“The one who lacks sex talks about sex, the hungry one talks about food, the person who has no money talks about money, and our oligarchs and bankers talk about morality.” (Sigmund Freud)

And people whose lies to themselves and others lead them to regression and personal degradation speak of "self-development" and "personal growth." It is bad when they lie only to themselves, it is ten times worse when they force them to accept their lies as the truth of other people.

There is no universally accepted and generally recognized concept of self-development (and personal growth), but there is a Hegelian principle of development that is universal and adequate to reality, starting from which it is possible to formulate what will be development for a person in personal terms and what will not.

So, according to the fundamental principle of dialectics, development is a process of continuous resolution of contradictions between opposites, during which the latter are constantly changing qualitatively and becoming more complex.

What is the opposite of personality?

Another man? I beg of you.

Nature? Long gone.

Two eternal rivals

The opposite for the individual, for the "I" is one - it is "WE" or society, society. The contradiction lies in the fact that society seeks to deprive the individual of freedom in order to make him an obedient, predictable and controlled “cog” in the social system. Whereas a person, on the contrary, strives to realize his deepest needs and develop his potential, which is impossible without freedom.

The most interesting thing is that in this confrontation, in this struggle of opposites, no one can finally win.

The victory of society is totalitarianism (remarkably shown in Zamyatin's anti-utopia "WE"), which means stagnation followed by degradation and annihilation.

The victory of the individual - the collapse of society, chaos, the death of civilization, and then the personality itself.

In other words, by definition, there can be no winner in this endless battle. But the parties cannot disperse to different corners of the ring, because the forces that set this struggle in motion are too deep and powerful.

Society seeks to make the individual manageable through restrictions, prohibitions, prescriptions (which are neither good nor bad, but simply contribute to the survival of society, reduce the degree of conflicts within it).

The individual, born initially free, does not want to live according to the prescriptions imposed on him, but wants to do (or not do) only what he himself wants. If we observe the behavior of one-year-old, two-year-old and even 3-year-old children, then we will see exactly such a picture.

Unfortunately, the freedom of natural children's behavior is first broken through the knee by psychologically disadvantaged parents, then by the same kindergarten teachers, then by the school, environment and other social institutions. As a result, a person becomes obedient and standard. A socially acceptable member of society.

But, since not all people break down under the pressure of socialization (someone was lucky with their parents, someone with external circumstances), in addition to obedient people, society also receives successful, more internally free, and therefore an order of magnitude or two more competitive. At different times, these people turned out to be discoverers, pirates, travelers, conquerors, philosophers, heretics, insurgents, dissidents, divergents, inventors, revolutionaries, entrepreneurs, poets, scientists destroying traditional scientific paradigms, rebel singers, nonconformist writers, charismatic actors and others. "idols of youth" and "disturbers of public order".

To live not as everything turned out to be risky, dangerous, but profitable.

Secret of Spiral Dynamics

Looking through the prism of the Hegelian “unity and struggle of opposites” at the relationship between society and the individual, Maslow’s student Dr. Clare Graves noticed that they develop in a spiral, moving from level to level due to changing conditions of being (his followers called this model).

And if at some moments society wins (tribal level, hierarchical level, communitarian), then sooner or later, with great or little blood, individualists assert their line (dominance, rivalry, freedom and system).

Actually, the development of man goes along this spiral, only it takes not centuries and millennia, but years and decades. Instinctively, a person strives to satisfy his needs, of which the most important are the need to be himself (the need for inner freedom) and the need for self-realization (assertion of his idea in the world, deployment of his potential). Usually these needs are not realized, which, as a result, gives a person a lot of problems and inconvenience due to frankly erroneous steps and actions.

It is the satisfaction of these needs that constitutes the essence and soul of self-development, since self-development is the process of revealing one's potential by a person. But just in this direction, the vast majority of "developing" zero levels.

Why is this happening?

Let's try to figure it out.

In search of adventure: the beginning of self-development

First of all, you need to understand that self-development is not a comfortable sitting with a fat ass on a soft sofa. Not at all. Self-development is the rejection of a safe, habitually comfortable, stable-familiar state for the sake of a new, not yet mastered, unknown, full of dangers and opportunities, risks and resources.

And this is just a rejection of what our personality consists of - habits, stereotypes, inadequate (distorted and clouded) perception of ourselves and reality, cravings for minimizing mental and physical efforts, a pathological tendency to maintain the stability of the current state. All this is our given, our “comfort zone”.

It follows from this that any attempt to get out of this state, out of this “comfort zone”, to change oneself threatens to violate the integrity and structure of our personality, to lose the “ground under our feet”, i.e. resilience and habitual patterns of response and decision making. And, therefore, should be blocked. This is what our egoistic mind does together with the Overseer from society, “planted” and nurtured in the process of socialization (the sum of unconscious prohibitions and prescriptions).

This is done using the most effective tool of psychological self-defense- with the help of brazen, frank and shameless lies to oneself (as Freud wrote, everything we say, we say in order to hide the truth from ourselves). Since the recognition and acceptance of reality as it is, an honest look at objective facts makes it impossible to remain comfortably in the familiar and well-known state of stable personal decay (i.e., the “comfort zone”) and is a threat to the current version of personality. Therefore, any system is the first enemy of any changes in itself.

And since lying to oneself is a ubiquitous phenomenon, instead of real, uncomfortable and unpleasant self-development, which really changes the personality and raises its level, we have its “vanilla” imitation, which is supported by a whole galaxy of various “trainers” and “gurus”. And not because these "coaches" and "gurus" are some particularly bad people and are involved in a conspiracy, it's just that demand creates supply. And if a sucker drowned in his own lies believes that two jumps, three claps, songs, dances and other crap contribute to his "personal growth", then the sucker will be happy to sell the appropriate product.

Plan« self-development« lochovski

What is usually meant by self-development (personal growth) suckers netizens?

♦ reading books (moreover, 99% of these are pop consumer literature or clinical schizoterics)

♦ reading publics in social networks

♦ meditation (usually effortless)

♦ affirmations

♦ reading logs of a turbo gopher (or something similar)

♦ memorizing motivational quotes

♦ attending free webinars and master classes

♦ occasional haphazard performance of stupid exercises

♦ attempts to follow general recommendations that are inadequate to the current situation and other people's "formulas of success" (such as "believe in yourself", "go and do it!", "learn to make money", "ask the universe!")

♦ and other nonsense of the same kind

The main reason for the popularity of this kind of imitation lies in the very nature of man, which is ground on a spiritual level by the millstones of the universal game called "Sacrifice" (called Samsara in Buddhism). And a common typological feature of any victim is a low level of responsibility and constant shedding of all remnants of this very responsibility.

And since the imitations of responsibility and serious work listed above do not require, for the “victim” these are the most delicious dishes.

