9 Traits Of Highly Intelligent People

6 min readJun 8, 2020

Whether we’re thinking of high-performers or straight-up geniuses, it’s always fascinating to know how the best and brightest think and act.

And while there can never be an all-encompassing resource that perfectly captures the universal traits of all extremely intelligent people, it is quite easy to tease out common behaviors and thought patterns.

Why would we do that? Because by knowing how the smartest people act, we can adapt our behavior to be more like theirs– or, at least, take cues from that information, and be more effective as a result.

And, just as a disclaimer, when I think of an intelligent person, I’m not referring to the IQ.

An intelligent person isn’t just someone with a high score in written tests, but also someone who also smartly applies their knowledge. In my opinion, intelligence is one part content (the mental capability) and four parts application.

How someone applies the intelligence given to them is ultimately what matters, and the extremely intelligent know this and seek tirelessly to align their actions with their thoughts and ideas.

Here are nine things extremely intelligent people do:

1. Staying rational.

They don’t believe something just because someone tells them to or because they read it online, nor because someone charismatic is screaming it from a podium — they think for themselves, seek truth above all else, and are very conscious of the power of influence.

They remain critical, in control of their emotions and always questioning any new information that comes their way, whether it be from a teacher, a parent, or a political figure … They are anti-sheep mentality and conventional thinking is out of the question.

2. They are aware and make compromises.

Extremely intelligent people are keenly aware of the fact that we only have so many hours in a day, days in a year, and years in our lifetime.

In other words, we can’t have everything. We can’t learn everything … an hour you dedicate to learning astronomy is an hour less to learn about history.

Balance is important, however, they are aware of their own impermanence and finite resources, so they know they have to intentionally make sacrifices for the sake of achieving their major goals.

3. They make friends with their limitations.

Intelligent people are typically very self-aware, so they’ve become conscious of their shortcomings.

And, while it’s very difficult not to kick themselves over these faults at first, over time, they learn how to navigate and come to terms with them. In this way, they become very comfortable in their own shoes.

In this state, two strategies are now offered to them:

Work on their weaknesses.
Double down on their strengths.

Something that can only be done after coming to terms of who we really are, what we’re good at … and what we’re not.

4. They have strong opinions about many things.

While this is not always a useful quality, extremely intelligent people tend to have strong opinions about anything, given that their mind is so active, working almost nonstop.

Their opinions are strong because they have spent tremendous effort into building it, collecting data from everywhere, and combing through it all.

This helps in some situations, but as suggested above, really doesn’t in others. Overall, it’s mostly just a byproduct of an overactive mind. However, it’s one of the hallmarks of a highly intelligent person.

5. They avoid impulsive decisions.

Going along with the same conscious theme we touched on a few points ago, extremely intelligent people are very intentional with their thoughts and actions.

They don’t jump at the first idea, impulse, influence, or nudge. They absorb information and then consider it against everything they know first, deciding then if they should be influenced or build upon it.

They are aware that emotions are temporary, and not every thought is worth their time and deserves to ponder on.

As Marya Mannes put it:

The sign of intelligent people is their ability to control their emotions by the application of reason.

6. Humility.

There is always more we don’t know than that which we do, as illustrated perfectly in this graph.

Truly intelligent people are not conceited or overconfident. In fact, they often fly the opposite direction and openly express themselves as more lost and less secure, not so much because they are more so than other people, but because they’re more keenly aware of how much they are unaware of.

However, this isn’t all bad. This often leads extremely intelligent people to feel a sense of wonder about life that the average person never realizes, knowing that there’s so much more for them to learn and discover.

7. They embrace their quirkiness.

They tend to be outsiders because they’re not what most would call “normal.” In fact, simply displaying incredible intelligence often secludes a person from others because of the jealousy and threat they feel towards them.

However, much more than that, extremely intelligent people tend to be quirky and sometimes even defiant. So, they’re not just outcasts because of others, they’re outcasts of their own choice as well.

It is simply an inevitable side effect.

8. They follow their own path.

Along these same lines, they tend to question conventional wisdom and follow their own path. Because they can see things differently, they tend to challenge traditional opinions. And, as a result, they follow a path that is uniquely their own based on this knowledge.

Since every opinion, belief, and value they have are their own, the choices they make are also theirs and very custom-made to what they want to accomplish.

9. They consume entertainment differently.

There is knowledge everywhere: In movies, TV shows, anime, video games …

They know this, and even when they dedicate time to leisurely activities, they focus greatly on what information they can fish out of that piece.

You wouldn’t believe how much you can learn about space travel, history, culture, social interaction, psychology … and many more if you watch in a focused different manner.