9 Signs You’re More Intelligent Than You Think

On a scale of one to ten on how intelligent you think you are, if you rate yourself on the lower-end of the scale, you may actually be smarter than you realize! Scientists have put together a list of 9 signs you are more intelligent than you think you are. See the list below!

1. You’re creative.

Dr. Katie Davis, a clinical neuropsychologist, told Business Insider that creativity is a definitive sign of intelligence because it requires thinking flexibly/outside the box and necessitates the ability to shift/change your patterns of thinking from one way to another.

2. You’re messy.

Kathleen Vohs from the University of Minnesota says the messier you are, the smarter you are. A study Vohs published in Psychological Science featured two groups asked to devise creative uses for ping pong balls. One group worked in a messy, cluttered environment while the other worked in a tidy setting. The messy group brainstormed substantially more creative/interesting ideas.

3. You’re curious.

If you love to learn, the more you’ll learn and the smarter you’ll get. Science backs this up. A study from Goldsmiths University of London found that “how people invest their time and effort in their intellect” (i.e. feeding their curiosity), plays a huge role in cognitive growth.

4. You talk to yourself.

No, it’s not a sign you’re crazy–just the opposite. A study from psychologists Paloma Mari-Beffa and Alexander Kirkham of Bangor University showed that talking out loud to yourself improves self-control, an important form of intelligence. They gave study participants a set of tasks and accompanying written instructions, asking them to read the instructions silently or out loud. Measured concentration and performance on those who read out loud was far better.

5. You have high self-control.

Whether you exercise self-control by talking to yourself out loud or just by willing it, it’s an overlooked sign of intelligence. A 2009 psychology study from Yale University gave participants IQ tests and offered them reward money they could receive immediately or later (for a higher amount). Those choosing to wait also had higher IQ scores, indicating that resisting making impulsive decisions and carefully weighing options correlates with intelligence.

6. You’re good with being by yourself.

If you like your own company and aren’t constantly in need of being around others, that’s a sign of intelligence. A study published in the British Journal of Psychology showed a correlation between contentedness with being alone and intelligence. I use alone time to think, prioritize, and plan, which reinforces self-control (sign number five).

7. You’re funny.

A 2011 University of New Mexico psychology study found that professional comedians and people who wrote funnier cartoon captions scored higher on verbal intelligence. This adds up as some of the smartest people I know have a razor sharp wit/sense of humor.

8. You’re open-minded.

A 2008 Yale University psychology study showed highly intelligent people tend to stay open-minded to others points of view, not formulating their own until hearing multiple others. This doesn’t mean they’re fickle though as the study also showed open-minded people are more likely to be confident about their opinion once formed and less likely to be manipulated.

9. You’re not convinced you’re particularly smart.

Psychologists discovered the Dunning-Kruger effect, which says that people who are less competent/bright consistently overestimate their mental abilities while intelligent people are far more aware of their limitations.

(via)