Another reason is the dominant idea of ​​consumerism prevailing in society, due to which the sucker perceives everything that is in the world as an object of consumption. From these positions, trainings are also perceived not as a form of training, where you need to work seriously, but as a product similar to the service of a car service “I paid money, make me become better and more tuned”. Of course, that won't work. Downloading a helicopter control program like in The Matrix has not yet been invented. Therefore, the sucker does not go to serious trainings. Only for "training for suckers", after which for some time he feels "fermented" and "enlightened", and then continues to live as he lived again.

More advanced people, consciously or implicitly understanding that denial of responsibility is a direct path to failure, tend to choose more effective forms of work on themselves:

♦ exercise, exercise and sports, hardening, work with lifestyle;

♦ working through emotional symptoms of problems

♦ visiting a psychologist/psychotherapist

♦ participation in trainings, courses, seminars

♦ observation of one's thoughts, reflection, introspection;

♦ development of certain professional skills and abilities (competencies)

♦ obtaining practical knowledge and its application in reality

As a rule, the common minus of such work is the complete or partial absence of any intelligible system that allows for the transformation on the deepest layers of the unconscious, purposefully and as efficiently as possible.

Two ways to stop lying to yourself

Usually it is very difficult for a person, but almost impossible to understand what he is lying to himself and where exactly he is lying to himself, which drastically reduces the effectiveness of any work on oneself to zero. Is there a way out of this? Yes, two!

First- proven for centuries, simple as a felt boot and reliable as a clock, a way to use a "mirror", that is, another person. Such a person (“leader”) must be able to professionally give feedback, take an adult position and possess the necessary procedural and technological arsenal in order to encourage the follower to “look the terrible truth in the eye”. The latter, of course, must be mentally prepared for this and understand that self-development is not a pleasant walk, but hard and unpleasant work to create a new version of oneself.

Second way or approach, which requires even more effort and even greater readiness to tell oneself the truth, is based on the fact that any lie to oneself leads to neuroses. And all neuroses are localized in the body in the form of clamps. A point impact on the clamp, for example, with the help of Reichian massage, allows you to identify and utilize the neurotic complex and the lies it generates.

You can try to do without massage and work out neuroses with other techniques and practices, but there is a high risk that, since the work will be carried out at the mental level, the egoistic mind, realizing the function of self-defense, will again replace real work with imitation and endless walking in a circle will begin. chasing your own tail."

How the process of self-development starts

And, of course, there must be a system in self-development. And this system should work for the most effective implementation of a goal correctly set by a person. Such a goal has clear and understandable criteria.

♦ it is a direct realization of the life mission (destiny) of a person

♦ it is strategic, that is, not for a year, not for two, or even for 10 years

♦ this goal is aimed at only and not so much at changing the position of a person, but at changing the world (even if in a very small aspect)

♦ this goal is Worthy, that is, aimed at the development of life, and the negative results associated with the goal, if they are inevitable, are local

♦ I sincerely want to go to this goal

The very fact of setting and regularly focusing on such a Goal will start the process of real, and not “cool” self-development. Cutting off and throwing out everything superfluous and unnecessary will begin. Hidden potential will begin to be released, talents, abilities and personality traits will be revealed. Important personal resources such as time, strength, energy, health will not be wasted, but will be invested in activities towards the Goal.

The process of achieving the goal will require the necessary skills and abilities, adequate to the reality of knowledge and a more perfect system of thinking, which means that a person willy-nilly will have to work on their development.

There will be a need for other people, not for “empty” friends and girlfriends, but for associates, like-minded people, comrades with whom it will be much more comfortable, pleasant and interesting, but again, you will have to learn to build mutually beneficial and harmonious relationships, which will require higher maturity, and also the ability to communicate, negotiate, take into account the interests and feelings of another.

All this will ask a person for daily, hourly and minutely changes, since any stoppage and marking time will destroy the achieved results and throw back. Yes, it will be a difficult life, active, tense, requiring constant "moving the convolutions", but at the same time it will be interesting, bright, truly full and harmonious. This is the notorious "life in the flow."

After all, development has only one alternative - degradation. No middle ground or third options. Either you are moving up, changing yourself for the sake of a lofty Goal, or you live a relatively comfortable, stable and dull life, losing yourself, your resources and opportunities. But at the same time, you sincerely convince yourself and others that you are developing somewhere. Verily, there is nothing more subtle than the lies of a limited egoistic mind.

Self-development system

The path of self-development will be different for everyone, there are, of course, universal principles, techniques, technologies, practices, methods, but they are all just tools, and a person determines the specific content of work on himself. It's like building a house: you can move into a ready-made, but uncomfortable and uncomfortable one, or you can plan and build a house exclusively for yourself, according to your requests and needs. It is clear that it will be much more comfortable and pleasant to live in your own house.

The problem of modern times is a hyperabundance of information. If a hundred years ago a person could afford to calmly, slowly sit with a serious book and carefully study it, analyze it, compare facts and draw conclusions, now everything is different. There is too much informational garbage, "white noise", copy-paste, outright lies, fantasies and shiza, which is passed off as truth. In all this mega-ocean of information, a modern person without systemic thinking, who does not know how to effectively and instantly filter information, literally drowns, he simply does not have enough time to think and understand. As a result, he simply does not absorb really valuable and necessary information, which is why he condemns himself to constant mistakes, gross miscalculations and frank fakups.

The only way out of this situation is to follow the advice of the coolest political strategist of the early twentieth century, who said that “it is impossible to solve private issues without solving general ones, you will always run into private ones”(that is, regularly screw up). This means that in addition to setting a goal, you need to “overload” your thinking by uninstalling the “firmware” that is inadequate to reality and master the basic principles that help filter out information garbage and make strategically correct decisions.

This is exactly what you need to do, first of all, if you really want, and not “cool”, to succeed in self-development.

Would you like to receive a free analysis of your situation and professional advice on creating your own self-development system? Then just

The development of intellect in man influenced his formation of Homo sapiens, which separated the human race from the animal world. This is how civilization began to form. An individual living in modern society has the possibility of independent development of intellectual potential, and maintaining the brain in good shape throughout life.

Intelligence: what is it

Intelligence is the mental ability of an individual, which is characterized by relative stability. Translated from Latin - comprehension, awareness. Reason allows not only to imagine, think, feel, perceive. The brain has a number of properties:

• brain teaser;
• prognostic;
• analytical;
• critical;
• deductive;
• ability to concentrate.

The capabilities of the brain are opposed to instincts, patterns of behavior. This means that the intellectual potential is dynamic, it progresses according to the desire of a person.

Regardless of the initial amount of knowledge and thinking skills, any individual is able to increase and expand cognitive abilities to the desired level. Performing non-standard tasks that "strain" the brain convolutions and break the stereotyped judgment contributes to the achievement of a high level of intellectual capabilities.

