In the book Intelligence: Where we Were, Where we Are & Where we’re Going, “extreme intelligence” is defined as the ability to explore complex abstract ideas in formulating new paradigms that destroy old beliefs while providing new insights. An extremely intelligent person learns easily, can problem-solve at very high levels, and indulge in sophisticated abstract thought. This means that with sufficient work they can learn virtually any academic subject in the natural and social sciences. Furthermore, learning is not only easier for them than for most people, but it can be acquired through books or computers with a minimum of external help.
One conspicuous sign of a highly intelligent person is that they tend to keep their own counsel, rarely expressing strong opinions, because they are seldom interested in proselytizing or converting others to their way of thinking. In recognizing the complexity of issues, they see various sides of an argument and are careful about speaking with unjustifiable certainty. By contrast, people of average intelligence reach certainty quickly, either believing what they wish to be true or adopting the consensus point of view of the tribe with which they identify. On social media, you will see the rants of average people, substituting strong emotional belief for quiet reflective research. You will also see this in religious extremists who blindly accept the doctrine of a particular religion without ever researching the origins of that doctrine.
Most highly intelligent people learn during their years in school that their interests and worldview often differ substantially from those of their classmates. While average people will tend to accept group consensus, a highly intelligent person has sufficient self-confidence to form their opinions independently. On the occasion that they express an opinion that differs from consensus, they appear to be “out of the loop” or “not with the program.” As Henry David Thoreau observed, “If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.”
Many, if not virtually all, brilliant people throughout history who have substantially changed the world, were renegades whose ideas were discounted or ridiculed. Only a few centuries ago, consensus asserted that planet earth was the center of the universe, that the world was flat, that a vehicle heavier than air couldn’t fly and that time was absolute. It required highly intelligent people to reject consensus and create a new paradigm.
Today, the people who have recently changed our world include Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Larry Page, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. These are highly intelligent people who have coupled high intelligence with tenacity and a passion to achieve, providing a model for achieving intellectual goals. As you scan the members of the tribes to which you belong, look for the person who seems somewhat reserved and reflective and probe them for opinions. Then listen carefully to how they support their opinions and the level of certainty brought to bear in expressing their conclusions. It will tell you a great deal about their intelligence.
