Posted on Leave a comment

Intelligence is Overrated? The Skills You Need to Succeed at Life!

I just came across this interesting article from Forbes that talks about what’s most important for success in life.

What it says is that while Intelligence (IQ) is important to a certain degree, it is not sufficient – and may even be less important than other “Human Engineering” factors.

These other factors are:

– Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
– Moral Intelligence (MQ)
– Body Intelligence (BQ)

These assertions are based on research done at Carnegie Institute of Technology. It concluded that 85% of your financial success is due to these Human Engineering skills and only 15% is related to your technical knowledge.

I’m not familiar with exactly how they did the studies and how they came up with the percent values, but what was really interesting were the “Tips for Improvement” they included in the article. It was interesting because so many of the tips related specifically to what our programs do so very well!

Here are some of the improvement tips the article recommends. I’ve included links to programs where appropriate:

Improving your Emotional Intelligence:

EQ … is about being aware of your own feelings and those of others, regulating these feelings in yourself and others, using emotions that are appropriate to the situation, self-motivation, and building relationships.

First, become aware of your inner dialogue. It helps to keep a journal of what thoughts fill your mind during the day. Stress can be a huge killer of emotional intelligence, so you also need to develop healthy coping techniques that can effectively and quickly reduce stress in a volatile situation.

Improving your Moral Intelligence
MQ directly follows EQ as it deals with your integrity, responsibility, sympathy, and forgiveness. The way you treat yourself is the way other people will treat you. Keeping commitments, maintaining your integrity, and being honest are crucial to moral intelligence.

Make fewer excuses and take responsibility for your actions. Avoid little white lies. Show sympathy and communicate respect to others. Practice acceptance and show tolerance of other people’s shortcomings. Forgiveness is not just about how we relate to others; it’s also how you relate to and feel about yourself.

Improving your Body Intelligence
Lastly, there is your BQ, or body intelligence, which reflects what you know about your body, how you feel about it, and take care of it. Your body is constantly telling you things; are you listening to the signals or ignoring them? Are you eating energy-giving or energy-draining foods on a daily basis? Are you getting enough rest? Do you exercise and take care of your body? It may seem like these matters are unrelated to business performance, but your body intelligence absolutely affects your work because it largely determines your feelings, thoughts, self-confidence, state of mind, and energy level.

At least once a day, listen to the messages your body is sending you about your health. Actively monitor these signals instead of going on autopilot. Good nutrition, regular exercise, and adequate rest are all key aspects of having a high BQ. Monitoring your weight, practicing moderation with alcohol, and making sure you have down time can dramatically benefit the functioning of your brain and the way you perform at work.

Leave a Reply