A high level of brain development makes it possible to adapt and understand how to act in a new situation. A person with intelligence clearly defines the problem and optimally solves it.

Types of intelligence

The division of mental abilities into certain types contradicts the famous test that determines the level of IQ. While the theory of differentiated intelligence states that each individual to some extent develops all intellectual variations.

By the way! Doctor of Psychology, D. Flynn, based on the results of large-scale world studies of IQ values, found that the coefficient has increased over 50 years.

The American psychologist Gardner identifies the following types of intelligence:

• Spatial. A person easily navigates in space, creating routes and moves in an unknown area, situation. Often architects, drivers, designers, chess players own this type.
• Musical. Predisposition to a clear differentiation of sounds, melodies, tones, rhythm, which is characteristic of musicians, singers.
• bodily-kinesthetic. The ability to control the body, clearly balancing. Dancers, gymnasts, acrobats are endowed with this variety.
• Linguistic. The ability to intuitively realize the correct spelling, pronunciation, meaning and compatibility of lexical units. Propensity to study foreign languages.
• Logico-mathematical. A predisposition to finding the relationship between numbers, dates, facts, which is characteristic of scientists.
• Naturalistic. The ability to find differences between natural phenomena, to distinguish the gifts of flora.
• interpersonal. A person socializes in society, interacts well with people, capturing their mood.
• Intrapersonal. The ability to recognize and feel inner experiences and emotions, to understand how to manage them.

According to this classification, each individual has an innate predisposition to certain actions. This tendency indicates the types of intelligence to which a person belongs. That is why one person cannot always contain several abilities.

How to develop intellectual abilities in adults

The subconscious, as the most important element of intellectual activity, enters into the processes of mental activity only when there is a motive. A well-known Russian business coach, Maxim Potashev, claims that any motive or reward affects brain activity, activating it.

Psychologists say that the level of intelligence is directly dependent on the hereditary factor and the life experience of a person. Cognitive abilities in adults are improved by finding new solutions in an unfamiliar situation.

Interesting! One of the criteria for high intelligence is the ability to intuitively find a way out of a difficult situation.

To understand how to develop intelligence, you first need to stop watching stupid TV shows, serials that do not carry useful information. Constantly make your brain work: solve puzzles, crossword puzzles, create projects.

Oxygen is essential: brain cells are saturated with it, which contributes to mental development. Physical activity is also helpful.

From this it follows that for the development of reason, it is not necessary to memorize corny book rules and facts. It is necessary to solve problems creatively, finding the best option. Intellectual "baggage" increases as you grow older.

The famous Swiss philosopher Jean Piaget believed that the central link in mental development is the intellect. Children easily form the desired pattern of behavior for a particular situation, adapting to it. In the course of such interaction, the child becomes aware of the laws and rules of life.

Based on these conclusions, Piaget identified four stages:

1. Sensorimotor (0-2 years). The newborn opens the surrounding space with the help of movements and sensory organs, establishes the dependence of personal manipulations and their consequences.
2. Preoperative (2-7 years). An initial idea of ​​​​objects and their purposes appears. However, many types of experience are not yet available to the child.
3. Specific operations (7-11 years old). The guys are able to logically manipulate objects, combine them into groups. There is no ability to generalize.
4. Formal operations (12 years and beyond). A teenager is able to think abstractly, to imagine unrealistic objects. All mind operations are available.

There is a version that intelligence differs in men and women. According to psychologists, the female mind develops intensively up to a certain time, while the male mind gradually develops throughout life.

If a woman wonders how to increase intelligence, then she must answer it before the age of 35. The scientific community believes that the development of the mind and intelligence of older women does not progress. However, some theories refute this version.

Development of memory and intelligence

An integral part of increasing intelligence is the development of memory and speech. Because these mental processes interact with mental and mental abilities.

Memory is a mental function and one of the types of brain activity. The task of memory is to store and reproduce the impressions stored in the mind.

Neuroscientist, Nobel Prize winner - Rita Levi-Montalcini - at the age of 100 participated in scientific conferences, medical congresses. She claims that the human brain is neuroplastic: if some neurons die, then others begin to perform their functions. However, they require constant stimulation.

Make your brain function by keeping it engaged:

• go in for sports;
• keep things in the same place;
• be observant;
• learn poetry;
• tell stories;
• relate abstract ideas to concrete images.

Read more books written in complex language: you will have to make an effort to understand the text. These simple tips will help keep the mind “in good shape”.

Methods for the development of intelligence

The methods are complex in nature. In order to remember all the moments that happened in life in old age, it is necessary in youth. It requires a high degree of self-control, perseverance, willpower.

In addition, the intellect is influenced by the way of life and the quality of nutrition. Frequent stress and conflict destroy the neurons of the brain.

Reason in every possible way hinders the actions of a person for his development. After all, the main purpose of the brain is to store energy. Laziness and idleness contribute to intellectual degradation.

Curious fact! It has been established that the male brain "turns off" after sexual contact. This explains the desire to sleep immediately after intercourse.

Lawrence Katz created a technique that increases the level of intelligence development - neurobics. The essence of the training technique is to perform the usual actions in a new way:

• vacuum the apartment blindfolded;
• get to work on a different route;
• read a book turned upside down
• watch a movie without sound.

Receiving new impressions, the brain sends a signal to neurons, which are organized into groups to process new impulses.

When looking for literature that enhances intellectual potential, opt for these samples:

• David Gaimon, Aerobics for the Mind;
• Olga Kinyakina, "Brain at 100%";
• Ron Hubbard, Introspection;
• Alex Lickerman "Invincible Mind";
• Harry Adler, "Techniques for the Development of Intelligence";
• Edward de Bono, "Teach Yourself to Think."

Films can also be used as a means for "brainstorming", which encourage creative thinking, erasing stereotypes.

How to competently develop intelligence (develop intelligence)?

It is believed that intellectual abilities, type of thinking (mathematical-analytical mindset, humanitarian mindset) are given by nature and are further determined by upbringing and development in childhood, which sets the main foundation for our type of thinking and the level of intelligence development in adulthood. This is partly true, but only partly.

Secrets of the development of intelligence

The best way to develop the brain is to regularly load it in a complex way, and not in one exercise (the same is true for muscles). This idea does not shine with originality, moreover, it is banal and obvious: there is no better way to improve your health and physical fitness than to give up bad habits and go in for sports. In the same way, the best impetus to the development of the mind is to use it in various complex tasks. Many people understand this very well, but for some reason they safely forget how it comes to practice!

