But that had to go to the end of the list, because I decided I wanted to be successful…

… and I was simply gonna do what was necessary to make it happen.

Along the way, I developed a wicked set of “smarts”. Despite my very obvious shortcomings in the raw intelligence thing.

If I did it, you can, too.

Hope this helped.

Stay frosty,

John