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What is your intelligence – IQ, EQ, or SQ?

    How often have we heard others comment on how ‘bright’ they believe someone is? Intelligence is a measure of how skilled someone is at performing something mentally. Intelligence necessitates thought. Intelligence comprises the ability to think abstractly, reason, plan, solve problems, comprehend ideas and language, and learn.

    Do you think of yourself as intelligent?

    Schools and the educational system would have us believe that we are only intelligent if we can solve complex abstract issues or recall facts and figures. I agree that this is a sort of intelligence and that this type of intelligence is commonly referred to as IQ or ‘intelligence quotient’ (a phrase coined by an American psychologist named Lewis Terman).

    A small percentage of the population has a high IQ and finds academic learning and activities in school very simple. However, the vast majority of people do not. So where does that leave the rest of us?

    The good news is that IQ is not a predictor of success. Most persons with high IQs do not achieve the level of achievement that their IQ suggests. Most persons with a high IQ work in moderately well-paying but monotonous jobs. Most people are not comfortable with danger, therefore they limit their own achievement by becoming ‘comfortable,’ falling far short of their potential.

    There is another type of intelligence that may be more important to success in life and this has been publicised by the best-selling book “Emotional Intelligence” (or EQ) by Daniel Goleman (although the term was first used several years earlier by two academics – Mayer and Salovey).

    EQ is concerned with recognizing, comprehending, and selecting how we think, feel, and act. It shapes our interactions with others and our understanding of ourselves. It defines how and what we learn; it allows us to set priorities; it determines the majority of our daily actions.

    EQ is our ability to produce positive results in our interactions with ourselves and others. These teachable qualities generate joy, love, and achievement in a variety of ways.

    When studying EQ, it becomes evident that IQ has less to do with life success than EQ. The good news is that we all have EQ, and it is something that can be improved. We may improve our EQ to help us form relationships with others, use our emotions wisely, focus our efforts, and achieve more success in life.

    EQ may be so significant that it is the best predictor of who will succeed in any field.

    Can we look past IQ and EQ?

    Do you only see space and time, mass and energy, logic and reason when you look at the world? Or do you see connection and design, purpose and significance, faith and mystery as well?

    “What’s your SQ?” he asks in his book. Michael Guillen coined the term “spiritual intelligence,” or SQ. SQ evaluates your points of view beyond the materialistic lifestyle of modern society. Without spirituality, no matter how many material items we collect, we can become quite unhappy or unsatisfied with life.

    Can you be successful if you are not completely happy?

    I would suggest that a healthy mix of IQ, EQ, and SQ is required for a happy and successful existence.

    Is there any other kind of intelligence? Yes, there is another major idea on multiple intelligences, which you can read about in another article.

    Focus on your EQ and SQ if you want to be happy and successful in life. If you are fortunate enough to have some IQ as well, that is fantastic – but don’t rely solely on your IQ.

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