This is due to the fact that laziness and unwillingness to make efforts overshadow the arguments of common sense and consciousness begins to look for easy ways to achieve its goals. Various marketers are well aware of this feature of a person, who massively replicate miracle pills or magic simulators and weight loss products. You must understand that nothing is given without effort and that they are not only a means, a tool (you must make an effort to achieve the goal), but also an end in itself! Only after realizing this simple truth, engage in your intellect!

By making efforts, you temper the will and strengthen the character. By doing regular exercise, you build discipline. It turns out that forcing yourself to exercise daily in anything in physical / mental development is useful not only for physical / mental improvement. It also makes you more strong-willed and disciplined and forms a useful habit of working on yourself.

Principles of intelligence development in adults (and children):
1) Look for innovation
2) Challenge yourself
3) Think creatively
4) Don't take the easy way
5) Be online

Receptions and exercises for the intellect

Now finally talk about how you can increase intelligence. First, take note that the exercises should not be too boring and monotonous, choose what suits you best and brings at least some pleasure. We must try not to overdo it, make it so that it does not take so much time that you are very burdensome. But the main thing is the regularity of the load on the brain, it is necessary that the exercises become a habit.

In physical education, there are basic exercises (which involve several muscle groups at once - push-ups from the floor, push-ups from the uneven bars, squats), and there are isolated ones (training one separate muscle group), and in the development of intelligence there are things that help to improve several qualities of our mind at once .

Next, I will tell you exactly what things help. In this article, I will touch on them briefly, but I will provide links to my articles, where each of these points is revealed in more detail. For those points for which there will be no links, I will definitely write an article later, so subscribe by mail (icon at the top right) and wait for updates.

So, what improves our mental qualities?

Logic and intellectual games: (separate article Brain-developing games. The benefits of chess, the benefits of poker) These are chess, backgammon, poker, preference, logic puzzles, developing computer games of various genres, etc.

Mind games perfectly train the mind, concentration and memory. In addition, they bring the joy of competition (if the game is against the enemy) and the pleasure of improving skills. The board game is the oldest type of mental competition, in which the best minds showed themselves.

Mathematics, exact sciences. Exact sciences develop a whole range of mental qualities. These are logical and abstract thinking, critical, analytical, deductive, predictive abilities, as well as memory and speed of thinking. This, one might say, is an exercise for many muscle groups.

The exact sciences not only improve your intellect, but also organize, structure your thinking, put things in order in your head, in your thoughts. Mathematics is extremely important in the context of the mental development of an individual, both a child and an adult.

Reading fiction: It seems to me that the influence of books on the development of the mind is somewhat exaggerated. I'm talking about the common belief that to become smart you have to read a lot. This statement is true, but incomplete. Yes, it is undeniable that good books broaden your horizons, promote emotional development, form good taste and develop certain qualities of your mind.

The books are a must read for both adults and children. But literature enhances only certain mental properties. In order to have a balanced developed mind, books alone are not enough (as, indeed, mathematics or logic games alone), you need to do everything together: both the exact sciences and literature, etc. Otherwise, some of your abilities will be developed, and some will remain in their infancy.

Learning: The unique ability of our brain is the ability to learn new skills, acquire new information and apply it to our daily experience. Teaching is light! Learning contributes not only to the fact that we comprehend knowledge that, as it may be useful to us, may not be needed at all. The value is not only in the knowledge itself, but in learning as such!

While learning, we learn to work with information, process it, and then find a place for it in the general structure of our knowledge. Even if this knowledge is never useful in life, learning it, we strain our mind and memory, learn concentration. Also, learning helps to expand our horizons, and the more we learn, the easier it is for us to learn new knowledge! In this process, we learn to learn!

Learning other languages: also develops certain aspects of our thinking. Somewhere I read that many good mathematicians, "technicians" find it difficult, in the beginning, to be given a language. Conversely, those who know languages ​​well, as a rule, are at odds with the exact sciences. It is, but I don't want you to draw the wrong conclusions! This, at all, does not indicate the presence of the notorious dichotomy "techies - humanitarians", that the former were created for one, and the latter for the other.

The conclusion in the article in which I read about this was the following. Everyone with due effort is able to master anything! The fact about the difficulty in learning languages, on the part of techies, suggests that the mental qualities that are developed by the exact sciences are not adjacent to those properties of the intellect that are improved by knowledge of languages! In short, if you did push-ups from the floor for a long time, then it will be easier for you to pull the barbell from the chest, since the same muscles are involved here and there.

But if you want to squat well, then your push-up experience will not help you at all. And if you want to have both strong legs and a relief chest, then please do both. Also here. Mathematics contributes little to the development of those parts of the brain that are needed for learning languages. Completely different qualities are involved here, and for harmonious mental development, it is necessary to develop both. Remember, one does not exclude the other, even if something will be given to you much more difficult than the other.

Emotional intelligence (EI; English emotional intelligence, EI)- the ability of a person to recognize emotions, understand the intentions, motivation and desires of other people and their own, as well as the ability to manage their emotions and the emotions of other people in order to solve practical problems.

The concept of emotional intelligence emerged as a reaction to the frequent failure of traditional intelligence tests to predict a person's career and life success. The explanation for this was found to be that successful people are able to interact effectively with other people based on emotional connections and to effectively manage their own emotions, while the accepted concept of intelligence did not include these aspects, and intelligence tests did not evaluate these abilities.

social intelligence- the ability to correctly understand the behavior of people. This ability is necessary for effective interpersonal interaction and successful social adaptation.

The very term "social intelligence" was introduced into psychology by E. Thorndike in 1920 to denote "foresight in interpersonal relationships." Many well-known psychologists have contributed to the interpretation of this concept. In 1937, G. Allport associated social intelligence with the ability to make quick, almost automatic judgments about people, to predict the most likely reactions of a person. Social intelligence, according to G. Allport, is a special “social gift” that ensures smoothness in relations with people, the product of which is social adaptation, and not the depth of understanding.

And the last…

Learning new things: reading scientific and popular science literature, browsing cognitive, encyclopedias, useful, informative sites, all this helps to enrich your mind and erudition. Don't neglect it! Strive to keep the curiosity of a child! Always learn new things, comprehend this world and man. Remember, knowledge is power! There are a lot of amazing things happening in the world. The whole universe is one big miracle! Strive to learn as much as possible about it!

Thematic video: Japanese system for the development of intelligence and memory (6 minutes).

Instruction

First, love yourself. Accept yourself as you are, stop scolding yourself and looking for yourself shortcomings, do not cultivate your complexes. inspire yourself respect for yourself, believe in your strengths and capabilities. Trust not only your own inner "I", but also your body, with which you are one

Understand yourself, have a clear understanding of yourself and his condition. Your concept should constantly assimilate to a new life experience and state, your and ideal "I" should steadily approach each other in your imagination.

Take full responsibility for your own actions. This will allow you to gain inner freedom and always remain faithful. yourself and your convictions.

