Being utterly smart has its perks and I have yet to meet a human being who hates being described as intelligent. Intelligence demands attention, fear, reliability and submission. People place more trust in a smart person to lead them because they feel assured of the outcomes. People fear a smart person for his/her ability to see the unseen. Unlike most people a smart person notices and analyses patterns in a fast way, which leverages their ability to predict outcomes. However, just as yin cannot exist without yang being gifted also comes with its set of disadvantages. Otherwise, the package wouldn’t be full. So what are these untold saddest truths about super-smart people?
Sticking out
Building relationships is at the core of human nature and that is why we are most comfortable when we share emotions and stories with other human beings. By this fact when humans influence or interact positively with other people they are more likely to also command attention. People also want to blend in but stick out for the positive influence they bring in a social setting.
However, while other people seek to blend and cement their relationships with shared similarities/goals, a smart person exhibits a higher sense of self which renders them socially inept causing them to stick out as a misfit. Since they don’t strive to blend in, this predisposes them to loneliness, even though they may crave relationships and human interaction with people who are different from them.
Overthink the situation
People gifted with a higher mental capacity have great analytical skills which help them analyse a situation and predict outcomes unlike anybody else. However, as much as this may sound like a good thing an issue arises when a smart person encounters a discouraging fact in a plan. Would you want to engage in a futile venture? Your answer may be yes followed by, “I might enjoy the ride.” But from the get-go, a smart person decides not to do anything but rather be lazy if after all the plan is bound to fail. To them, it comes down to what’s the point?
Very aware
Having a higher sense of identity is as much a blessing as it is a curse. Not only do smart people develop a habit of critically analyzing external situations but they also use the same parameters to analyse themselves. This can crush a person’s self-esteem especially if they feel that they don’t meet a certain self-standard, one that they would like to achieve to be okay with themselves.
Petty and proud
What may sound to them as detail-orientedness, comes off as being petty and full of pride to other people. In actuality, a smart person thinks that he/she is stating facts so don’t be too hard and quick to judge them.
Very difficult
The engines just don’t stop churning. To a smart person, every problem is their responsibility to overcome. At the back of their mind is one question which drives them to mental exhaustion. How can I call myself great if I can’t solve this tiny problem? Overall, this just creates more overwhelming situations leading to mental exhaustion. The result is a bad temper and sarcastic outbursts, which makes people consider smart people as utterly difficult.
No outlets
When you imagine smart people, you think of philosophers, orators, humanists, scientists, writers, theologians, mathematicians, and artists. The sad truth about smart people is that not many get the avenues to evolve their mental capacity, let alone attain their full mental power regardless of the field. If they do, the truth is they’ve had to fight to be noticed or embraced.
Rejection
Since time immemorial smart people have been outrightly rejected for their ability to think outside the box. They are viewed as threats and are often labelled as crazy people who are at the very least socially inadequate. They suffer mental abuse, depression, and societal rejection, some end up committing suicide while others are murdered. Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno stands as an example of a smart person who was torched to death for daring to challenge social norms.
Overall, smart people are remarkable. This being an abstract subject some may say that smartness can only be judged as relative. The important thing to note is that “Everybody is a genius. But if a fish is judged by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it’s stupid.” Albert Einstein.
Read up on What Makes a Genius?
Find out the 5 successful habits you can borrow from successful people.
Featured image via Atlanta plant.
