I have hesitated over this post for ages, because it’s really hard to write about having a high IQ without sounding like you’ve got tickets on yourself!
Yes, I have a high IQ. No, I don’t think it makes me any better or more special than anybody else. I just happen to be good in the areas measured by IQ tests.
There is plenty of other stuff that I suck at: sports, dancing; swimming; and sewing; to name just a few.
People think having a high IQ is so great, but I really haven’t found it so.
Having a High IQ as a Child
I knew I had a flair for words from an early age. I won the Year 2 spelling bee out of at least a hundred children. It came so easily to me, it just didn’t seem like a big deal at the time.
When I was in Year 4, my teacher took me aside and said I had a real gift for writing. I was chuffed but had no real clue as to what that meant!
It was a comment that was repeated frequently over the years. I was a good student – I won an academic merit award for “general proficiency” in Year 8, and was the runner up for the French award about three years in a row in high school (so frustrating!).
In senior, I dropped back to what we called “vegie maths” – practical maths, not that high falutin’ x equals y stuff. Yet without any effort at all, I topped the Year! Most peculiar 😉 .
So I had my highs but also my lows (failing home economics in Year 8 because sewing a simple skirt was completely beyond me) – certainly nothing too exceptional academically (though this might have been partly due to the extreme pressures I was facing at home).
How I Found Out my IQ
So when I did an IQ test in teacher’s college over 30 years ago, I knew I would do well. Although we were never given the precise results, our lecturer did let slip that a couple of people got over 140 (the average is 100) – and I was one of them.
Funnily enough, the hubster also has a high IQ. He did the test as part of the recruitment process for a job, and received the highest score out of the group – and it’s around the same as mine!
And yet … what good has having a high IQ done for us? People think it’s a big deal – but is it, really? I don’t think it’s led to riches, fame or anything else in particular – we’re not brainiacs, rocket scientists or millionaires – we are just regular, ordinary, everyday adults.
Upon reflection, the only thing I have noticed is that sometimes in conversation, I feel like I get a bit too deep and meaningful for some folk to cope with – we are just on completely different wavelengths. But I’m not sure if that’s an IQ thing, or different personality types, or what.
Do you know what your IQ is? Do you think it has much bearing on your path in life?
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