Keep and protect the integrity of your inner world, do not lose unity between feelings, do not betray your beliefs even in small things, but do not confuse this with stubbornness and conservatism.

Be able to admit, realize your mistakes. Personality is not a rigid monument, it must constantly change, its growth and formation is a sign that it exists. An important criterion for development is flexibility and the ability to be adequate to the outside world, while maintaining its identity.

Related videos

Continuous self-improvement is the mark of a real person. If you are interested in developing your intellectual abilities and moral qualities, start working in this direction.

Instruction

Remember why you need self-improvement. When you understand that self-development will help you succeed, you have an incentive to work on yourself. Keep your life goals in mind. If you know that personal growth is the key to a happy and fulfilling life, you will pay enough attention to it. To systematically move forward and devote time every day to your development, you will need willpower. Indeed, sometimes there is neither the strength nor the desire to think about something or learn something new.

Recognize the need for regular exercise. Some flaws in your character, such as laziness, may prevent you from fulfilling your plans. Therefore, you need to learn how to deal with them. The easiest way to overcome laziness is to simply start doing something without too much thought. Then you will not have a chance to come up with a reason for refusing to work on yourself or transferring part of the tasks to another day.

Read more. If you want to grow a real, multifaceted personality in yourself, give preference to classical works. Such books will show you different characters and life situations, help diversify oral and written speech. In general, it is difficult to overestimate the positive value of the works of world classical literature, which it has on the personality of a person.

Be inspired by the examples of great people. It is not necessary to have some kind of idol, but a passion for biographies and memoirs of famous writers, artists, scientists, public figures will help you determine some life principles for yourself and have a beneficial effect on your fortitude. On someone else's positive example, you will learn to move forward, despite the obstacles.

Pay attention not only to your soul, but also to your body. Get active and spend your weekends active. Choose healthy food and get enough sleep. It is better if you live according to a certain regimen, eating and going to bed at the same time every day, even on holidays and during vacations. By feeling well, you will have the strength to work on developing your personality.

Develop your intellect. Try to learn something new every day, watch educational films and educational programs, visit exhibitions and museums. Work on improving your memory and logic abilities. Learn foreign languages, travel more and get out of your comfort zone more often. All this contributes to the development of your personality.

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A self-respecting person with the same respect relates to others in order to emphasize their own dignity even more clearly. There are many other deeds and features in which a person shows respect for yourself himself. This is especially evident in conflict situations.

Instruction

Don't raise your voice in conflict. This is the first sign of weakness and impotence. If you have exhausted the arguments, keep silent with something like this facial expression: "I'm right anyway." Even if you are really right, you will not be able to convince a person who insists on the opposite point of view. You risk only spoiling relations with him, but not pulling him over to your side, especially since it is most likely not profitable for him.

Do not argue with people who you feel are inferior to you in knowledge or competence. If you give even the most reasonable arguments, at best they will not listen to you, and at worst they will laugh at you. Try only that your affairs do not depend on the opinion of these people: their mistake can cost you dearly.

Treat others with courtesy, but without servility. Any person should perceive you as an equal, not a subordinate. Moreover, do not try to curry favor or achieve someone's favor by walking on your hind legs. Know how to refuse if a friend's request is fraught with losses and losses for you.

Watch your posture. It has been noticed that a person who feels guilty or defends himself from attacks sometimes pulls his head into his shoulders, stoops, as if trying to look smaller and more inconspicuous. Such a figure causes even more excitement in the opponent, and in you - a feeling of enslavement. Keep your back and head straight, like a person who has nothing to fear and no one to hide from. Try to look into the eyes of the interlocutor to prove your sincerity and fearlessness at the same time.

As with any change of character, nurture in yourself self respect gradually. Don't expect instant results and success once you start using these methods. They can also be difficult to use for people who have been using them for a long time. The only question is your perseverance and fortitude.

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A person's own "I" is a source of internal resources, a support. Having this support, a person is sure of yourself, adequate in any situation, free to choose and experiencing a feeling of happiness. Usually, the concept of "I" is invested with role-playing attitudes, an idea of ​​​​one's goals, values, one's own significance, personal strength, ways of responding to problems. Only having decided on what you understand by your “I”, what you lack, you can look for ways of self-development.

Instruction

Take an active position as a doer, a creator of your own destiny. A person's own "I" develops, and only in action. Stop feeling like a victim, weak or flawed person. This belief robs you of your own energy. Your inner world is perfect enough and you can use any resource for your needs. The main thing is to act, not to suffer!

Take responsibility for decisions and emotions. Give back yourself a report on how your beliefs, ideas affect your behavior. And how you are perceived by other people. Be ready to change beliefs, attitudes, if you need it.

Make reasonable commitments to people and keep them. Obligations should not go against your interests, or to the detriment of you - otherwise they are unreasonable. On the contrary, moderate, they can make you feel your own strength and self-satisfaction.

Develop your independence. Independence in everything: in behavior, actions, thinking speaks of a formed, strong inner core of a person. Learn to analyze the situation, look for information and make decisions on your own. Be prepared to be responsible for your decisions. Both victories and defeats will be equally yours, well-deserved. Take it.

Look for your mission, set life goals and tasks for yourself. Purposeful person and infects others. This manifests the power of personality, the power of one's own "I". This is not done lying on the couch, for this you need to move, act, make attempts, try yourself in different types of activities, analyze experience. Highlight yourself a little time to sit down and think about where to go, what you want. And take action again. Use various exercises, meditations, creativity in order to express your "I".

Direct your energy and strength not to protect yourself, but to cooperate with others, use the power of your "I" to influence. Look for constructive methods of solving conflicts and problems. Learn to manage your emotions. Be interested in the lives of other people - what they want, what they live, what they strive for.

Develop your view of the world, form beliefs, opinions. To do this, read more, communicate with others, be interested in what is happening, develop your interests. Pay equal attention to both physical and spiritual self-improvement.

Treat others with interest and respect. Take the best from others, in your opinion, learn from the strong and. Respect other people's interests and points of view. But know how to keep your view on situations and things. Never assert yourself for people, do not compare yourself with others.

Develop your sense of humor. Be positive and cheerful. Learn to have fun with ease. For your "I" these are ideal conditions for development.

Some people have a clear life position, the ability to live in harmony with themselves and achieve their goals. Such individuals stand out from the crowd due to their pronounced personality.

Instruction

Decide on your goals and set the life goals that you want to achieve. You must be motivated to develop strong personal qualities. Remember that goals should be realistic, broken down into smaller tasks and milestones.

Don't be afraid to speak your mind. Do not depend on the voice of the crowd and blindly follow other people. A real person is distinguished by loyalty to his own ideals and principles.

Try to keep your individuality. The qualities that you used to consider as shortcomings can turn out to be your features, you just have to look at them from a different angle. Don't give up on what makes you stand out from the crowd.

Be true to yourself. Don't do something if your whole being is against it. Overpowering yourself and adapting to others, you will not gain a strong personality. Always think about which path is best for you. When you do something, decide whether it will benefit your body and mind.

Don't stop developing. Improve yourself, develop your talents and skills, grow in a professional sense, read more quality literature, discover new types of art, other countries. Try to expand your horizons, meet new people, get out of your comfort zone.

Treat your mistakes right. It makes no sense to constantly worry about what you have done, but it’s also impossible not to notice that you stumbled. Learn from the negative moments of your past and move on, wiser from your own experience.

Be above complaints and gossip. A real person does not have time to criticize someone or something. Engage in more interesting and constructive things, direct your thoughts in a more positive direction.

Know how to resist someone else's negative opinion. A real person does not need the approval of the crowd and does not try to please everyone. Understand that it is impossible to please everyone around you and still maintain your individuality. Be the kind of person who likes, first of all, you, and not other people.

Know yourself. Listen to your own feelings every day. Do it better in the process of meditation. Find a secluded corner where no one will disturb you. Sit comfortably and close your eyes. In silence observe your self for fifteen to twenty minutes. Over time, you will notice that you have become better aware of what you want, and you will find harmony with yourself.

Do not be upset if you are not rewarded with innate sensitivity. Tactfulness can be developed in oneself through certain work. Observe the relationships between people and be careful with the feelings of others.

Instruction

Watch how relationships develop between people. To do this, you can refer to the works of world literature. Read novels, watch how the characters interact. Books written by world-famous authors can teach you a lot. You will see how some character traits of this or that hero are connected with his actions, you will understand what words or actions lead to quarrels and breaks, how different people can react to different circumstances.

Keeping track of people's relationships is useful in real life. Other people's actions, emotions and words will help you get to know others better. Over time, you will learn to predict how other people will react. This will help you become more tactful and attentive to the feelings of those around you.

Think about what character traits help you get along with others, show yourself as a tactful person. For example, they include kindness, attentiveness, the desire to understand another, non-obsession with oneself, the ability to listen. You can take as an example a person you know who successfully builds relationships with people of various types. Think about what qualities help her in this, and try to develop them in yourself.

Learn the basics of personality psychology. This will help you understand how to approach others, how to build relationships with them so as not to hurt their feelings. You will understand what questions not to ask in order not to embarrass others, and you will realize what behavior is inappropriate.

Watch not only what you say, but also how you do it. Your posture, facial expressions, and voice also matter. Your behavior must correspond to the meaning of the spoken phrases, otherwise you will seem like an insincere person. Avoid aggressive and impatient gestures. Be polite and listen to the person carefully. Do not look away and do not take on a thoughtfully bored look.

Be careful with criticisms. A phrase that seems quite innocent to you can deeply hurt a person. You can casually throw something about the features in the interlocutor's appearance or his personal quality, and he will be very upset. This is what tact is about - the art of creating a comfortable atmosphere around yourself when communicating. Don't talk too much.

Learn to behave. Do not speak loudly in public places or discuss those present with someone. Remember, sometimes tact comes down to observing the elementary rules of etiquette. Understand that publicizing the details of your personal life can be unpleasant for a person.

Think about others. Try to behave in a way that does not inconvenience anyone. No need to listen to loud music in the workplace. This can distract colleagues. If someone is feeling down, sad, or uncomfortable, offer to help. Do not insistently brag about your success in your career or personal life in front of less fortunate people. Your bragging might hurt them.

A person who is creative by nature differs from other people in that he does not look for a solution to a problem, but looks for all possible solutions, and he will most likely choose the most inappropriate one. Unlike other abilities, the propensity for creativity, if present in a person, can develop without much effort - in the eyes of a creative person, a song can develop from the slightest rustle. How to develop creativity personality?

What is "Intellect"?

First of all, let me explain what I mean when I say the word "intelligence". To be clear, I'm not just talking about increasing the amount of facts or bits of knowledge you can accumulate, or what is called crystallized intelligence - it's not training in fluency or memorization - in fact, it's almost the opposite. I'm talking about improving your fluid intelligence, or your ability to memorize new information, store it, then use that new knowledge as a basis for solving the next problem or learning another new skill, and so on.

Now, while short-term memory is not synonymous with intelligence, it is very much related to intelligence. To successfully draw an intelligent conclusion, it is quite important to have a good short-term memory. Thus, to make the most of intelligence, it is worth significantly improving short-term memory - this is, for example, using the best and most modern parts to help the mechanism work at the highest level.

What can you take away from this? This study is significant because it found:

1. Hypothetical intelligence can be trained.
2. Training and subsequent success depend on the dosage, the more you train, the more benefits you get.
3. Everyone can develop their cognitive abilities, regardless of the starting level.
4. Progress can be made by practicing on tasks that don't resemble questions on a test.

How can this research be applied and benefited from?

There is a reason why the n-back task has been so successful in increasing cognitive ability. This training includes the division of attention between competing stimuli, that is, multimodality (one visual stimulus, one auditory stimulus). Here you need to focus on certain details, ignoring inappropriate information, and this helps to improve short-term memory over time, gradually increasing the ability to perceive information effectively in several directions. In addition, the stimulus was constantly switched, so that the phenomenon of "training for test questions" never occurred - each time there was something new. If you have never taken an n-back test, let me tell you about it: it is very difficult. No wonder there are so many cognitive benefits from such an activity.

But let's talk from a practical point of view.
Eventually, the cards in the deck or the sounds in the piece will run out (the experiment lasted 2 weeks), so it's not practical to think that if you want to continuously increase your intelligence throughout your life, then one n-back will be enough. Besides, you will get tired of it and stop doing it. I'm sure that's what I would do. Not to mention the time you spend learning this way - we are all very busy all the time! Thus, we should think about how to model the same types of super-efficient multi-modal brain stimulation techniques that can be used in normal life, and still get the maximum benefit in the growth of cognitive thinking.

So, with all of this in mind, I have developed five basic elements that will help in the development of fluid intelligence, or cognitive ability. As I have already noted, it is impractical to consistently perform the n-back task or variations of it every day for the rest of your life in order to receive cognitive benefits. But what is practical is a lifestyle change that will have the same – and even greater – cognitive benefits. This can be done every day to benefit from intensive all-brain training, and should also translate into benefits for full cognitive functioning.

These five basic principles are:

1. Look for innovation
2. Challenge yourself
3. Think creatively
4. Don't take the easy way
5. Be online

Each of these points is already a great thing in itself, but if you really want to function at the highest possible cognitive level, it is better to do all five points, and as often as possible. In fact, I live by these five principles. If you accept these as fundamental guidelines, then I guarantee that you will make the most of your abilities, surpassing even what you thought you were capable of - all without artificial boost. Great Information: Science confirms these principles with data!

1. Seek innovation

It's no coincidence that geniuses like Einstein were knowledgeable in many fields, or erudite, as we call them. Geniuses are constantly looking for new activities, exploring new areas. This is their personality.

Only one of the "Big Five" traits of the Five Factor Personality Model (Acronym: ODEPR, or Openness, Conscientiousness, Extroversion, Pleasantness, and Irritability) is associated with IQ, and that is the Openness to Experience trait. People who have a high level of Openness are constantly looking for new information, new activities, new things to learn - new experiences in general.

When you are looking for innovation, several things happen. First of all, you create new synaptic connections with every new activity you participate in. These connections build on each other, increasing the activity of the nervous system, creating more connections so that new connections are created on their basis - thus, learning occurs.

An area of ​​interest in recent research is neural plasticity as a factor in individual differences in intelligence. Plasticity refers to the number of connections made between neurons and how that affects subsequent connections, and how long those connections last. Basically it means how much new information you are able to take in, and whether you are able to store it by making permanent changes in the brain. Constantly exposing yourself directly to new things helps to put the brain in its original state for learning.

Innovation also triggers the production of dopamine (I mentioned this earlier in other posts), which is not only highly motivating, but also stimulates neurogenesis - the creation of new neurons - and prepares the brain for learning. All you have to do is satisfy your hunger.

Excellent condition for learning = New activity-> release of dopamine-> promotes a more motivated state-> which promotes the recruitment and creation of neurons-> neurogenesis can occur + increase in synaptic plasticity (increase in the number of new nerve connections, or learning).

As a follow-up to Jaggy's study, researchers in Sweden found that after 14 hours of short-term memory training for 5 weeks, there was an increase in the amount of dopamine D1 binding potential in the prefrontal and parietal regions of the brain. This particular dopamine receptor, type D1, is associated with nerve cell growth and development, among other things. This increase in plasticity, allowing for greater anchoring of this receptor, is very helpful in maximizing cognitive functioning.

Follow the point at home: Be "Einstein". Always look for new activities for the mind - expand your cognitive horizons. Learn the tool. Take a painting course. Go to the museum. Read about a new field of science. Be addicted to knowledge.

2. Challenge yourself

There is a huge amount of terrible work written and distributed about how to "train the brain" and "become smarter." When I talk about "brain training games", I mean memory games and speed games, the purpose of which is to increase the speed of information processing, etc.; this includes games such as Sudoku, which are advised to play in "free time" (end the oxymoron, given the development of cognitive abilities). I'm going to debunk some of the stuff you've heard about brain training games before. Here's what I'll tell you: They don't work. Individual learning games don't make you smarter - they make you more proficient at brain learning games.

So, they do have a purpose, but the result won't last long. In order to get something out of these types of cognitive activity, one must turn to the first principle of the search for innovation. Once you master one of these cognitive activities in the brain training game, you should move on to the next challenging activity. Do you understand how to play Sudoku? Fine! Now move on to the next type of stimulating games. There has been research that supports this logic.

A few years ago, scientist Richard Hayer wanted to know if it was possible to significantly increase cognitive ability through intense training in new types of mental activity in a few weeks. They used the video game Tetris as a new activity, and used people who had never played the game before as subjects of study (I know, I know - can you imagine such people exist?!). They found that after training for several weeks on a game of Tetris, the study subjects experienced an increase in cortical thickness as well as an increase in cortical activity, as evidenced by an increase in the amount of glucose used in that area of ​​the brain. Basically, the brain used more energy during that training period, and got fatter - that means more nerve connections, or new learned experiences - after such intense training. And they became experts at Tetris. Cool, yeah?

Here's the thing: After the initial cognitive spike, they noticed a decrease in both cortical thickness and the amount of glucose used during the task. However, they still played Tetris just as well; their skill did not deteriorate. Brain scans showed less brain activity during the game, instead of an increase as in previous days. Why the decline? Their brains have become more efficient. Once their brain understood how to play Tetris, and really started to understand it, it became too lazy to do something. He didn't have to work as hard to play the game well, so cognitive energy and glucose went in the other direction.

Efficiency is not your friend when it comes to cognitive growth. In order for the brain to continue making new connections and keep them active, you must continue to move on to other stimulating activities once you have reached the peak of mastery in a particular activity. You want to be in a constant state of little embarrassment, struggling to achieve something, no matter what it is, as Einstein noted in his quote. It keeps the brain in limbo, so to speak. We will return to this issue later.

3. Think creatively

When I say that thinking creatively will help you improve your nervous system, I don't mean painting a picture, or doing something fancy like the first paragraph, "Look for innovation." When I talk about creative thinking, I mean direct creative cognition and what it means while the process is going on in the brain.

Contrary to popular belief, creative thinking is not “thinking with the right side of the brain.” Both halves of the brain are involved here, not just the right. Creative cognition includes divergent thinking (a wide range of topics/subjects), the ability to find distant associations with ideas, switch between traditional and non-traditional perspectives (cognitive flexibility), and generate original, fresh ideas that are also relevant to the activity you are doing. To do everything right, you need the right and left hemispheres to work simultaneously and together.

A few years ago, Dr. Robert Sternberg, former Dean of Tufts University, opened the PACE (Psychology of Ability, Competence, and Excellence) Center in Boston. Sternberg tried not only to define the basic concept of intelligence, but also to find ways in which any person can maximize their intelligence through training, and especially through schooling.

Here Sternberg describes the goals of the PACE Center, which was founded at Yale University:
“The main concept of the center is that abilities are not fixed, they are flexible, they can be changed, each person can transform his abilities into his competence, and competence into mastery,” Sternberg explains. “Our focus is on how we can help people change their abilities so that they can better solve problems and cope with the situations they will face in life.”

Through his research, Project Rainbow, he developed not only innovative methods for creative classroom learning, but produced assessments that tested students in a way that they had to approach problem solving in a creative and practical way, as well as analytically, rather than just memorizing facts. .

Sternberg explains:
“In Project Rainbow, we valued creative, practical as well as analytical skills. A creative test could be, for example: ‘Here is a cartoon. Give it a title.’ A practice task could be a film about a student who comes to a party, looks around, doesn’t know anyone, and obviously feels uncomfortable. What should a student do?

He wanted to see if teaching students to think creatively about assignments could make them learn more about a topic, enjoy learning more, and transfer what they learned to other areas of science. He wanted to see if, by changing teaching and assessment methods, it was possible to prevent "learning to take tests" and get students to learn more, in general. He collected information on this topic and still got good results.

Briefly? On average, students in the test group (those who were taught using creative methods) scored higher at the end of their college course than the control group (who were taught using traditional methods and assessment systems). But, to be fair, he gave the test group the same analytical-type exam as the regular students (the multiple-choice test), and they also scored higher on that test. This means that they were able to transfer the knowledge they received using creative, multi-modal learning methods and scored higher on a completely different cognitive test of the same material. Doesn't this remind you of anything?

4. Don't take the easy way

I mentioned earlier that efficiency is not your friend if you are trying to increase your IQ. Unfortunately, many things in life are geared towards increasing efficiency. Thus, we do more with less time, physical and mental effort. However, this does not have a beneficial effect on your brain.

Take one object of modern convenience, GPS. GPS is an amazing invention. I am one of those people for whom GPS was invented. I'm awfully bad at navigating the area. I get lost all the time. So I thanked fate for the advent of GPS. But you know what? After using the GPS for a short time, I found that my sense of direction became even worse. When it wasn't at my fingertips, I felt even more lost than before. So when I moved to Boston - the city where horror movies about the lost come from - I stopped using GPS.

I will not lie - my suffering knew no bounds. My new job meant traveling all over the outskirts of Boston, and I got lost every day for at least 4 weeks. I got lost and wandered so often that I thought that I would lose my job due to chronic lateness (I was even complained about in writing). But over time, I began to find my way, thanks to the vast navigational experience I gained with just my brain and a map. I really began to feel where and what is in Boston thanks solely to logic and memory, and not GPS. I still remember how proud I was that I found a hotel in the city center where my friend was staying, based only on the name and description of the area - even without an address! I felt like I graduated from a navigational education school.

Technology makes our lives easier, faster, more efficient in many ways, but sometimes our cognitive abilities can suffer as a result of this kind of simplification and harm us in the future. Before everyone starts yelling and emailing my transhumanist friends about my sin against technology, I must warn you that this is not what I do at all.

Look at it this way: when you drive to work, it takes less physical effort, less time, and it's more convenient and enjoyable than walking. Everything seems to be fine. But if you only ride or spend your whole life on a segway, not even short distances, then you will not waste energy. Over time, your muscles will atrophy, your physical condition will weaken, and you are likely to gain excess weight. As a result, your general condition will worsen.

Your brain needs exercise too. If you stop using your problem solving skills, your logical, cognitive abilities, then how will your brain always be in the best shape, not to mention improve your mental abilities? Think about the fact that if you constantly rely only on useful modern conveniences, your skills in a certain area may suffer. For example, translation software: great, but my knowledge of languages ​​deteriorated markedly as soon as I started using them. Now I force myself to think of a translation before I know the correct one. The same applies to spell check and automatic correction. In truth, auto-correction is the worst thing that has been invented to improve the thought process. You know the computer will find and correct your mistakes, so you keep typing to yourself without even thinking about it. How to spell a particular word. As a result, after several years of stable autocorrect and automatic spell checking, are we the most illiterate nation? (Wish someone would do some research on this.)

There are times when the use of technology is justified and necessary. But there are times when it's better to say no to simplifications and use your brain while you can afford the luxury of time and energy. In order to keep yourself in good physical shape, it is recommended to walk to work as often as possible or take the stairs instead of the elevator several times a week. Don't you want your brain to stay in shape too? Put the GPS aside from time to time, and do a favor for your navigation and problem-solving skills. Keep it handy, but try to find everything yourself first. Your brain will thank you for it.

5. Be online

And so we come to the last element on the path to increasing your cognitive potential: a computer network. What's great about this last install is that if you're doing the previous four things, you're probably already doing this as well. If not, then start. Immediately.

By interacting with other people, either through social media such as Facebook or Twitter, or face-to-face, you expose yourself to situations that will make it much easier for you to achieve goals 1-4. As you encounter new people, new ideas, and new environments, you open yourself up to new opportunities for mental growth. By being around people who may not be in your field, you will be able to see problems from a new perspective or discover new solutions that you have never thought of before. Connecting with other people online is a great way to learn how to open yourself up to new things and perceive unique and meaningful information. I won't even go into the social benefits and emotional well-being of a computer network, but that's just an added benefit.

Stephen Johnson, who wrote How Good Ideas Are Born, discusses the importance of groups and networks in promoting ideas. If you are looking for new situations, ideas, environments and perspectives, then the web is the answer for you. It would be quite difficult to implement the concept of "smarter" without making the network a core component. The great thing about computer networks: Beneficial for everyone involved. Collective intelligence for victory!

I have one more thing to mention...
Remember back at the beginning of this article I told a story about my clients with autism spectrum disorders? Let's think for a moment about how to increase the level of flexibility of your intellect in light of everything that we have already talked about. What are these children capable of achieving at such a high level? It's not an accident or a miracle - it's because we incorporated all of these teaching principles into their therapy program. While most other therapy providers are stuck on the "Infallible Learning" paradigm and slightly modified Lovaas Methods of Applied Behavior Analysis, we have embraced and fully embraced a multi-modal approach to learning. We made the kids try their best to learn, we used the most creative methods we could think of, and we dared to set the bar seemingly far beyond their abilities. But you know what? They went beyond the time frame and made me truly believe that amazing things are possible if you have the will, courage and perseverance to set yourself on this path and stick with it. If these children with disabilities can live while constantly improving their cognitive abilities, then so can you.

In parting, I'll ask a thought-provoking question: If we have all this supporting data showing that these teaching methods and learning approaches can have such a profoundly positive impact on cognitive growth, why aren't therapy programs or school systems taking advantage of some of these methods? I would like to see them as a standard in the field of education, and not an exception. Let's try something new and shake up the education system a bit, shall we? We would greatly raise the collective IQ.

Intelligence is not only about how many levels in a math course you have completed, how fast you can solve an algorithm, or how many new words over 6 characters you know. It is about approaching a new problem, recognizing its important components, and solving it. Then collect the knowledge gained and apply it to solve the next, more complex problem. It's about innovation and imagination and being able to apply them to make the world a better place. It is this kind of intelligence that is valuable, and it is this kind of intelligence that we should strive for and encourage.

About the Author: Andrea Kuszewski is a consultant behavioral therapist for children with autism based in Florida; specialist in Asperger's syndrome, or high-functioning autism. She teaches the basics of behavior in society, communication, as well as the impact of behavior on the sphere of home and society, teaching children and parents about therapy methods. Andrea's work as a researcher with METODO Transdisciplinary, American Social Science Research Group, Bogota, Colombia, is investigating the influence of neuro-cognitive factors in human behavior - this includes aspects such as creativity, intelligence, illicit behavior, and diffuse-confuser disorders. like schizophrenia and autism. Also, as a creativity researcher, she is a painter herself and has studied various forms of visual communication ranging from traditional drawing to digital painting, graphic design, and 3D modeling, animation in the medical sciences and behavioral sciences. She has a blog on The Rogue Neuron and on Twitter